WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

JULIE CASSIDY DOES BIG THINGS FOR SMALL CREATURES

East Dallas is crawling with them. Critters, that is.

Remember the recent mini-hysteria over the coyote prowling our streets? Raccoons frequently traipse across our roofs as darkness falls, peering down at us with glowing eyes. The plethora of squirrels provide comic relief with their antics, and opossums make late-night visits to our backyards, looking for snakes, rodents and bugs to eat.

But the natural world is not always a kind place and sometimes the animals who share our neighborhood end up in need. Fortunately for them, a network of wildlife rehabilitators exists, at the ready for the next critter emergency. Among them is neighbor Julie Cassidy.

Because she works full-time for the City of Dallas, Cassidy sensibly limits the animals she can take in. While others welcome bats, skunks, raccoons and rabbits, Cassidy opens her door to squirrels and opossums who don’t require multiple feedings during the day. But her long workday often is bookended with bottle feedings and grub prep.

Like many of her associates, Cassidy stumbled into the wildlife rehab world. About six years ago, she was walking her dogs when one alerted to something interesting in a bush. The dog came out of the bush with a young opossum in her mouth. “She didn’t injure it,” remembers Cassidy, “but I realized it was too young to release back into the wild. So I took it home and contacted a rehabber.”

After checking out the little guy, the rehabber friend then educated Cassidy on its feeding and general care. Inspired, Cassidy soon began volunteering on the DFW Wildlife Coalition Hotline, answering questions about wildlife and connecting needy animals with rehabbers.

One Saturday, a caller to the hotline reported that her dog had killed a momma opossum, leaving six babies orphaned. A search for a rehabber who could take all six turned up dry, so Cassidy decided to take them in herself. Under the careful supervision of a permitted wildlife rehabilitator credentialed by Texas Parks and Wildlife, Cassidy nursed the little opossums back to health and back into the wild. Hooked, she soon got the paperwork in line to rehab her own creatures. Since then, she has become a member of Texas Metroplex Wildlife Rehabilitators and has attended many a wildlife class, a requirement for maintaining her status.

So how do the squirrels and opossums land at her door? Many are the result of calls to the hotline or from agencies such as Dallas Animal Services. Frequently, distraught callers report that their dog has killed a possum which was caring for babies and they want to help the orphans. In some cases, a baby possum has fallen off of the mom’s back and been separated from its family. Baby squirrels, on the other hand, sometimes fall or are blown out of nests. At times, nests can be casualties of tree trimming.

And did you hear the one about the possum crossing the road? Cassidy recalls receiving a message from fellow rehabber Prudi Koeninger, who had received word about an adult opossum stranded on I-30 in the inside median. Cassidy rushed to the scene and scooped him up. “It was probably a 25to 30-pound possum who was scared to death. Thankfully, it was not injured and just needed to be treated for fleas and get a good meal.” She released it a couple of days later.

When Cassidy takes in a little patient, her first order of business is to bathe, warm and hydrate it. Then she will weigh it on a standard food scale so she’ll know how much to feed it. Squirrels are bottle-fed special formula until they reach a weight of about 200 grams. They are then gradually introduced to solids, such as small bits of apple and shelled pecan pieces.

Baby opossums are not so simple. Instead of a bottle, they are fed through a tube, more closely simulating the natural feeding in the mom’s pouch.

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The little marsupials need to be around 100 grams before they try lapping up formula or yogurt and, later, scrambled eggs and fish.

Just as their mothers would do, Cassidy stimulates the baby squirrels and opossums after every feeding to help them eliminate urine and feces.

In addition to routine feeding, Cassidy is trained to treat the animals’ wounds and administer medication and parasite treatments.

The scale to weigh all those critters? The specialty food? Medicine? Cages and bedding and what-have-you? All out of her pocket, as is the case with every other wildlife rehabber.

