When my daughter was in elementary school, she used to tell people that she wanted to grow up to be a veterinarian, a wildlife rehabilitator and an artist.

That was a mouthful! She included the rehabilitator part because she was able to observe the job. One of our veterinary technicians was a licensed rehabber. Her name was Laura and she took the job seriously.

I always felt that we should do all we could for injured or displaced wildlife because their habitat was becoming increasingly less. We had a clinic policy of not charging when our clients brought injured wildlife.

Sometimes I could successfully help them. But often I needed expert help. That is where the licensed rehabber comes into the picture. They attend training that gives them the knowledge of how to care for birds, small mammals, etc. without doing harm. The tendency is to try to take care of them as we do our domestic pets. However, the eating habits as habitats in which they live cannot be compared. For instance, baby rabbits do not eat every few hours like dogs and cats in the first few weeks of life. Does will hide their fawns in a safe place and go off to graze and return later. When people see a fawn alone, they want to remove it and assume it is abandoned. It is better to observe from afar and give the doe a chance to return. After eight hours, it may be prudent to call animal control for help. Resist the urge to get close or touch the baby. They might panic and injure themselves or run far from the site mom reserved as a safe spot.

Medical care for wildlife is also much different than our domestic pets. Birds have hollow bones (which aid them in flight) that crumble easily and are very tricky to repair when broken. Restraint of birds and wildlife causes them extreme stress and can lead to cardiac arrest. The lifespan of many small critters like mice, possums and rabbits is an average of two years.

My children were young when Laura worked with us. She usually arrived to work in the morning with at least one or more crates carrying any type of wild critter. Birds, squirrels, rabbits, fawns, foxes, raccoons, and skunks just to name a few. I can still see her coming across the lawn with a crate in each hand, like Mary Poppins. My kids would run to greet her and peek inside the door of the crate. Laura was patient and great about teaching us all.

I learned that if she scooped up the baby skunks quickly and pulled their tails between their legs, they would not spray their stinky defense on her. After a few days of feeding, they did

not try. Baby foxes were the most vicious and competitive when eating. Their growling and snarling could be downright scary. You definitely did not want your fingers to be in the way.

We became proficient at repairing injured/cracked shells of box turtles. Each one was different with beautiful colors and patterns. I learned that they should be released in the same area they were found.

If we felt that we were not equipped to treat a wild patient (for example, an owl with a broken wing), we called the wildlife center in Waynesboro, Virginia. Typically, a licensed rehabber would transport the animal safely. The wildlife center is amazing. It is equipped with in-house veterinarians and technicians with special training and many years of experience. Their goal is to release the patients back into the wild. They work hard to try to prevent the animals from bonding with them. Making them pets is the opposite of the goal. In fact, it is against the law in Virginia. The primary reason for this is to protect people from rabies (still a death sentence in humans and animals) as well as other parasites and diseases. All licensed rehabbers are vaccinated for rabies, as are veterinarians and most technicians. This is also the same reason that it is unwise to feed or bait wildlife like foxes, raccoons and skunks. When they become comfortable in the vicinity of humans, it becomes hard to know if they are ill and rabies becomes a larger threat.

Wildlife rehabbers are selfless folks who dedicate many hours of their free time to save helpless critters. They are not paid for this service. Forget leaving home for the weekend or a week of vacation with so many mouths to feed.

If you encounter an injured wild animal, it is best to contact animal control. They will know the best way to move the animal without causing harm. They too have a desire to help and will seek proper care via a wildlife rehabber or a trip to the veterinary clinic.

--Margaret Washburn is a retired veterinarian who spent the majority of her career in small animal practice. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, painting, cooking, and visiting with her family and friends.