Dane County Humane Society's Wildlife Center

07/24/2024

While we spend most of our time focused on our patients, we also have some wild neighbors who occasionally visit the property… and when your neighbors start squabbling, who doesn’t like to peek out and see what all the drama is about?

Please enjoy this video that one of our interns captured of two young Woodchucks having a bit of a playful tussle behind the Wildlife Center:

07/20/2024

A few days ago we released a Red-tailed Hawk that has been in care for ten months after it flew through a methane burner. Once this hawk got through the initial stages of recovery—healing from burns sustained on their feet and face—it then took a long time for the damaged feathers to fall out (molt) and re-grow. These types of cases are always long-term for their care, but that means there is even more joy when they do make it back out after recovery!

The second photo shows staff "coping" or shaving down the beak for this bird. It was in rehabilitation for so long that the tip of the beak become a bit overgrown and required some additional care. This is similar to filing down nails and does not harm the bird at all.

07/17/2024

When you shop Dane County Humane Society Thrift Store, proceeds go to support animals in need, including wildlife. And now we have our second Thrift Store! Learn more about our thrift stores at www.giveshelter.org/thrift

07/17/2024

What is your favorite wildlife emoji? Comment with your favorite! 🦇🦆🐢

Pictured 📸: Fledgling Red-tailed Hawk from 2019

07/10/2024

Look at Teddy go! We are so happy he's doing well in his new home and is training to become an educational wildlife ambassador. You may recall Teddy, a domesticated fox kit who arrived at our Wildlife Center last year. If you missed his story, you can read it here: https://www.giveshelter.org/news/teddy

Keep up the great work, Teddy!

07/04/2024

Dane County Humane Society's Wildlife Center will be open limited hours from 9am to 12pm. If you find a wild animal in need of assistance, please call (608) 287-3235 before intervening. New patient admissions are by appointment only.

Learn what to do if you find a wild animal in need of assistance: https://www.giveshelter.org/wildlife-center/animal-admitting-procedures

06/26/2024

In addition to 2024 being a big year for turtles, it is also a big year for ducklings!

Over the last couple of weeks we released over 50 ducks that were raised here at the Wildlife Center, and we still have over 200 in care! Some of the Mallards we released were even observed over a week later - it is wonderful to know they are doing well. 🦆

06/20/2024

This past week we released almost 60 animals! A large number of these were groups of juvenile Mallard Ducks and Eastern Cottontail Rabbits, but it also included a White-throated Sparrow, 8 Virginia Opossum, and two hatchling House Wrens that were wild fostered with a family of wrens in a Dane County Humane Society nest box.

Pictured 📸: Virginia Opossum, White-throated Sparrow, and Eastern Cottontail Rabbit.

06/15/2024

In May alone we admitted 35 turtles—nearly all of which were presumed hit by car cases found broken near a roadway. We have so many turtles in care right now, we don't have enough tubs for them all!

When our turtles heal enough to graduate to an outdoor water tub, they are placed into large rubbermaid stock tanks varying from 100-300 gallons of water. We house them separately so that there is no risk of disease spreading between individuals.

Do you know anyone that has a stock tank that could be donated to our turtles? If not, could you share this post? We need to spread the word and hopefully get a couple more tanks so we are ready in the coming weeks to give our turtles the outdoor space they need.

Rehabilitating adult turtles is especially important work, since they take years (in some species a decade or more!) to reach sexual maturity. These breeding individuals keep the population strong, and without them populations could decline to dangerously low numbers.

If you find a turtle injured on the side of the road, please call Dane County Humane Society's Wildlife Center at 608-287-3235. To help a healthy turtle cross the road, follow our instructions here: https://www.giveshelter.org/news/turtle-crossing

06/14/2024

We would like to send a big THANK YOU to Lulu's Sweets for their donation of at-cost cookies for our volunteer icebreaker and social this year. The event was a hit with coffee and wildlife-themed cookies for all. 🍪☕

06/12/2024

Yesterday we released this fledgling Red-tailed Hawk that was found stuck in the courtyard of a UW Campus building! Fledglings are at an age where they are learning how to fly and still rely on their parents for food. Staff found this bird was healthy and simply needed to be reunited with its family, which was thankfully still in the area. One of our interns held the hawk while staff took measurements and applied a federal bird band before release.

05/31/2024

This past week we released 34 animals!

A number of these releases were reunites or wild fosters—which means they were successfully brought back to their parents or were brought to a different wild family of the appropriate species. Two American Crow nestlings were an example of both a reunite and a wild foster in the same nest. One of these crows fell from the nest it was returned to, and the other crow could not be reunited with its original parents so it was brought to combine with this new family.

