Alabaminal

All Creatures Small is a private, small-scale rescue for small pets, exotics, and fish located in Central Alabama. This blog features our rescued animals, informative/public awareness posts, and Alabama wildlife.

[allcreaturessmall]

To say that I am exhausted and heartsick and furious about the ever-worsening crisis of stray, feral, abandoned, and free-roaming cats and kittens in the United States would be a vast understatement. We are so far beyond the breaking point in this country where cats and their welfare is concerned, and we need to stop pretending we can TNR and adopt our way out of it. The "no kill" movement is a miserable failure that has shifted the burden of managing unwanted pets onto a general public that is not prepared to shoulder it, thereby increasing abandonment, and TNR is a band aid on a bullet wound that ultimately still leads to cats suffering and dying on a mind boggling scale (not to mention the environmental impact).

I don't know what the answer is, but I know at least part of it is something no one wants to talk about: the prospect of resuming shelter euthanasia as a form of population control, because there ARE fates far worse than never waking up, and I watch cats suffer them every single day. I also think we need a massive cultural shift and the legislation and funding to support it: widespread, affordable, accessible spay and neuter; spay abort for every shelter and rescue intake; penalties for abandonment; restrictions on free roaming animals; restrictions on intact cats; regulation of rescue organizations to discourage warehousing and hoarding, etc.

I don't see any of that happening with the current direction of rescue culture or cat ownership culture in the US. In fact, I bet a fair number of people reading this post will think I am monstrous and come after me in the comments (spoiler alert: I'm not responding) for daring to suggest solutions like spay abort and euthanasia for population control. I don't care. If you have a better solution than I've arrived at after decades in rescue, then by all means, I will pass you the torch and you can start your new organization with this kitten for your first intake, because I'm supposed to be closed. But how could I look at an abandoned animal in obvious danger and say, "Sorry, kid, I'm out of the game?"

This tiny kitten was screaming on the curb near my workplace at 9pm last night, its sibling dead in the road a few yards away. He is friendly and affectionate, so not born to a feral mom; someone dumped them there. He is so flea covered he is anemic. I have no idea what I'm going to do with him, because I still have 4 kittens (who are now cats) from last year that proved impossible to place, and our local shelters and rescues are turning away intakes because they are out of space. If I try to surrender him, they'll offer the same "solution" they do the general public: TNR. Then he'll be back out in the elements getting parasitized to death and at risk of being hit by a car or torn apart by roaming dogs (which are also a big problem here). The colony cats in my town are lucky to make it a year even when they are being "managed."

The tone of this post is more negative and more blunt than I would usually dare to post on Tumblr, but I think a dose of raw reality is needed from time to time. I am going to do everything I can to get this animal into a safe placement, but wish us luck, because we'll both need it.

[allcreaturessmall]

This week we were without power from about 3pm Monday night until 2am Wednesday morning after strong winds caused considerable storm damage in the area. Thankfully, we had no damage on the property, and the interior temperature only reached 78*F despite it being quite hot out - something I mostly credit to the tremendous amount of tree cover that shades the house (though it also makes storms like this pretty scary). All of the animals made it through fine, though with our misting systems down, there was a lot of spraying down enclosures with pump sprayers by headlamp.

I'm hoping the weather this coming week is cooperative for getting projects done, as my last day off was aligned with the storms so outdoor work was impossible (or at least certainly ill advised). Hopefully by this time next week I'll have some photos to share of work done at the rescue.

[allcreaturessmall]

🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️Happy Pride Month from ACS!🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

All Creatures Small is a queer-owned and operated rescue. In the current US political climate, we feel it is important to state our support for and solidarity with our community, and give visibility to Southern queers, who are under attack with terrifying new legislation popping up throughout the Bible Belt. Stay safe, friends!

If you read this post and went, "Ungh, why does a rescue have to get political?" I would remind you that we did not choose to politicize our very existence and would love nothing more than if politicians and lawmakers would stop trying to demonize, criminalize, and disenfranchise us. If you don't support the queer community, or are "tired of hearing about it" in a time when our civil liberties are under attack, you are encouraged to unfollow.

