Animal rescue saves raccoon caught in cement

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (FOX 10) -- It was a close call for one raccoon stuck in wet cement.

The shivering raccoon was saved by the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center in Scottsdale.

"Our rescue team came out, collected her, brought her here, and then we had to sedate her and kind of move forward to get that concrete off of her," said Khymberly Lewis with Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center.

They said they didn't know why the raccoon may have been passing through the construction site, but they knew they had to act fast.

Workers gave the rescued raccoon IV fluids and warmed her up with a blanket, but they were unsure how to get all the cement off.

They shaved her down and soaked her off in warm, vinegar water and her skin came out good as new. Vets say she's an older mother raccoon, and with more medical care, she will make a full recovery.

"Since she hasn't had a lot of human interaction, so she's still pretty fearful and skittish, so we try to limit her stress and now that she's out of our rehab center primarily," said Lewis. "It's going to be a couple of months to get that coat back, and we'll get some weight on her too in the meantime and release her when it's cooler."