With the kind of chill we’ve had this winter, we wanted to share an important tip about saving animals. This is one of the first things rehabilitators learn when it comes to wildlife first aid! It’s very possible that you might find a “dead” animal one day in very cold weather. This may include aContinue reading “It’s Not Dead Until It’s Warm and Dead: Saving Unresponsive Animals”
Category Archives: Wildlife Emergencies
Confused Birds: Not Miracles or Social Media Accessories
Social media can be both a very good thing and a very bad thing for wildlife. One of the most unfortunate trends we’ve seen over the last few years involves people taking videos and photos with seriously injured birds while declaring the unfortunate animal’s behavior miraculous. We’re not here to knock anyone’s spiritual beliefs, butContinue reading “Confused Birds: Not Miracles or Social Media Accessories”
A Bird Hit My Window. What Now?
“A bird hit my window!” This is one of the most common wildlife emergencies people encounter. Windows strikes are a common cause of death and injury among native birds, but the good news is that they can sometimes be treated and can usually be prevented. You may notice a window-struck bird because you see itContinue reading “A Bird Hit My Window. What Now?”
Not Every Dead Animal is “The Mom!”
When an animal is truly an orphan, that’s almost always a good reason to bring it to a rehabilitator. But please be careful to make sure that you aren’t kidnapping babies who still have a parent caring for them! Many baby animals are taken from the wild because an adult was found dead nearby. Often,Continue reading “Not Every Dead Animal is “The Mom!””
5 Signs a Baby Bunny Needs Help
Baby cottontail rabbits are frequent victims of kidnapping. A mother cottontail only visits her young twice a day, once at dawn and once at dusk, so baby rabbits are often mistaken for being orphaned when they’re actually just fine. Like all animals, a baby cottontail rabbit’s best chance of survival is always with its naturalContinue reading “5 Signs a Baby Bunny Needs Help”
Found an “Orphan” Turtle?
Please don’t “rescue” baby turtles of any kind unless they’re noticeably injured! There is no such thing as an orphan turtle. Unlike mammals, birds, and a couple of reptiles, turtles do not care for their young at all. A mother turtle lays her eggs and never sees them again. Well-meaning people who “rescue” turtles fromContinue reading “Found an “Orphan” Turtle?”
Five Signs a Fawn Needs Help
It’s baby season, so we’ll be focusing our posts over the next few days on identifying babies that are truly orphaned and in need of help! Some of the most common kidnapping victims are fawns. Their mothers leave them alone for long periods of time, so well-meaning people often mistake them for orphans. It’s usuallyContinue reading “Five Signs a Fawn Needs Help”
Never Feed an Orphaned Wild Animal
People with good intentions accidentally kill a lot of baby animals. Please make sure you don’t contribute to this problem this baby season if you come across a baby animal in need! Orphaned animals are almost always hypothermic and dehydrated after hours or days without their mothers’ care. When they’re in that state, they can’tContinue reading “Never Feed an Orphaned Wild Animal”
Found an Orphaned Animal? Keep it Warm!
If you find a baby animal and are certain that it is truly orphaned— for example, because you actually saw the mother’s body nearby or because the babies are clearly emaciated— the most important thing you can do is keep it warm! Hypothermia— freezing to death— is the most common cause of death in orphanedContinue reading “Found an Orphaned Animal? Keep it Warm!”
That Friendly Animal May Not Be Your Reincarnated Loved One
Ok here’s what I wrote and it will go live tomorrow. Thank you guys! The world works in mysterious ways, and people can find messages hidden in anything. Grief is painful, and it’s only human nature to look for signs that our loved ones are still with us. Sometimes we come across animals in ourContinue reading “That Friendly Animal May Not Be Your Reincarnated Loved One”