10/31/2025
Please give them a chance to cross our roads safely. Slow down please 🙏
🍂 October isn't just fall. It's eviction season for baby wildlife and the start of winter trauma season 💔
THE DISPERSAL CRISIS:
As days shorten, thousands of young animals are leaving their dens and familiar environments for the first time. What was a baby in spring is now alone, inexperienced, and crossing your road on the pavement by foot and flying across.
WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW:
🦉Young owls continue to master hunting skills. They often seek rodents or carrion on the road.
🦝 Squirrel and skunk babies get the "boot" from parents
🦌 Young deer forced away so mom can breed again
🦊 Fox kits travel 50 miles looking for territory
🐭 Opossum joeys navigating roads solo
🦝 Raccoon siblings venture out without mom's guidance
WHY OCTOBER IS DEADLY:
💔 First time crossing roads alone
💔 Zero traffic experience
💔 Desperate for food before winter
💔 Active at dawn/dusk (rush hour)
💔 Don't understand speed or headlights
THE HEARTBREAK:
They survived their first summer.
Learned to hunt, avoided predators, grew strong.
Then die on a roadway in their first fall season
WHAT YOU'RE SEEING:
Not animals "randomly" on roads.
Confused, displaced babies trying to find home.
Inexperienced youth making fatal first mistakes.
The price wildlife pays for our convenience.
THE KINDEST THING YOU CAN DO:
✓ Slow down at dawn, dusk, and night
✓ Watch for reflecting eyes near roads
✓ Be prepared to brake suddenly
✓ Remember: they're not trying to die—they're trying to survive.
Please give wildlife a chance🍂🧡
Shared and modified from Gardening Tips and Tricks
