Wild Care's lodgings are full, but coffers aren't
Photo 1 of 3 | View Enlarged Photo
Volunteer Martha Meier of Chatham feeds a baby squirrel at Wild Care Cape Cod, where she's been helping for 30 years. "It's my therapy," she says.Cape Cod Times/Christine Hochkeppel
EASTHAM — Barely a cage was free during a visit one day last week at Wild Care Cape Cod.
Four red-tailed hawks, 12 orphaned or injured baby squirrels, one common eider, a northern gannet, a snake and four gulls were only some of the patients recovering at the nonprofit treatment center lodged inside a yellow Victorian home by the Orleans Rotary.
Wild Care has been getting a lot of publicity lately, which has raised awareness about the existence of the 30-year-old organization dedicated to saving the lives of injured wild animals, said Stephanie Ellis, the executive director.
But the flip side to all that awareness is more people are calling with injured creatures. The rescue center has taken in 200 more animals this year than at the same time last year, Ellis said.
And the February storm dubbed Nemo inundated Wild Care with 56 seabirds during a month when it would normally see five to 10 animals, Ellis said.
And these birds can eat.
Currently, the loons recovering from various injuries at Wild Care are eating $25 worth of herring a day, Ellis said. The four red-tailed hawks are downing 10 mice a day.
The $220,000 annual operating budget must cover $10,000 a month in payroll for three licensed wildlife rehabilitators and an office assistant.
Then there are the equipment and medicine. Many swans and geese come in suffering from lead poisoning, Ellis said, after eating lead shot lying at the bottom of ponds. Even though waterfowl hunters have been prohibited from using lead shot since the 1970s, "there still is a ton of it in the bottom of our ponds," Ellis said.
The birds require chelation therapy to remove the heavy metal from their bodies.
Many hawks eat mice poisoned by rodenticide, and most rodenticides are anti-coagulants, Ellis said.
PLEASE don't use poison to kill rodents! PLEASE use humane traps that kill the targeted population instantly! This also causes problems with domestic animals - DOGS and CATS that eat dead or dying rodents.
So when the hawks come in, a mere needle prick to draw blood leads to major blood flow.
"It's very common," Ellis said.
Other patients in residence on this particular day last week had been hit by a car or attacked by a dog or a cat, Ellis said.
"Ninety-five percent of the animals we see are negatively affected by humans," she said. "So this is a way to give back to the animals."
About 55 percent of the patients are released back to the wild, Ellis said.
"That's a pretty good rate considering you need to be able to pick up the animals to bring them here.
They have to be in bad shape to be caught by humans," she said.
Wild Care is beloved by many humans. The owners of the Front Street Restaurant in Provincetown have been holding a $250-a-plate dinner fundraiser for 13 years, with the next coming up Sept. 26, Ellis said.
And this year for the first time Gabriel's at the Ashbrooke Inn in Provincetown will hold a weekend fundraiser of birding, wine, dinner and two nights at the inn Nov. 8-10.
Even though fundraisers take place nearly every month, Wild Care especially needs donations after this busy year.
Two-thirds of its budget relies on private donations. The rest comes from grants, Ellis said.
"We have made cuts, but we don't want to cut animal care," Ellis said. "We are desperately trying to find a way to become sustainable."
For more information: www.wildcarecapecod.org.
No comments:
Post a Comment