A nurse in Kentucky has performed CPR on a baby raccoon that passed out after eating fermented peaches, saving its life. Misty Combs, who works at the Letcher County Health Department in Whitesburg, found the unconscious animal in a dumpster next to her workplace.
Combs told local news outlet Lex18 that she arrived at work to see a distressed mother raccoon searching for her missing babies. The dumpster, belonging to a nearby distillery, contained fermented peaches that had attracted the two baby raccoons. Using a shovel, Combs rescued one baby, which ran back to its mother, but the other was unresponsive and lying in a puddle.
Despite onlookers believing the raccoon was dead, Combs began chest compressions and patted its back vigorously. The animal eventually regained consciousness. 'The entire time I was doing it, I was sort of afraid that it would come to and eat me up,' Combs said, noting the risk of rabies.
After reviving the raccoon, Combs and her coworkers contacted the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, which took the animal to a local vet. It was deemed healthy enough to be released back into the wild the following day in the same parking lot where it was found.
The rescue was captured on video by Combs' coworkers and has since been viewed thousands of times across news outlets. 'I was surprised it lived, and so it was amazing to see something that I helped bring back to life,' Combs said.
