Baby Animals May Not Need Your Help

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Minnesota is in the midst of a baby boom.

Everything from squirrels to birds to bunnies to deer is breeding, and that has the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center busy.

"This is our peak period," said Phil Jenni, the executive director of the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. "We'll treat 3,000 animals from mid-May to the end of June; that's almost 100 a day."

Some people are bringing in baby animals that they think have been abandoned, but haven't.

"Often times when people bring fawns in they don't really need to be here," Jenni said.

Mother deer will leave their fawns for long periods of time so predators don't find them. The little ones don't have a scent and are naturally camouflaged.

"What will happen is mom will come and get them and move them every day or so for a week, then they can start walking with mom on their own," Jenni said.

Baby rabbits also don't usually need to be brought in, they're on their own at three to four weeks and are only the size of a softball.

It's only when an animal's nest has been torn apart by an animal that you need to worry.

Birds and squirrels can also get knocked out of their nests during storms, but forget what you've heard before and help the babies back into a nest off the ground.

"It's untrue that babies will be abandoned if touched by a human," Jenni said.

The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center says they get so many calls about bunnies that they've made a video to help people know when -- and when not  -- to bring in the animals.

You can find that and more information here.