Albino Porcupine

From Center for Wildlife

We have a special guest in our clinic... an Albino North American Porcupine! This baby porcupine was discovered after some dogs were attempting to chase it. Thankfully, his rescuer was able to step in before any serious injuries occurred. Due to his unique coloring, his young age, and potential injury from the dog interaction, the baby porcupine's rescuer decided it was best to bring him in for care.

When he arrived at CFW, he seemed fairly healthy and no injuries were visible. However, he did have some crust building up around his eyes, so our clinic team set him up in a double-wide enclosure with some browse, food, and water, and gave him time to decompress before moving forward with care. He was eating very well - clearing his platter and going through his browse too!

Our clinic team kept an eye on the crust build-up on his face, and soon noticed a spot on his arm as well. Our team immediately suspected mange, and those suspicions were confirmed as the crust build-up on his eyes continued to worsen, even with daily cleanings. The rest of the crust began to spread across his front paws as well, his breathing was raspy and there was discharge coming from his nose.

Our clinic team is working hard and keeping a close eye on him as they administer medication to fight off the mange infection. Daily cleanings occur as well in order to keep the crust away as best as possible. We hope to see some improvements soon and hopefully have this little guy on his way to recovery! We will keep you updated on his progress in care.

Did you know? Albino porcupines are very rare, with only 1 occurring in every ~10,000 births!