Fourteen of twenty rabbit releases were infant reunites—often a rabbit nest is found and thought to be abandoned, but the mother is simply away from the nest to reduce. Finally, the three gosling releases were wild fosters. Canada Goose families will readily take on an additional gosling, so we found families with appropriately sized siblings and added our orphaned goslings to the group.

These processes—reunites and wild fosters—are extremely important to wildlife rehabilitation because they allow healthy infants and nestlings to go back to be raised by wild parents. Despite our best efforts, rehabilitators will never be able to provide care just like wild parents. It is always best for young animals to be raised wild when possible. This also keeps our Wildlife Center open for the animals that truly need our help - ones that are orphaned, injured, or sick. If we were to do no reunites or wild fosters our enclosures would fill up quickly, and we would not be able to help as many animals in need.

05/29/2024

Our admissions have increased by leaps and bounds this year—we are swamped!

There have been 1,887 phone calls since the beginning of May, which is an average of 65 calls daily.

537 animals have been admitted so far this month, and on our highest day of admissions we had 51 animals come in in a single day.

Our admission numbers for the month are 44 percent up from last year!

What do all these numbers mean? There is a huge need for the rehabilitation of orphaned, injured, and sick wildlife in south-central Wisconsin! Wildlife rehabilitators in our area have been filling up. At Dane County Humane Society’s Wildlife Center we have been incredibly busy and our staff have been working overtime. Funding for staff is an ongoing challenge as a non-profit organization. Please consider supporting the work we do by donating or sharing this post.

Donate: https://www.giveshelter.org/wildlife-center/donate-wildlife-center

If you have a wildlife situation please call us at 608-287-3235 and we can help determine the best next steps. Thank you!

Pictured 📸: Common Grackle nestlings, Virginia Opossum juveniles, American Crow nestling, Eastern Cottontail juvenile, Prothonotary Warbler, Common Garter Snake, Painted Turtle, Mallard ducklings.

05/27/2024

DCHS's Wildlife Center will be open regular hours today, but admission is by appointment only. If you find a wild animal in need of assistance, please contact the Wildlife Center at (608) 287-3235.

We also have helpful information at www.giveshelter.org/wildlife on what to do if you find a sick, injured, or orphaned wild animal.

Dane County Humane Society's Main Shelter and Dane County Humane Society Thrift Store are closed for Memorial Day.

05/22/2024

Got fresh branches? We'll take them! Wildlife too, if you're in need of assistance. We are open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. everyday, and enrichment like this is great for our patients in the wildlife enclosures for their recovery.

We hope everybody stayed safe during the storms last night. When it rains it pours!

05/21/2024

Photo dump! We've been incredibly busy here at Dane County Humane Society's Wildlife Center and wanted to share all of the amazing work going on here by our team. Thank you to all of our volunteers, interns, staff, and donors for their support to our program. Enjoy these recent patient updates!

05/15/2024

In the last two days, staff from DCHS's Wildlife Center have successfully wild-fostered four separate Canada Geese with new families. Below are two videos to showcase those efforts. Wild fostering is a technique used to place orphaned animals with unrelated groups of individuals in hopes that the adults accept the young as one of their own. It is not an easy process to perform, but it is a beneficial one for those orphans.

Orphaned waterfowl are at high risk to imprinting after hatching, which is one key reason why members of the public should contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator quickly to get the animal admitted for an evaluation. Imprinting is the process where a newly born individual, primarily birds, improperly bond with another living being, one that is not their same species, or an object. For example, the longer an animal stays in proximity to people during the critical period of its newborn life gives them more time to become overly comfortable in humans' presence. They typically lose their fear of people, which should be seen as predators, and depend on them for socialization, food, and nurturing. For the rest of that animal's life, it would not correctly identify with its own species, and this usually leads to injury or mortality, an inability to reproduce, and chronic behavioral or developmental problems.

Luckily, the technique of wild fostering can be used as a substitute for rehabilitation when the situation is appropriate. Instead of these goslings being raised at the Wildlife Center by our staff, interns, and volunteers, they are now united with new parents and siblings, even if it wasn't their family originally. As long as the adults and other babies accept them, these animals can grow up in a natural way and learn how to be successful from those of their own kind. It is the best thing we can do for these animals, despite how cute they might look and how much we might want to keep them. Through this technique, we give them the best chance at future survival.

In the first video, a single gosling had been held by a member of the public for over three days, putting the bird at very high risk to permanent imprinting. This was one of the most difficult wild fostering attempts that staff have made in many years because the hatchling goose had great difficulty choosing between people and their new parents. However, it ended up successful in the end.

