Wildwoods

08/09/2024

If anyone is headed to the twin cites in the next couple of days and is willing to transport an animal, please give us a call at 218 491 3604.

Thank you!

08/09/2024

01/09/2024

31/08/2024

30/08/2024

Check out our Summer 2024 newsletter! It has been a wild ride this summer, and things are not slowing down yet... We could use some extra support due to the fact that we have had babies in our care since the end of April. Our animal care costs reflect this increased volume of babies, and your support helps to keep us sustainable.

Thank you!

https://tinyurl.com/7kcdy4x8

26/08/2024

Our fantastic summer interns have moved on! Great for them, a little harder for us. We are at capacity with baby bunnies so we cannot take in any more. You can still give us a call and we will refer you to rehabbers in Babbitt and Ely, but we are very sorry that we will not be able to keep them here.

If you do encounter babies or a nest is disturbed, don't hesitate to call us for information on how to renest and reunite. And we will give you that referral if necessary.

Baby season is so close to being over... Just keep an eye out for the babies and help us to keep them safe and wild.

Thank you!

22/08/2024

With so many photos and videos, sometimes it can be hard to choose what to share! Take a look at our hummingbirds! They are growing and thriving, and we are excited to see them start to self-feed.

It's been a busy summer and things are still hopping. Our food costs are sky high, so any support is much appreciated. We are also happy to report that we now can take venmo! Search for us using wildwoodsrehab.

Enjoy the video!

21/08/2024

Migration season has started, and birds are at risk. Please…turn off your lights at night, mark your glass and talk to your property manager about what they are doing, too.

This morning we had a record number of finds by one team (of two volunteers).

Cindy and Jenny made a stunning 20 window strike observations today (photo credit to Jenny):

🐦‍⬛ 8 whole deceased (7 Chipping Sparrows + 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch)
🐦‍⬛ 4 live rescues (Chipping Sparrows)
🐦‍⬛ 8 scavenged (partials and feathers)

Did you know:
🪟that statistically speaking that downtown buildings represent only a small portion of window strikes? What happens downtown is awful but is happening multiple times over at homes, condos and smaller commercial buildings.
🪟 that what any of actually finds for window strikes is actually a small portion of what is actually being killed due to our lights and glass?
🪟 that birds that survive strikes often die later due to hidden injuries?
💡that light has a key and critical role in attracting and confusing birds into the city??

Please…turn off your lights at night, mark your glass and talk to your property manager about what they are doing, too.

20/08/2024

Just say NO to cow milk!

Squeaky the baby flying squirrel would like to remind everyone that cow milk is not good for baby wild animals (unless they are wild baby cows!).

Squeaky has a terrible tummy ache and nasty diarrhea because the very kind lady who rescued him gave him cow milk. This diarrhea can be fatal.

If you find a baby animal who needs help and have rescued him, please get him to a rehabber as soon as possible.

Also, do not feed them based on advice from the Internet; so much of that is just dead wrong. Just get them to a trained rehabber who can care for them. It is so much easier to prevent diarrhea than it is to fix it once it starts.

Thanks for caring and 'sharing'!

16/08/2024

Meet Hobo. Hobo was eating bugs in a person's lawn, so they decided to call an exterminator. Pesticide was sprayed on the lawn and under the house. Six weeks later he was brought to us emaciated, lacking aggression and covered in ant bites. A few days of a nutritious diet, meds, and hydration has him up on his feet. Sadly it looks as though our smelly friend has some lasting neurological damage from the chemicals sprayed, and cannot walk or run without falling over. He can no longer hunt for food and would die if released. Skunks, birds, armadillo, possum and many others are at the mercy of those who spray toxic chemicals to kill bugs. When contemplating pest control, please think of Hobo and his friends that will die alongside those grubs and grasshoppers.

14/08/2024

Of the 155 rabbits we have had this year, 150 of them have come this summer! Here are three of them enjoying their enclosure. They will soon be released into their wild home.

13/08/2024

We received these two nestling ruby-throated hummingbirds last week. They were likely without parents for up to 24 hours, and were very hungry indeed when they arrived. One of them is significantly smaller than the other. We are happy to report that, so far, they are doing well.

Watch them have one of their (many, many, many...) meals of the day!

09/08/2024

Look who's back! This was the pigeon that came to Wildwoods a couple of weeks ago and was completely stuck to the fly paper. We were able to get the pigeon unstuck and cared for, then sent him on down to WRC for a full bath and check-up. We are pleased to report that he just came back today and has already been released!

06/08/2024

Our newest residents! We are still going strong with a lot of animals in need of care, and summer is not over yet... These cottontails will join the other rabbits in our Quiet Room (these sensitive animals need their own space), and will stay with us until release.

We're also kinda excited to unveil our brand new donate page. Yes, we've had a lot of feedback over the years about how onerous the old page was (and let's be real, it was). So give it a test run and let us know if you like it 😉!

https://wildwoods.app.neoncrm.com/forms/donation-page

02/08/2024

This red-eyed vireo and house wren are both oh so hungry! They are both singles, and since they are nestlings and don't have any antagonism between their species, we put them together for company, and they get along oh so well!

Don't worry about the house wren. The vireo only sits on her occasionally and we make sure she gets all of the food she needs! In fact, she fell asleep just after we turned the camera off.

