A few days after launching Pets Go Taxi, I got a message from a woman named Carol. She’d found an orphaned baby opossum, taken her in, named her Fern, and spent about a week caring for her the best she could. But Carol had done her research — she knew opossums need a very specific diet to avoid something called metabolic bone disease, and she knew that Fern’s best shot at a healthy life was with a licensed wildlife rehabilitator, not a well-meaning but untrained caretaker.
Carol had already made arrangements with Pasadena Humane Society‘s wildlife rehabilitation program. They were expecting Fern. The only problem was Carol didn’t have a car, and Fern needed to get from Huntington Park to Pasadena before 4:30pm.
That’s where I came in.
Meeting Fern
When I arrived to pick her up, Fern was tucked safely into a cardboard box lined with soft towels — exactly the setup a rescued wild animal needs. Dark, quiet, warm, and secure. Carol had done everything right.
I got a peek at her curled up in the folds of the towels, that unmistakable pointed opossum face tucked in and settled. She was calm, which told me Carol’s instincts about keeping her contained and undisturbed had paid off.
We handled the paperwork, Carol signed the service agreement, and we were on our way to Pasadena.
The Drive
I kept the box secure and stable, drove smoothly, kept the cabin at a comfortable temperature, and avoided the kind of sudden stops and starts that stress out an animal already dealing with an unfamiliar situation. The whole trip took about 30-40 minutes.
Fern stayed quiet and settled the entire ride. No sounds of distress, no frantic movement in the box — just a small, sleepy animal riding safely toward the help she needed.
Handoff at Pasadena Humane
When we arrived, Carol had already called ahead, so the team was expecting us. I handed Fern’s box directly to Carol in their parking lot — a genuinely warm exchange that made the whole trip feel worthwhile. Fern was going from a stranger’s living room, to a cardboard box, to the hands of people trained specifically to help her grow up healthy and eventually return to the wild.
That’s the whole point of what a service like this can do. Not every situation involves a dog going to the vet. Sometimes it’s a scared, orphaned marsupial who just needs to get from point A to point B safely, and the person who found her doesn’t have a way to make that happen alone.
What Happens to Fern Now
Fern will spend the coming weeks and months at Pasadena Humane Society receiving species-appropriate care — the exact formula, the exact housing, the exact gradual transition to solid food that a baby opossum needs to develop properly. She’ll likely be housed alongside other young opossums, which helps her develop normal social behavior and keeps her appropriately wild rather than imprinted on humans.
When she’s ready — old enough, healthy enough, showing the right instincts — she’ll be released back into the California landscape. Opossums have been around since the age of dinosaurs, and Fern is about to become one small part of that story continuing forward.
Why I’m Telling You This
I built Pets Go Taxi because I know what it’s like to need to get an animal somewhere safely and not have every logistics piece figured out. Carol found herself in exactly that situation — she’d done the hard part, she’d made the right call to get Fern to professionals, and she just needed someone reliable to close the gap.
If you’ve found an injured or orphaned wild animal in the Los Angeles area and need help getting them to a licensed rehabilitator, or if you simply need a private, careful pet transportation service for your own dog or cat, text me directly or fill out the contact form and I’ll get back to you within a few hours.
Fern’s story had a happy ending because someone cared enough to help and knew who to call to finish the job. That’s exactly what I want this business to be for the next person and the next animal who needs it.