In the second video, three different goslings were paired together in rehabilitation after coming in as orphans from different areas of Southern Wisconsin. One of them was in care for 10 days after being injured by a dog, and it needed to be kept for a longer period of time to heal. Luckily, more geese were admitted over the last week and kept each other company during that time frame, which further reduced their risk of imprinting on humans. They could all be wild fostered together in one group, so a site was chosen where many geese nest together. The adults in the second video are grouped together and practicing something called "babysitting" - something we are probably all familiar with! This is where adults take turns watching many babies of different ages and clutches that are grouped together so that pairs of parents have time to go off to forage by themselves and take a break from their kids 😅.

Thank you to all who help sick, injured, or orphaned wild animals during the baby season. Our staff are glad to be able to help so many different types of animals in very different ways. It takes a team of well-trained, knowledgeable, licensed wildlife rehabilitators to do the work that we do here at Dane County Humane Society. Your support helps us to provide these services, so consider making a donation today towards our time and efforts in the community.

05/14/2024

Since the start of May, we've admitted three western painted turtles, each suffering from injuries after being struck by vehicles. This is the time of year when turtles are on the move, risking their lives to cross roads in search of breeding opportunities, food, or the perfect nesting spot to lay eggs. Please be on the lookout for turtles in roadways, slow down when driving near wetlands, and when possible help them safely cross roads.

Too many turtles run over by vehicles during this time of year can cause Wisconsin’s turtle population to significantly decline. Turtles require many years to grow large enough to breed so the loss of any adult, breeding-age turtle takes a toll on the population.

Below are a few guidelines to follow when helping a turtle:

• If you’re unable to stop for a turtle crossing the road, put on your hazards, slow down, and go around it.
• When helping a turtle cross the road, always move it in the direction they were already heading. Moving them in the opposite direction or relocating them altogether can make their journey longer and more dangerous as they will reroute back to their original destination.
• Small turtles can be picked up on the sides of their shells but avoid getting your hands near their head as they can bite.
• Use a car mat to move a large turtle. Slide the mat under the back of the turtle, grab the back of the turtle’s shell and the mat and drag them across the road to safety.
• Never move or grab a turtle by the tail because doing so can severely injure the turtle’s spine.
• If you see an injured turtle along the roadside, please pick it up and transport it to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Even if the turtle cannot be saved, there could be eggs that can be saved and incubated. Once those eggs hatch, the babies can be released back to their native habitat.

For more detailed information, visit https://www.giveshelter.org/news/turtle-crossing

05/13/2024

A squirrel that homeowners had been watching over several years seemed to be struggling and stumbling in their yard. This female was very recognizable from her strawberry blonde fur color, and her offspring in the area share her unique coloring. The homeowners can tell her apart though by her short tail. Concerned about her condition, they called the Wildlife Center. We advised them to use a live trap to catch her, and bring her to the Wildlife Center.

The Wildlife Center staff took her in and gave her anti-inflammatories to treat the lack of coordination (ataxia), which may be due to head trauma. During the first week of care, staff felt some new “masses” in her abdomen, and an ultrasound verified that she was pregnant. She was still not quite completely recovered, but staff were hoping she could be released before the babies were born. Thankfully, soon she was regaining normal function and balance in her outdoor cage, so she could confidently be released in her home location with the wood nesting box she had while in care.

The homeowners recently provided an update that she is using the nest box, has had her babies, and all are doing well!

05/10/2024

Thanks to YOUR generosity, this year's Wildlife Baby Shower was a big success! We are currently sorting through items donated from our wish list and putting the new stuff to good use. And thanks to the matching gift provided by Steve and Margie Holzheuter, we are also thrilled to celebrate nearly $15,000 in cash donations to help our wild babies thrive. Thank you to EVERYONE who gave!

Still want to join in the fun? Give baby wildlife their best start by donating here: https://donor.giveshelter.org/-/XBANFYXF

05/08/2024

Great news! Hopefully this gains traction with other companies as well to help save wildlife.

https://www.kare11.com/article/news/local/fishing-tackle-company-pledges-to-go-lead-free-within-three-years/89-62316860-ac64-49ad-b5e5-552f17ad54f5?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3-G4spYlxcJHhb04HSudSolmxYJxFJUj2l8U3ht0-B3Seh8GEKf2_kYwY_aem_AWHjjdPsrPjdwGqp81b0kI1Zj2KO8Hqgaf25Cxqo2nOJyOQwffi3Nq3OAlf-uWCmfv8ZRtRxDQZuMj7Tc3CTR8y0

Lindy Tackle Company has launched a new lead-free jig designed by Minnesota Fishing Hall of Famer Jeff Zernov. It's entire product line will follow by 2027.