[allcreaturessmall]

Apparently today is National Alligator Day, so here is a picture my spouse snapped in Eufaula, AL of an alligator with her hatchling. Did you know that alligators are great mothers? They defend their nest for a ~60 day incubation period, help the young crawl free when the eggs start to pip, and will remain with and protect their offspring for 1-3 years. We are thrilled to share our state with these ancient, complex, and magnificent predators.

[allcreaturessmall]

After several days of nonstop rain (which we needed! Most of AL is in a serious drought!) it's finally a fair-weather afternoon, so I've been puttering around the property doing animal chores at my leisure rather than racing storm clouds. I am looking forward to my PTO at the start of June to work on some projects, one of them being to move our resident RES, Tapestry, into a 300g stock tank finally. Tapestry is very growth stunted from prior neglect, so a 100g stock tank has been an adequate home for him, but frankly I just want everyone in the larger tanks and spent accordingly last month. All we need to do now is mesh it so it is predator-proof, hence waiting until June even though the tank is purchased.

The turtle pictured is not Tapestry because he is incredibly shy, but rather Browning, who came to us about 8 years ago, along with a massive goldfish that we also still have (now housed with our other two resident goldfish, also in a 300g stock tank, incidentally). Both animals suffered from improper husbandry despite the owner loving them and refusing to leave a DV situation without first placing them, which you can see from the deformities of Browning's shell and the scarring on her leg. Improper husbandry is unfortunately the norm rather than the exception for slider turtles in the US pet trade, often due to misinformation and deceptive vendor marketing. If you search the turtle tag on this blog, we have many posts about turtle husbandry and prior rescue cases.

[allcreaturessmall]

Bolt, the feral dog we trapped in 2012 who has been a resident of ACS ever since, went to the vet today, and as you can see from this picture, he was feeling very done with everything by the end of his appointment. He is 15 this year, and while he has been highly active and in good health up until recently, he began showing signs of senility around 9 months ago, and over the past two weeks has been showing symptoms of discomfort in a few areas (ear, teeth, hindquarters). We took him to the vet today and predictably found age related explanations for most of his issues, aside from his ears which had a yeast infection, and we've started him on a few medications to make him more comfortable in his twilight years.

Bolt is very special to me, and I know that losing him is going to be incredibly painful; just thinking about it makes me tear up. I was extremely anxious all week that they might find something serious during his exam, and I was more stressed by his appointment today than he was. I know I'm going to be fretting nonstop until I see signs of improvement. I think the fact that I'm having such strong emotions surrounding this dog is actually a sign of healing, though.

At the height of my compassion fatigue, just before I halted intakes about six years ago, I became completely numb and detached about death. It was such a constant during my years in active rescue that the only way to survive the relentless exposure to suffering and loss was to stop feeling it. In fact, one of the things that most alerted me to the fact that I was in serious trouble psychologically was how non-reactive I grew to the deaths of even my personal pets.

The animal deaths I've had over the past year, however, have all hurt. I went through a process of grief each time. I rediscovered the raw emotionality of losing something I loved. And it sucks, but it's so much better than recognizing that you should be feeling something, and feeling nothing instead.

It took almost five years to claw my way back to feeling human again. Please, if you are experiencing compassion fatigue, step back and give yourself some time to heal. Too many rescuers and people in vetmed send themselves to an early grave because they allow themselves to be consumed by compassion fatigue.

[allcreaturessmall]

Another Duckweed update, he's learned to walk on a leash and his foster says he's thriving. People have already expressed interest in adopting once he is fully vetted. Honestly maybe more stray dogs should find themselves in A Situation on my property if this is the kind of outcome they get. (Dear universe: I am kidding, please no).

Speaking of strays, Bolt is coming up on 15 this year and for the first time in his life is having a health issue. His teeth and right ear are bugging him, so he's going to the vet Tuesday. I'm stressed about it because he will be stressed about it, and may require sedation for a proper exam, but I very much trust the vet team at the clinic we are using to do right by him. If I could do things all over again, I would have pressed harder on his socialization so he might be more comfortable in these situations, though having said that I do believe he's had a very good quality of life for a feral street dog in the almost-14-years he's been here.

[allcreaturessmall]

I just received an updated photo of Duckweed, the stray puppy that nearly drowned on our property. He is thriving! He was so shut down, miserable, and fearful when we found him, but he has warmed up to humans quickly, and I'm sure he'll have no trouble finding a home considering how stinkin' cute he is.

