Entry for Papa-Pepper Contest 5--Combination Photo of Raccoon and Daisy Fleabane

Most people who know me know that the property my animal rescue and sanctuary sits on is overrun with wildlife. Some of them have become so tolerant of human activity that they behave like domestic pets. This would be a disaster in most cases, but I do have some background as a rehabber and enough knowledge to keep them safe. In my state, Virginia, no options are available west of Wytheville for relocation or rehabilitation. If we call the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for assistance, their only option is euthanasia.

This particular raccoon is a two-year-old female we call "Glory." She has bonded with the dogs she knows are safe, and bonded with me. She is notorious for removing window screens and letting herself into the house.

In these photos, she's sitting beside a wildflower called daisy fleabane. Both lavender and white varieties of this common plant are visible behind her, as well as several broad leaves of butter dock. Butter dock is edible and I cook it often. Being from the south, I think greens and cornbread make a complete meal. LOL I find both butter and curly dock to be milder in taste than spinach, collards, or turnip greens as long as it's properly prepared. I usually mix in dandelion leaves as well.

One of my recent posts featured a photo of purple fleabane. The plant in that picture is located near the creek on my property, but the lavenders on the mountain behind my house are much lighter in color. White fleabane is plentiful, too. I thought the one in the photo with Glory was shaped like a conifer. It stood straight until she wallowed all over it this afternoon during her photo shoot. Now it leans like the Tower of Pisa.

Fleabane is not a true bane. It gets its name from an old belief that dried leaves scattered around a home would repel fleas. The leaves are actually edible, and may have some benefit for neurological health.

My name is hard to see on the note in the proof pic, so here is that part of the image magnified with the contrast tweaked.