05/07/2024

What do you call a rabbit in a good mood?
A hoppy bunny! Groan 🙄
Jokes aside, here at DCHS’s Wildlife Center we have already received numerous calls about baby rabbits! We do not rehabilitate infant mammals but have helped many people with young rabbit situations determine if any intervention is needed, or have referred them to other rehabilitation resources in the area.

Eastern Cottontail Rabbits are fascinating! They:
Are named for their cotton-ball-like tails
Have excellent sight and hearing (those ears!)
Are abundant in the southern two-thirds of the state
Can be seen year-round at any time of the day or night
Live in neighborhoods in addition to woods, farmland, and more
Are hunted by hawks, owls, and foxes
Can “freeze” in place or run in a “zig-zag” pattern to avoid predators
Can run up to 18 miles per hour for up to one-half mile
Have sharp front top teeth that are always growing
Eat clover, plantain, dandelions, and more in the summer
Eat young parts of trees like apple, birch, maple, willow, sumac, and more in the winter

Before there are baby rabbits:
The adults mate from February through August
After mating, females make a shallow depression in the ground for a nest and line it with grass and fur
A nest can be in your lawn, on a playground, under a bush, in a garden, etc.

Babies:
Cottontail rabbit babies are called kits
Mother rabbits can have 3-8 kits in a litter, and have 3-4 litters a year
In Wisconsin, kits may be born anytime from the beginning of March through October
A mother rabbit only visits the nest briefly at dawn and dusk for quick feedings
Kits are born naked, blind, weigh about 1 ounce, and are almost helpless
At 1 week old, the kits open their eyes
At 2-3 weeks of age, the kits begin exploring outside of the nest for short periods to nibble on grass
By 4-5 weeks of age, the kits are weaned and independent

Nest disturbance:
Lawn-mowing, a person, or a pet may disturb a rabbit nest. If this occurs, rebuild the nest, and place the kits in it. Place several grass stems or twigs in a crisscross pattern over the nest and check it the following morning; if the pattern is disturbed, the kits are likely not abandoned. See our document for more information:https://www.giveshelter.org/assets/documents/Eastern_Cottontail_Reuniting_Instructions.pdf

A dog may discover a nest and will likely be curious about it. To allow the kits to grow up safely:
Walk your dog in a different part of your yard
Take your dog on a walk or to the dog park
Keep your dog on a leash or tie-out that cannot reach the nest
Cover the nest while your dog is out:
Use a laundry basket or milk crate to cover the nest
Place something heavy on top or on the edges to weigh it down
Remove the cover by 8 pm each night to allow the mother to feed at dusk and dawn

Call Dane County Humane Society’s Wildlife Center at 608-287-3235 if a rabbit is in one of these situations:
Attacked by a predator (dog, cat, etc.)
Appears injured (bleeding, punctures, cuts, broken bones, etc.)
Unresponsive, emaciated, very weak, cold, or soaking wet
Has large numbers of fleas, ticks, or fly eggs (look like tiny white grains of rice)
Parent is dead
If you are concerned a young rabbit is abandoned

05/02/2024

A couple days ago we almost filled up our avian room with adult songbirds, many of which flew into windows. This included an American Goldfinch, three White-throated Sparrows, and a Prothonotary Warbler—a species which we have never admitted to DCHS’s Wildlife Center before.

If a bird hits a window, they should be brought to a rehabilitator for care. Even if they seem to recover, they have suffered a significant injury and could have a concussion, or be swelling or bleeding internally. Some traumatic injuries are not shown until 24-48 hours after the impact. If a person suffered a similar trauma they would be evaluated by a medical professional.

How to respond when a bird has hit a window:https://www.giveshelter.org/assets/documents/Window-Collision-Protocol.pdf

04/26/2024

We are so grateful for our incredible volunteers! Your dedication helping us care for wild animals in rehabilitation for eventual release back to the wild is so appreciated. Thank you!!

04/23/2024

Betcha can't resist watching this video ❤️🦆❤️

Spring is officially here! Baby Mallards arrived today to the Wildlife Center, and it marks the first of our season for ducklings. Hundreds of these little guys will arrive over the next few months after being found orphaned or injured in our area.

Be on the lookout for hatching ducks and when Mom tries crossing the roads. Stay safe if you attempt to contain them, too. We are available every day from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for wildlife advice and appointments.

04/19/2024

If you didn't hear the recent news, we're extending our online baby shower event because we received a surprise matching gift from Steve and Margie Holzheuter! If you make a monetary donation between now and Sunday, you can DOUBLE your impact up to $2,500 for Wildlife's youngest patients. Visit us on our website at https://donor.giveshelter.org/page/wildlife to make a contribution.

