Benger the Avenger
2,611 views · Published 1 August 2017 · 1:07 · Indexed 3 October 2026
Channel: Bat World Sanctuary · 2017 · Nonprofits & Activism
He may not look like a vision of beauty but he has been through a LOT, and to us he is just gorgeous. He is an orphaned free-tail bat and as a baby he is still unable to fly. He found on July 22nd, almost 2 miles from the nearest nursery colony. We have no idea how he got to the porch of the lady who called us, but in order to do so he traveled through feral cats, raccoons and skunks, fire ants, traffic and burning hot pavement. He finally ended up on a porch where he was spotted and we were called right away. For the first few days we honestly didn't think he would make it. He was critically dehydrated, so much so that it took 5mls of fluids to get him up to speed. He was skin and bones and he vomited at almost every meal, losing all the formula and precious calories his body so desperately needed. Then burns started appearing on his toes and tail membrane, likely from the scalding hot pavement he traveled across. He lost his tail to burns and he is in the process of losing one of his thumbs and a few toes. Still, he is such a hero. He never lost the will to survive and today we can officially announce that he will be okay. He isn't releasable because of his injuries so we will take care of him the rest of his life (15 to 20 years). Click the image to watch a video of Benger taken just this morning (video will open in a new tab). His name is a combination of Roger (don't ask) and Benjamin Button (because he looked like a shriveled old man when he arrived). We tacked on Avenger because to us he is a tiny superhero.
