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Wildside DO’S and
DON’TS
Here are some DO’S and DON’TS that
will help if you find an injured wild animal. |
DO: If you come upon an injured
animal, perhaps hit by a car, please contact our facility at (904)
829-8291, to report a wildlife emergency. You will be asked to leave a
message, rest assured we do review messages through the day and will
return your call as quickly as we can.
DO: Try to stay with the animal until help arrives. If you cannot stay
with the animal, please try to mark in some way where the animal is or be
explicit with your directions to where the animal is. Far too often, we
receive a call about an animal and the directions might be vague and we
are unable to find the animal.
DON’T: Attempt to pick up injured birds or mammals. They can hurt you with
their beak, teeth, or claws. An adult can use gloves or a net to get
wildlife safely into a box or carrier, but you should call us first to get
advice on how you should do this.
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Here are some DO’S
and DON’TS that will help you if you find an orphaned wild animal. |
DO: Always remember a young
animal’s best chance for survival is to be raised by its natural mother.
It is important to be sure the animal truly is an orphan, before you
intervene. If the mother is present, make every effort to try to return
the young to its mother before the baby is removed from the wild.
DON’T: Place the baby’s life in further jeopardy in an effort to return it
to its mother. For example, if a cat or other predator is present, don’t
leave the baby on the ground in hopes that the mother will return and find
it!! (If the mother is not present).
DO: Try to Use Common Sense, if you feel it is necessary to remove the
baby, place a towel over it and place it in a small cardboard box or
container, line it with a towel or old tee shirts works well.
DO: Keep the baby WARM – a heating pad set on low and placed under the
container works well.
DON’T: Allow children to repeatedly “CHECK” on the baby.
DO: Keep the baby in a quiet, dark place until it is taken to a
rehabilitator.
DO: Get it to a licensed rehabilitator AS SOON AS POSSIBLE; the longer the
delay, the less chance it has of surviving.
DON’T: Try to raise the baby yourself, proper care and nutrition are
crucial to the survival of the baby and any deficiency will more than
likely cost the animal its life.
DON’T: Give baby animals any liquids or food – very often they will inhale
liquids and this can kill them. Rehabilitators are familiar with special
feeding methods that prevent this from happening. If feed incorrectly
these animals can develop pneumonia from inhaling liquids or metabolic
bone disease and neurological problems from being feed an improper diet.
Often too much damage has been done to save the animal, so please do not
try to raise the baby yourself!
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Here are some DO’S
and DON’TS that will help the native wildlife in your area. |
DO: Help wildlife by picking up
trash, such as plastic bags. Six-pack holders, should have the rings cut
out, a lot of animals get caught in them. Cans should be crushed, too
often we are called because an animal has a can stuck on its arm or a jar
on its head.
DON’T: Leave broken fish line lying around, birds and mammals get caught
up in it and are unable to feed or take care of themselves.
DO: Before mowing your lawn, take a quick walk-around to check for rabbits
and turtles, we get quite a few baby rabbits and box turtles that have
been injured by lawn mowers.
DO: Many people enjoy birdbaths and bird feeders, so keep birdbaths filled
with fresh water and clean them when they are dirty. Also, bird feeders
should be cleaned often, at least once a month. Dirty feeders can spread
disease and infection.
DON’T: Feed any wild animals. Most animals are naturally afraid of humans
and when you feed them, they associate food with people. This can cause
animals to be far too aggressive with humans and almost always ends with
the animal having to be trapped and relocated or killed.
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