It doesn’t happen that often that someone finds a completely unknown animal in their yard. In addition, a complete mystery is created if you can’t determine which creature it is due to the condition in which the animal was found.
This is exactly the situation Sharon Betrozzi found herself in when she discovered what she thought was an old, sick dog underneath the porch of her house in Folsom, California.
Sharon did not want to do anything alone, but immediately called City Folsom Animal Services for help.
She was up for a complete surprise when the officers arrived.
She Was Left In Shock
When the people from the animal service came, almost four hours had passed since this animal had been lying motionless in that same place.
After the officers took a closer look at this “mysterious creature”, they could not agree with Sharon’s claims that the animal lying in her yard was a dog.
So, after they told her which animal it was, Sharon couldn’t move from the initial shock. No, it wasn’t a dog, but a very sick coyote.
Considering the health of this poor coyote, they had nothing to wait for, but immediately took action in order to save it.
According to the City of Folsom Animal Services Facebook post, after the examination, they found out that this young coyote was suffering from a really bad case of mange.
Because of this, they decided to transport her to Gold Country Wildlife Rescue, in Loomis, California. But, before that, they named her Princess and wished her luck.
Determined To Help Her
When Princess arrived at the GCWR premises, the people working there immediately saw that this poor animal was in a very difficult condition. In addition to having mange, she was also very dehydrated.
However, these good people were determined to save Princess, so they immediately went to work as soon as the officers brought her. They gave her rehydration fluids and medications for sarcoptic mange and itching.
“She was bathed to help remove some of the dead skin and to make her feel more comfortable. The next morning we were pleased to see that she drank all of the water and special diet food we had left with her overnight. She started scratching less and eating more.” Sallysue Stein, president of GCWR’s board of directors, told The Dodo.
After a few days of rigorous treatment, a huge improvement was seen and her caretakers were then convinced that Princess would be okay.
Then, when they returned her to a natural diet after a few months, she started gaining weight and her skin became much clearer. Finally, the look of a real coyote could be seen in her eyes.
Soon, this brave girl was ready for a big comeback.
Back Where She Belongs
Although the people at GCWR estimated Princess to be ready to return to the wild, they didn’t want to rush into that decision immediately.
Instead, they transferred her to Sierra Wildlife Rescue, where she was able to interact with other coyotes and slowly get used to this wild world again.
Fortunately, Princess didn’t have to wait long as her happiest moment came very soon. That day, together with her other coyote friends from the rescue, she was released back into the wild.
It was a sight that truly represented freedom, especially after everything this poor coyote had been through. And, although she was finally where she belonged, somewhere deep in her heart, she surely kept the memories of the people who helped her along the way.