THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 19, 1994 TAG: 9406170209
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: - Stephanie Stoughton
DATELINE: 940619 LENGTH: Medium
She and others patiently waited for the small animal to cross the road. But lost and dazed, the female deer wandered between the two eastbound lanes.
{REST} ``No one was helping,'' said Banton, who works at an insurance company nearby. ``I couldn't believe it!''
So Banton emerged from her car, hoisted the deer in her arms and placed it on the floor of her blue sports car. It nibbled and licked her fingers as she drove to the Animal Medical Clinic of Chesapeake on Battlefield Boulevard, and left a small present on the floor of her car.
At the clinic, Christina Sims, Angie Hatfield, Kim Areman and Deann Pendroy tried to calm the deer while calling a wildlife rehabilitator.
Penny Vaughan of Wildlife Response Inc. picked up the deer and took it to a rehabilitator who lives in a wooded area. After about seven weeks, the animal will be taken to another caretaker. By the fall, it will be released into the wild.
Veterinarians, city animal control agencies and residents turn to the volunteer organization because wild animals often require specialized care, expensive food or state permits.
Wildlife Response has received many calls from Greenbrier, where construction has eliminated much of the deer's natural habitat. Several deer, opossums, raccoons and rabbits recently have wandered onto Greenbrier roads.
Usually, rehabilitators would have tried to put the baby deer back in its natural habitat close to where it was found so it might find its mother. But in this case, it probably would serve little purpose, Vaughan said.
``With the construction there, if we try to put it back with its mother, what chance does it have?''
This deer, which is just days old, has a good chance of survival, she said.
Medical miracle
If you haven't seen the June 13 issue of People magazine, you missed the ``Up Front'' story about the medical miracle worked on 14-month-old Michael Coble, the son of Wayne and Patrecia ``Trecia'' Coble of Chesapeake.
According to the story, Michael was born March 30, 1993, at Chesapeake General Hospital with a bilateral cleft lip and palate, meaning both sides of his mouth were slit up to his nose and back through the roof of his mouth, with a twisted red knot of skin and muscle.
The story reported the Cobles were naturally saddened by the defect, but help came in the form of Norfolk plastic surgeon Dr. William Magee, who operated on Michael just 15 days after his birth.
Even with his problem, little Michael's family were thrilled at his birth and overall health. Dad - Wayne Coble, a Navy gunner's mate - was quoted in the article as being amazed by Michael's deep blue eyes.
But then Magee went to work.
He separated the twisted parts of Michael's palate and got the soft palate, important for speech, to stretch to the rear of the throat.
Michael had to undergo three operations, and each was a success.
He'll have another to remove tissue under his nose and to make his nose less flat. After that, the article said, all that will remain of his severe cleft palate will be his scars.
Michael is hale and hearty now with normal motor skills and the ability to say ``Papa, Mama, more, yes and no,'' the article said.
The ordeal left the Cobles a closer family and made them look at life with a more compassionate view, People said.
Now, Michael is a ``mischievous'' little boy who loves to chase the family dog, Rusty, around the house.
by CNB