[allcreaturessmall]

CW: pet death

Here is my last photo of Graves, in the parking lot at the vet awaiting her euthanasia appointment. She was geriatric when we found her abandoned in the cemetery two years ago, and it was a privilege to care for her in her twilight years, but today it was obvious that it was time to say goodbye. Her passing was quick and peaceful. I am obviously still very sad, but I am glad I was home to make the call and ease her passage.

[allcreaturessmall]

The ball python market bubble has burst, and it's a big problem that is only going to get worse.

Over the past 10-20 years, the ball python has surged in popularity in the reptile trade, in large part due to morph breeding that has produced a seemingly endless variety of colors and markings, some of which fetch thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars. Attempting to produce these high value snakes often results in warehousing double or triple digit populations of mature snakes in rack systems, the offspring of which are sold online and at reptile shows all over the country. People who seek morphs often consider themselves "collectors," who will accumulate a large number of ball pythons of varying morphs, while more casual inexperienced owners are sold the less expensive varieties as "beginner" snakes.

Unfortunately, ball pythons are not a beginner species; they can live over 30 years, are often finicky eaters, demand specialized care and vetting, and require more space and enrichment than a rack provides despite persistent outdated care standards. And a market for expensive snakes can only exist with buyers - buyers who are, in the US, increasingly cash-strapped and forgoing high dollar purchases. Snake breeders can't sell their surplus, and snake owners can't afford the snakes they already have; rescues across the country are reporting unprecedented surrender requests for ball pythons, often large groups of animals needing placement from a single owner.

The industry is at a tipping point, and the snakes will be the ones paying the price. There are fewer adopters for snakes than for common companion animals, and they aren't as easy to raise funds or garner public sympathy for due to anti-snake biases that are deeply culturally embedded in America. Snakes are not only being surrendered to rescues, but are being left behind in vacated homes and apartments, dumped in parks, thrown in dumpsters, or 'culled' by inhumane methods like freezing.

The problem with keeping live animals like collectibles is that they face consequences when their popularity declines, value drops, collectors lose interest, or lack the resources to continue their upkeep. We owe ball pythons what we owe every animal: a high standard of lifelong care, not being treated like trading cards or Labubus. Please consider the care needs and lifespan of this species before embarking on ownership, and consider checking your local rescue groups for adoptable animals if you are just looking for a reptile companion rather than a specific morph. The need for qualified adopters is immense right now.

(Pictured: Bender, a ball python who has been with us for 8 years now after being surrendered to a municipal animal control shelter)

[allcreaturessmall]

The puppy that we found earlier in the week left for his foster on Thursday night. We have not had any more sightings of the rest of the family. Our friends at Another Chance Dog Rescue will make sure he is socialized and fully vetted before he is adopted out, and people are already expressing interest. I think he has a bright future ahead of him.

[allcreaturessmall]

A filthy mud boy who has greatly enjoyed the aftermath of yesterday's storms. He has no regrets.

Bolt is 15 this year and showing symptoms of cognitive decline but remains in surprisingly robust physical health. Spirited enough to dig and frolic in the mud, even.

[allcreaturessmall]

There was a situation on a rarely-frequented part of the property this morning that could have ended a lot worse than it did. We have a defunct concrete structure that was used by the previous homeowners as a turtle pond. We've left it vacant but still filled with rainwater because smaller species of native frogs have had great reproductive success in it; the top is covered with wire mesh, so they can get in and out but predators can't. Usually. Apparently the mesh was degraded enough to cave when a stray puppy wandered across the top of it. Parts of it are much deeper than where the puppy is sitting - there is a concrete ledge under the water - so if he didn't find his footing, he almost certainly would have drowned.

Obviously we fished the little guy out, cleaned him up, treated him for fleas (he was infested), and are arranging to transfer him out to an active rescue. However, now that the mesh is broken, we could see a repeat of the same with another stray, or with wildlife, and that is unacceptable. For today, because we're having terrible storms, I've laid a piece of plywood over the top as a temporary fix, but because it is such a hotspot for frogs, I will be working on re-meshing it with something new and of a much thicker gauge, with some added supports.

