True Tales of Rescue

What is life like for a group of orphaned raccoon siblings, born in the attic of a home, as they experience life at a raccoon rehabilitation center in California? This photo-packed series explores the stories and science behind animal sanctuaries, including all of the ups and downs that go along with caring for wild raccoons away from their natural element. Includes full-color photos, graphics, and maps. At WildCare in San Rafael, California, many wild animals are brought in every day — skunks, birds, opossums, squirrels, and more — including raccoons. Four baby raccoons are put into the hands of WildCare staff, specifically volunteer Shelley. The kits need feedings, medicine, burpings, and even help going to the bathroom. The kits are not allowed to spend any time with other humans — they can't be used to humans once they are returned to the wilds of suburbia. A steady process involving enrichment, exercise, outdoor exposure — and more than you'll ever think you'll know about raccoons and other city wildlife — fills the pages of Raccoon Rescue.

Part of a photo-packed series exploring the stories and science behind animal sanctuaries, Go, Goats! delivers an up-close look at what life is like at a farm sanctuary in upstate New York, straight from a goat herself. A nonfiction chapter book for elementary-age readers, it includes full-color photos, graphics, and maps. It's summertime in upstate New York and the Camp Kindness volunteers have arrived at Catskills Animal Sanctuary. Wise old goat Lucia knows everything about the farm sanctuary and its residents-from the weeping willow tree with the best leaves to nibble on, to which goats are snugglers and which like their space, to the differences between goats and sheep (note: there are many-start with the eyes!). Lucia is a member of what the farm staff calls the Underfoot Family. It's a group of more than fifty animals-goat, sheep, chickens, ducks, and even a pig-who have free reign of the farm. While the staff works hard to rescue, recover, rehabilitate and release all of the farm animals who come to the sanctuary, not every animal will leave-Lucia is one who will spend the rest of her days in the comfort of the sanctuary, watching babies be born and new friends come and go, and welcoming a new group of campers every summer with a warm heart and a gentle head butt. What is life like at Catskills Animal Sanctuary? Lucia will tell you everything!

Photo-packed series explores the stories and science behind animal sanctuaries. An up-close look at what life is like at a real wombat sanctuary in Australia-straight from a wombat herself in a nonfiction chapter book for elementary-aged readers. Includes full-color photos, graphics, and maps. When a new baby wombat shows up at Sleepy Burrows Sanctuary in Australia, Chance, the veteran wombat, is excited to show the new gal the ropes. Before any animal can be successfully released, many things have to happen. After rescue comes recovery, then rehabilitation, and finally, release. Those are animal-sanctuary tenets-an animal will remain safe until release or until it dies. For Chance and the new wombat, Panzer, this means learning how to find food, dig, and find a lifelong companion. Readers will love Chance, Panzer, and the crew of wombats. Other books in the photo-packed Sanctuary Stories series include Sweet Senior Pups.

An up-close look at what life is like the morning after a terrible hurricane for anteater Abi in this photo-packed series exploring the stories and science behind animal sanctuaries. Abi takes readers behind the scenes of an anteater sanctuary in Belize in this nonfiction chapter book for elementary-aged readers. Includes full-color photos, graphics, and maps.

Go inside Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado, where you will meet a tiger named Kamal, one of five hundred animals who have been rescued and now live in safety. Includes full-color photos, graphics, and maps. Meet Kamal! He's a tiger, and a resident of Wild Animal Sanctuary (WAS) in Colorado, along with five hundred other big animals. Most of these animals have never lived in the wild. They've come from roadside zoos, entertainment facilities, and even people's homes! But even though a tiger can be super adorable as a baby, big (and little) tigers should never be pets. That's where WAS steps in. Since 1980, WAS has rescued and cared for lions, tigers, bears, leopards, jaguars, mountain lions, and some smaller carnivores such as wolves, bobcats, lynxes, foxes, and coyotes. There are also alpacas and horses, a few emus, several ostriches, one porcupine, one raccoon, and one camel! While it may sound amazing to be surrounded by all these incredible animals of all shapes and sizes, the animals have often come from terrible situations, and lack instincts that would keep them alive if they were able to live where they belong. They have been malnourished, declawed, not properly vetted. They don't know how to hunt, have never been able to mate (or have mated too much), and, most of all, have no trust in humans. The staff at WAS changes all of that, slowly but surely, getting animals like Kamal the tiger healthy, trusting, and safe again-and as close to wild as they can be. Tigers are very smart, loyal, and independent, Kamal was living in a dog crate with a man in a trailer, posing for pictures. It was no way for a tiger to live. Now Kamal has a habitat with tall prairie grass and a pond the size of a football field. It may not be the wild, but WAS is as close to perfect as it gets.

Photo-packed series explores the stories and science behind animal sanctuaries. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Visit the Senior Dog Sanctuary of Maryland to meet three very special old dogs-Mino, Buffy, and Jack-who are ready and waiting to make new families very happy. Includes full-color photos, maps, and graphics throughout. At many animal shelters, older pets are often overlooked in favor of puppies and kittens. But you'll find only dogs over the age of six at the Senior Dog Sanctuary of Maryland. Mino, Jack, and Buffy are three dog roommates at the SDS, each having a unique personality but all of them in need of a new home. For every dog at SDS, the road to release is a different one but always features rescue, recovery, rehabilitation, and ultimately release. Join Mino as he shares stories about Buffy, Jack, and the SDS staff they get ready for their forever families. Other books in the photo-packed Sanctuary Stories series include Welcome, Wombat.