Cassidy’s goal, of course, is to return the squirrels and opossums into the wild. Fortunately, she has just the place: family property near Lake Whitney. “It’s an area where they always have a water source and plenty of land where they’re not threatened by vehicles or people or dogs, just the natural predators.” To date, she’s released about 100 opossums and about 40 squirrels.

But it can be difficult to let go. “You never know if they make it through the first night. I do get anxious for them because all I’ve provided them is shelter and food. I can’t provide them the skills in order to survive in the wild.” Cassidy pauses. “A lot of time and resources and your heart goes into taking care of these babies.”

Find out more at dfwwildlife.org.

PATTI VINSON is a guest writer who has lived in East Dallas for over 15 years. She’s written for the Advocate and Real Simple magazine, and has taught college writing. She is a frequent flyer at Lakewood branch library and enjoys haunting neighborhood estate sales with husband Jonathan and children, Claire and Will. The family often can be found hanging out at White Rock Lake Dog Park with Dexter, a probable JackWeenie.

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Hospital Merger

Two of East Dallas’ biggest names in healthcare became one recently, when BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE HEALTH and its affiliate Tenet Healthcare Corporation took over operations at DOCTORS HOSPITAL AT WHITE ROCK LAKE. During a May ceremony, the newly anointed BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE MEDICAL CENTER – WHITE ROCK was unveiled.

“Our intent with this partnership is to take the best of both,” said Brett Lee, Dallas Market CEO at Tenet Healthcare, during the event. “We got the opportunity to work with some really talented people with this partnership.”

The staff at Doctors Hospital will not be impacted, and the hospital will continue to accept all of the major insurance providers, meaning patients should still be able to access their preferred doctors. Doctors Hospital is one of five in North Texas that Baylor and Tenet formed partnerships with this spring. The move does stitch the 57-year-old, 218-bed local hospital into a much larger medical system that now includes 48 hospitals, 6,000 active physicians and 40,000 other employees. Baylor Scott & White Health is the largest nonprofit healthcare provider in the state with total assets of $9 billion.

EAT UP, DRINK UP

Expressing their deep love for “Smokey and the Bandit,” the owners of the newly opened EASTBOUND AND DOWN ICEHOUSE on Ross Avenue sought to capture the essence of 1970s Americana but with an updated hipster twist. The bar has everything you would expec— taxidermy adornments, mustachedbartenders and a massive mural depicting a classic Old West scene, with an iconic Burt Reynolds depiction coming soon. Owned by Ben Harper (not the singer), the new watering hole is focused on beer and bourbon — keep your craft cocktails to yourself. The patio offers a nice view of Ross Avenue and food offerings should be on the menu soon. Check them out at 3826 Ross Avenue.

Toast has been all the rage in recent food trends, with thick pieces of artisanal bread heaped high with everything from avocado and egg to Nutella and banana. Ross Avenue will be getting in on the frenzy when TOASTED COFFEE + KITCHEN opens in the near future. The restaurant will offer both sweet and savory toasts, as well as sandwiches and grilled cheeses, along with craft beers and cocktails. Co-founders are Joel Roldan and Bob Sinnott, the latter of which also owns Nora on Greenville. Find Toasted Coffee + Kitchen at 5420 Ross Avenue.

Iconic Dallas restaurant group

NORMA’S CAFÉ was busy last month hiring more than 80 positions for its new location at Caruth Plaza, 9100 N. Central Expressway, suite 151. They plan to open this month, offering diners big bites of traditional southern flavor including their famed chicken-fried steak and mile-high pie. This marks their fourth store, with additional locations in North Dallas and Frisco. The original Norma’s Café opened in 1956 in Oak Cliff.

STARBUCKS EVENINGS has debuted in our neighborhood. At 4 p.m., the location at La Vista and Gaston begins to offer wine, craft beers and a selection of tapas, making it more like cafés in Europe. First debuted in Dallas at the Starbucks at the Shops at Park Lane, the concept is catching on quickly and has been unveiled at about a dozen stores around the city. It should mean big business for the coffee megachain; USA Today reported they expect the new concept to net $1 billion by 2019.