Carrie Long received a distress call about a 3-week-old baby raccoon. She is a licensed wildlife rehabilitator from Texas Fawn and Friends and is known for her expertise in rescuing deer who were abandoned. However, her benevolence for animals goes beyond deer, and immediately responded to the call for rescue.
The baby raccoon was found alone during a rainstorm soaking wet in a pool of water. He was believed to be the smallest of the litter, and his mother had abandoned him. Later, he was named Jasper. A woman who found the baby raccoon reached out to the shelter for assistance.
“We weren’t sure he was going to make it,” Carrie said.
With the benefit of the doubt, Carrie nurtured Jasper back to health, and under her attentive care, the baby raccoon survived and thrived. He grew up to be a healthy adult raccoon. When it was time for him to be free and be released into the wild, Jasper chose to stay at the shelter.
Having been abandoned by her own mother, Jasper decided he could be of help to some of the animals in the sanctuary and make them feel less lonely. Later, he found companionship among the deer living inside the shelter grounds. Jasper started to feel at ease among the 75 deer.
Soon enough, he found solace in one deer named Hope. “Hope was a fawn that I received that had also lost her mother,” Carrie said.
Immediately, the 2 formed a special bond, and Jasper’s interaction with Hope has become a source of happiness for him. It never bothered Jasper that Hope was larger than the dogs he used to play with in the sanctuary. Whenever they were together, the excitement was evident in Jasper. He would rush to Hope’s side, then would start licking her face and embracing her.
Their video together immediately went viral. Their adorable interactions and play time garnered over 55,000 views and have captured the hearts of netizens. The video clip shows how Jasper lovingly plays with Hope, such as climbing all over Hope, lying on her back, and wrapping his arms around her neck. Raccoons may have been known to be aggressive with their actions at times, but Hope does not seem to mind. She accepts Jasper as he is.
“He sees her every day,” Carrie noted. “In the evening, she comes and lays next to him. They’ve got a cool relationship going on.”
The heartwarming story of Jasper and Hope is only one of many at the sanctuary. Carrie has anticipated that she will need to tend to at least 100 orphaned deer this year until the end of 2023. Her dedication to these animals is unwavering. The deer in the sanctuary and under Carrie Long’s care have been given a second chance at life and a safe environment where they can thrive.
“It’s very rewarding work,” Long said, on her role in these animals’ lives.
▼ Here is the viral video of the heartwarming interactions between Jasper and Hope:
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Screenshots images credits: © Texas Fawns and Friends (Facebook and Instagram)