29/07/2024

And round 2 of squirrels is here! Baby dreams a happenin'.

25/07/2024

Update: The bobcat did not make it. She passed away on her own. She was extremely emaciated, but we don't know the cause of her emaciation.

We have a couple of animals from yesterday to share with you. Each day has its own surprises, and each day is so busy at this time of year!

This juvenile bobcat came to us yesterday after a family found her in their lawn, quite lethargic. This beauty is emaciated and requires professional care. It is very dangerous to feed emaciated animals because a lot of times, their systems are in near failure, or failure. For this reason, we warmed her and gave her fluids, but have not yet fed her. She stayed the night and is now on her way to the Wildlife Rehab Center in Roseville. She may not be feeling well, but she does have a little feisty going on if she needs to. We don't know if she is ill or has suffered another type of trauma, so all we can do is hope for the best for her and know that she will be in good hands.

This poor pigeon was brought to us by a kind soul who found her with the full length of her body stuck to a foot long sticky fly-trap roll. This poor pigeon was almost immobile, with only her feet being able to move. We have seen so many animals caught on sticky paper, and it is a terrible way for the animals to die (even if the paper was intended for that animal!). Unless there is intervention, they die of stress, emaciation, and dehydration, and their death does not come quickly. We can do better. We have to.

With patience, we were able to get her free of the sticky paper. She now requires more care than we can give her. She needs to be sedated so that she can have a thorough bath to remove the rest of the adhesive from her wings and to remove the vegetable oil that we used to remove her from the flytrap. She too is on her way to WRC for further care after staying with us yesterday and last night.

This has been a very busy summer for us, and our food costs are extremely high, as are the costs we incur by providing emergency care for animals that will only spend 24-48 hours with us. Any support is appreciated and will go directly to the care of the animals. Thank you.

24/07/2024

We don't get many of these birds! This is a common yellowthroat, a type of warbler, that was found in the middle of the road. A kind family brought the fledgling to us after searching unsuccessfully for its nest and parents. The fluffy bird is currently in our nursery (making a lot of noise, I might add) and is doing quite well! We expect to move the bird into an indoor flight cage in the coming days. For now, the yellowthroat is being housed in a butterfly cube, perching, and enjoying a meal every thirty minutes.

23/07/2024

Look who perked up this morning! Just waiting for his ride to WRC. Thank you, Jacqueline, for taking him

22/07/2024

Edit: I usually wait a couple of days to post about animals to see how they fare. In this case, it's still touch and go for this beautiful animal. We'll post an update tomorrow.

This guy was brought to us by Jodi today. She found him lying in the road and was quick to rush to his aid. He was likely hit by a car. He'll be spending the night with us at Wildwoods, and then will head down to the cities to the Wildlife Rehab Center tomorrow for x-rays and further care.

Another reminder to please be careful on the roads! He didn't cross the road, the road crossed his home!

21/07/2024

19/07/2024

We wanted to share our update of the baby merlin that we renested last week, and a couple of educational pieces to keep in mind for the rest of the summer.

We built a nest for the merlin, and then placed it as high in the tree as we could. The parent was definitely there and yelled at us many times. We placed the merlin in the nest, and true to young life, he didn't really stay put but decided to stand on the edge. We left him there, hoping he'd stay in the nest because we have to give the parents every opportunity to raise their young.

We visited that evening and he was out of the nest, so we put him back up again. The following day, neighbors called and advised us that he had once again left the nest. When we got there to check on him he did not look good. We brought him back to Wildwoods where we found out he'd lost weight and was dehydrated. For whatever reason, the parents decided to no longer care for him, even though they were present. After hydration and feeding, the falcon spent the night with us, and we then transferred him to The Raptor Center where he is doing well! They will either foster him to a new family, or raise and release him. Our intervention came only when we realized the parent was not going to care for him.

And now the educational pieces. Our intent is never to shame anyone, but to educate the public. This does mean that we will reference true stories of things that have happened in order for all of us to learn from them. We're all trying to do our best here, and sometimes we make mistakes. So my next comments are not public shaming, but are efforts to share what we have learned so that we can all do better and be better.

We received a fledgling hawk earlier this week that was found by a hiker in the woods. The hiker was concerned that the hawk was alone, and then hiked a fair distance out with the hawk, leaving it at a state park. Since no one knew exactly where the fledgling came from, it is now in care. That hawk was a healthy fledgling who belonged in the wild, but will now be raised in a rehab facility. No matter how good rehab facilities are, nothing can compare to the parent. If you find an animal, please leave it alone until you can talk to a rehabber. If you cannot talk to a rehabber and you are in the middle of the woods, the best course of action for that animal is to leave it there (unless it has been injured by a human; i.e., pet, ATV, etc.).

The second thing is that we are not able to go and pick up animals in the summer unless we can find a volunteer, and we cannot count on that. Please do not pick up an animal if you cannot take it home or bring it to us. There have been several instances this summer of animals left in boxes or live traps on sidewalks with a message for us to come and get them. We cannot. We are a skeleton operation. We have tens of animals in care and are not able to leave Wildwoods to go and pick up an animal. If you find an animal, please do not put it in a box until you have talked to us. We know the intentions are good, but we do not have the capacity to go out and get animals. Please, I really hope this is not a contentious post; these are just things to share so that we can all do what is best for the animals together. We are all trying our best, and let's just remember that.

Thank you!