A year after rescuers set this porcupine free it came back with an adorable surprise
Rescuers took in this porcupine as a baby and brought him up into adulthood with fond memories
They set him free back into the wild to live life the way he should
Even though they saw the porcupine regularly it wasn't until a year
After he was set free that he decided to take a trip back to his friends and greet them with a special surprise
This porcupines tale begins in the South African town of Hotz brute with a potato farmer year after year
He worked hard on his land despite
How difficult farming can be but whilst he was glad about his crops flourishing because of this his ground was a haven for hungry animals
particularly
porcupines these sneaky creatures loved the salt naturally found in potatoes
Farms are like magnets for porcupines since there's so much
They can eat the potatoes the sap from wood the residual sweat from tools
it's practically a buffet for the animals as
Much as they love it that can't be said for the farmers who find porcupines a nuisance since they directly affect their livelihoods
Because of this many farmers set out porcupine traps with the intention of getting them off the property and sometimes even killing them
This is how a little baby porcupine?
Ended up in the hands of a kind farmer who had too much of a kind heart to end the pork you pets life
So instead in 2015 he took it to the deck tari bush school and wildlife orphanage
Decked ari was founded by husband-and-wife Ian and Michelle Mary field who have dedicated their lives to helping African wildlife
They used their knowledge of animals and conservation to teach children about the importance of helping local wildlife
Since founding it in 2006 the couple had one goal
Which is stated on the company's official website having a safe place to?
rehabilitate injured or orphan animals has always been part of the vision of Daktari
It's also grown into an integral part of the education of local children
The farmer wanted to make sure that he would be giving the baby porcupine to someone who would definitely care for it
Which is why he was so glad that decked Ahri were willing to take in the orphaned baby their passion for animals was clear
They named the little porky Pat spiky and since the company hadn't home to porcupine before
They were quick to research how to properly bring up the animal Ian Merrifield told the dodo in
2016 about how difficult it was to care for the animal he had to be bottle-fed
But we had to estimate what he would need we tried to do research online, but there wasn't a lot of information
Well the couple lacked in specific porcupine care. However. They made up for in having extensive knowledge and caring for small animals
We used mammals that we cared for before as a baseline Ian explained, and we added egg. Yolk and cream to normal cow milk
The rescuers added one more prime ingredient to spy Keyes concoction Ian revealed we added
Protection which is a bacteria that they need to aid in digestion for the first few weeks?
This is all little spiky would have he loved it that much but as the porcupine grew bigger his appetite grew bigger, too
Spiky went from his milk concoction to a seemingly delicious mix of diced vegetables and fruit and porridge which he couldn't get enough of
Mary Feld reflected on spy Keyes character stating he really liked eating eating and sleeping or his whole life
Soon enough spikey warmed to his new human parents and the love and affection from both of them and DECT Ari's volunteers
You may think how do you pet a porcupine without getting spiked?
But the front and underside of spy Keys bodies actually covered in really soft fur
Merrifield told the dodo the volunteers would stroke his belly under the arms and behind his very human-like ears
Spiky would jump on their lap and nuzzle their neck and it seemed that because of his adoring friends and family
Spiky grew up in the orphanage big strong and most importantly healthy
One day the time came for spikey to leave the orphanage behind and live his best life in the wild Mary field explained
We just decided he would be happier free and if he had any problems. He could come back for food
Despite being set free into the wild
It seemed that spiky simply enjoyed the company of his human parents and friends more than his own kind
Mary Field joked we aren't sure if it's because he needs the food or it just enjoys our company in fact
Daktari received regular visits from the porcupine, but his next appearance would come with a very special surprise
During one of his visits back to dect re
Little spiky actually brought back some pork you pets of his own to meet his human family
It seems that the merry fields got the porcupine sex wrong he instated we thought spike
He was definitely a male so we were a bit surprised when she showed up with babies
Despite the revelation that spikey was a girl this entire time
The Daktari workers were overjoyed that the porcupine had brought her little family to meet them
Merrifield thinks that spiky was so proud of what she had made that she wanted to show off her poor cupids to her humans
Even though spikey felt right at home at Daktari her babies were still very cautious around humans and often remained in the shadows
Rather than going inside the building spiky oscilator human family welcomed a male companion to the orphanage
presumably the father of her babies
Ian expressed his contentment that spiky is doing well. It's wonderful seeing spikey
Live a full life in the wild and having a family of her own
I feel like a very proud parent and so he should
He his wife, and the wonderful volunteers that decked Ari are who to thank for spike ease healthy and happy condition
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