Anyway, this is "Duckweed." We spotted his (extremely skittish) stray mother with two other pups vacating the area when we came looking for the source of the crying that alerted us to his presence. The same group taking the puppy is going to scout the area for them, because stray dogs in this area are at risk of being hit by cars or shot for bothering livestock, and puppies frequently die of parasitism and disease. So really, despite his mishap, he is lucky to be in human hands and has a better outlook than the rest of his little family.

If all goes well, he will only be spending the night, and will head into foster tomorrow afternoon with our friends at Another Chance Dog Rescue, a reputable local group we've worked with for years.

[allcreaturessmall]

Because many people are raising chicks this time of the year and will use a standard brooder bulb in their setup, I think it's important to remind everyone that there is a reason you should use a $12.99 brooder lamp fixture instead of a $6.99 shop lamp fixture, or consider alternative heat sources altogether.

Shop light fixtures have a plastic ballast, which cannot withstand high heat, a lower maximum wattage capacity (lower than most brooder bulbs), and do not have a wire guard to prevent the bulb from sitting directly against the substrate should the lamp fall. They are a fire hazard, pure and simple. In fact, improper mounting of even a fixture made specifically for poultry can result in a fire; never rely on just the clamp alone to be secure enough, and take caution to keep the bulb a safe distance from the substrate and any other flammable aspects of the brooder box or coop.

Heat lamps, while low cost, really aren't the best way to keep a chick warm, however. They can throw too much heat for hatchlings, can cause burns from contact with the bulb or fixture when chicks get old enough to start attempting to roost, do not provide a normal day/night cycle, and there is even some evidence that they can damage vision. While we are sharing lamp safety in this post knowing many people will still go that route, there are numerous alternatives for providing warmth that are safer and have fewer drawbacks. Brooder heat plates, radiant heat panels, and ceramic heat emitters are all considered lower risk than high wattage lamps. For information on these alternatives and others, check out this link.

[allcreaturessmall]

Nothing like finding a tumbleweed of shed fur that needed to be groomed away after taking a cute picture, but Cheesetouch Jr. manages to be very elegant even when she's having a bad hair day.

At my fingertips is an informative post about the worsening cat overpopulation crisis and the increasing difficulty responsibly placing cats in AL , and I've started typing it out three or four times now, but I think I just want to leave you with this picture of her for today. It's a shame that she hasn't found her forever home yet, but she survived, she is safe, and maybe it's important to just reflect on a positive outcome sometimes.

[iravaid]

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On conservation and survival

[hope-for-the-planet]

This brought tears to my conservationist heart today.

The continued existence of these species is the legacy of so many people whose names we will never know--some of who never lived to see the impacts of their work.

When you count up the flaws of our species, you have to count the good things too--out of the many species throughout Earth's history that have caused the demise or endangerment of other species, we are the only one that tries to fix it out of our fascination and love for other life forms.

(Big thank you to the anonymous asker who sent this in!)

[hope-for-the-planet]

Earth Day reblog of this thing that made me cry.

And I'll add some other recent good conservation news.

•Green sea turtles are no longer endangered

•Giant pandas are no longer endangered

•Panamanian golden frogs were returned to the wild for the first time since they were wiped out by chytrid 17 years ago

•The Eastern humpback whale population has exceeded pre-whaling numbers and many other whale species are showing strong signs of recovery

•Salmon and bison have been returned to their former habitat in multiple parts of the US through dam removal, habitat restoration, and reintroduction

•The Western monarch migration was up 60% compared to last year

•Galapagos tortoises were reintroduced to Floreana for the first time in 180 years

•Attenborough's long beaked echidna was rediscovered after being though extinct for decades

•Five "lost" island bird species were documented by citizen scientist birders in 2025

Do not stand at my grave and cry. I am not there. I did not die.

[allcreaturessmall]

Spring is in full swing on the property. Yesterday, this year's first clutch of Eastern Phoebes (they nest on our porch every year) fledged. Frogs have returned to the water features. Skinks are scurrying through last fall's leaf litter. And a young raccoon has decided our storage trailer is a great place to nap during the day (don't worry, he isn't stuck, he comes and goes and seems oblivious to the fact that his tail is hanging out for all to see).