These funds are greatly appreciated because they allow us to meet the needs of our patients in real time. We never know exactly what species will arrive at our doors each day, so having an adequate amount of funds ensures that we can purchase whatever may be needed.

Today, we are highlighting a baby House Finch that was admitted on April 17th after it fell to the ground prematurely and injured its feet and legs. Luckily, the injuries were not too severe for us to be able to treat, and this baby is in our incubators staying warm and being fed by staff every 30 minutes from open to close. This little bird will need lots of supplies moving forward, including paper towels, Kleenex, bird seed, and more!

Don't forget that you can still make a gift by purchasing items we need for babies like this one all season long. Your donations make an impact for every animal that comes in for rehabilitation, and your support makes it possible for us to help thousands of animals that are sick, injured, or orphaned.

Amazon Wishlist: https://a.co/9DU35sH

(Note: Due to privacy restrictions, Amazon.com does not provide us with customer information. If you purchase something from our Amazon Wish List, please forward your receipt to [email protected] so we may properly thank you for your gift!).

04/19/2024

UPDATE: We're extending our baby shower through Sunday because we've received a surprise matching gift from Steve and Margie Holzheuter! Give between now and Sunday to DOUBLE your impact up to $2,500 for Wildlife's youngest patients!

Today is the last day of our baby shower for DCHS’s Wildlife Center, and a very essential item has been saved for last. Monetary donations are greatly appreciated because they allow us to meet the needs of our patients in real time. We never know exactly what will arrive at our doorstep each day, and having an adequate amount of funds ensures that we can jump to get whatever may be needed.

Those needs can be unique to say the least! From extra cases of lettuce from the store, a special type of tub for an aquatic species, or extra coverage by interns and seasonal staff during the busy season—it takes a lot to keep up with our wild patients.

You can make a gift on our website at https://donor.giveshelter.org/page/wildlife

Thank you to all who donated, shared, and interacted with our posts. Your support makes it possible for us to help animals.

P.S. Don’t worry about the baby shower ending, we can take donations at any time! Visit our website or Amazon wishlist any time of the year to make a donation.

04/18/2024

Hatchling raptors are up next to be highlighted this baby shower week! Young raptors often get in trouble, either by falling from a nest, becoming orphaned, or having an injury occur as they learn and grow. We need to stock up on supplies often used in our raptor rehabilitation, such as soft-sided cages, leather raptor gloves, and trail cameras.

Soft-sided cages are a great option to transport birds either to a reunite attempt or to their eventual release. Leather raptor gloves are essential for safe handling—even the babies have talons! Trail cameras allow us to keep track of how well these birds are doing once they graduate to an outdoor enclosure. All of these items are available on our Amazon Wishlist: https://a.co/9DU35sH

You can also make a gift online at https://donor.giveshelter.org/page/wildlife

(Note: Due to privacy restrictions, Amazon.com does not provide us with customer information. If you purchase something from our Amazon Wish List, please forward your receipt to [email protected] so we may properly thank you for your gift!).

04/17/2024

If there is one thing we all know about babies… it is that they make a lot of 💩. They make a mess, and we are there to clean up that mess! Help us prepare for the baby season by buying us paper towels, tissues, bleach, or other cleaning items on our wish list: https://a.co/9DU35sH

You can also support us by making a gift online at https://donor.giveshelter.org/page/wildlife

(Note: Due to privacy restrictions, Amazon.com does not provide us with customer information. If you purchase something from our Amazon Wish List, please forward your receipt to [email protected] so we may properly thank you for your gift!).

04/16/2024

Some of our babies need enormous amounts of bugs and berries to eat! Help us stock up on food items for this season by buying some of these items.

Live bugs can be bought either from our Amazon Wish List (mealworms or waxworms) at https://a.co/9DU35sH or from a local store with them in stock. Any mealworms, waxworms, nightcrawlers, or crickets would be so helpful to keep our babies healthy and fed this spring. Live bugs and worms are much more nutritious than dried insects, so live is preferred!

Berries also play a big role in raising young animals, especially in late summer when we get later breeding species such as Cedar Waxwings. If you would like to support us by buying frozen unsweetened berries, or by growing a row of berries in your backyard for our wildlife—we would be very grateful!

You can also support our Wildlife Center by making a gift online at https://donor.giveshelter.org/page/wildlife

(Note: Due to privacy restrictions, Amazon.com does not provide us with customer information. If you purchase something from our Amazon Wish List, please forward your receipt to [email protected] so we may properly thank you for your gift!).