Critters have a friend in Lewis County

WHO: Lisa C. Tucker, Port Leyden, about a year ago became licensed through the state Department of Environmental Conservation as the lone nuisance wildlife control officer in Lewis County. Now, along with working as a rural postal carrier in Boonville, she operates Critter Catcher and Creature Care from her Route 12 residence. The telephone number is 348-4193.

FROM WHICH AGENCIES DO YOU RECEIVE REFERRALS? "The Sheriff's Department, DEC, Public Health and the Humane Society. That's where all the calls come from."

HOW DID YOU DECIDE TO UNDERTAKE THIS SECOND CAREER? "I've always loved the critters. My husband just shakes his head at me. But he's getting to like the critters we have around the house. I got diagnosed with cancer a couple years ago. That was my wake-up call."

DID YOU HAVE OTHER MOTIVATION? "It was frustrating to me to hear about how a critter would walk onto someone's property and they would just poison it or shoot it. That just broke my heart.

"Look at where we live. You're not going to get rid of animals. They probably have more right to be here than we do. There are two things they are interested in: shelter and food.

"Instead of eliminating those things, they'd shoot them. It's unnecessary."

WHAT TYPES OF WILDLIFE HAVE YOU CAPTURED? "Thirty-five to 40 skunks, at least. Lots of raccoons. A Canada goose. A couple of red-tailed hawks. A couple of deer. They're not fun, though. I got an opossum. He's at home right now. I'm going to wait until the weather breaks and then I'll release him. Also, a silver fox, a loon and red squirrels. They're a riot. I love the squirrels."

WHEN DO YOU SET YOUR TRAPS? "I try to do it at nighttime and come back at 5:30 or 6 in the morning."

ANY PROBLEMS WITH SCRATCHING OR, WITH THE SKUNKS, SPRAYING? "I have safety glasses and chain-saw chaps. I figured they would take care of punctures. I have not been sprayed once. I haven't had any trouble at all. They'll defend themselves, but they let me do what I need to."

WHAT ARE YOUR RELEASE PROCEDURES? "I try to find whatever habitat they need. I try to find a field with woods and water. I've got a radius of five to 10 miles within the capture site, unless they felt it was rabid or had some health problems. I try to release immediately. I don't want these animals in my custody for more than 24 hours unless they're sick."

ANY PARTICULARLY MEMORABLE CASES? "Everything's been memorable. It's been fun. I enjoy it."