Fresh Start Rescue Inc

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Fresh Start Rescue Inc Fresh Start Rescue is a 501c3 reptile rescue serving the Wilmington area and surrounding counties🐍🦎 Fresh Start Rescue Inc is a 501c3 reptile rescue.
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We have been rescuing iguanas for years in Wilmington under another non-profit and have now become our own organization. We rescue all types of reptiles and exotic animals. Our rescue members and volunteers include specialists in the care of iguanas, snakes, chameleons, geckos, and exotic wildlife. We have spent years learning to properly care for these animals, and now our goal is to help find lo

ving forever homes for reptiles in need. Nicole and Mike Spencer started Fresh Start Rescue Inc and Fresh Start Farm is our retirement dream. After years of public service we have moved to 5 acres in a small town and created our dream farm. We have goats, chickens, ducks and turkeys, and tons of reptiles!

I know it's hot but we have a few more fun events planned before we take a break for the summer!!This Friday we'll be in...
25/06/2024

I know it's hot but we have a few more fun events planned before we take a break for the summer!!

This Friday we'll be in Leland at the 4th Friday Art Market - Leland . We're the nonprofit of the night so this is a fundraiser for us. It is outside but it's in the evening, there's music and food and drinks and just lots of fun. Plus we have plenty of ac in the trailer!! 😂

On Sunday we have another Paint Your Own Reptile class in downtown Wilmington at the The ArtSea Shop & Studio Sunday is going to be way too hot to do anything outside lol. So come on into the studio, paint a fun keepsake and hang out with reptiles!

And then for July 4th we will be back at Waterline Brewing Company for their annual freedom festival. Come inside, cuddle a reptile, and have a beer! The kids can get their face painted, get fairy hair, and have a water balloon fight. And of course there will be food trucks and an ice cream truck.

In all the chaos of doing an event yesterday and the crazy heat that has fried my brain, i forgot to make a birthday pos...
23/06/2024

In all the chaos of doing an event yesterday and the crazy heat that has fried my brain, i forgot to make a birthday post for Fresh Start Rescue!

Is it a birthday or an anniversary?? Technically Fresh Start was 'born' on June 22, 2017 when we received our approved 501c3 paperwork. But I guess it's the anniversary of receiving that paperwork lol. What would you call it??

Either way, we're 7 years old!!! And we're so thankful that we're still here, and that we have thousands of amazing followers, and that people from all over the country want to trust us with their animal. We even have people who trust us to watch their babies when they go on vacation.

Things may change some this year. Things change every year. We'll keep growing and evolving to help as many animals as we can.

In celebration of our birthday/anniversary, we had 2 bearded dragon adoptions today! Ruby and Derp are off to their new homes!

Be sure to come visit us today!!  This is one of the last trailer events until fall!!
22/06/2024

Be sure to come visit us today!! This is one of the last trailer events until fall!!

Who is coming to see us this weekend on our anniversary!!?? This event has some great bands all day including a Beatles ...
21/06/2024

Who is coming to see us this weekend on our anniversary!!?? This event has some great bands all day including a Beatles cover band, country music, a heart/led zeppelin tribute band, and the last band that plays a little bit of everything. You'll have 16 food trucks to choose from so stay for lunch, afternoon snack, dinner and dessert! Three breweries will be serving up ice cold beverages, and a handful of vendors will have fun items for you and the kids!

Come on out to celebrate our 7th anniversary this Saturday. It's one of our last trailer events of the season. See all your favorite ambassadors and get the kids a fun 3D printed reptile. Come support all the local small businesses that will be at this event.

19/06/2024

Shamus is the entire reason Fresh Start Rescue Inc exists. Read his story on our fundraiser page.

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17/06/2024

Our summer intern for this year has backed out. If you have any teens who are comfortable with reptiles and need some volunteer hours, I have a ton of classes that I need help with.

They do need to be reliable, be able to get to the rescue or wherever the class is being held, need signed parental permission if under 18, and be comfortable holding lizards and snakes. The help can be just for the class or all day at the rescue as well. We have plenty of work at the rescue to do lol. Our rescue qualifies for all school volunteer requirements.

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This is disgusting. This is an ad from Vans Shoes. It features an emaciated snake. The company has taken down some of th...
17/06/2024

This is disgusting. This is an ad from Vans Shoes. It features an emaciated snake. The company has taken down some of the ads but not all of them. I found this screenshot today still on their website. Some of the employees also still have it on their pages.

How can the entire marketing department at Vans not notice that this snake was emaciated? No one saw the pictures and thought it doesn't look right? Not one person in the company knows enough about snakes to know you shouldn't see all its bones like this? If this had been an emaciated dog, it would be all over the news and the company would never recover. If you're a reptile lover, especially if you wear Vans, please let them know that this is not ok, that they have just outraged a huge portion of their customer base.

This is exactly why we do educational classes. This summer I have more than 30 classes scheduled in 2 months (i did have to turn some down so we don't overwork our babies). Our goal is to introduce people to these animals, to educate them on the reptiles, to reduce fear, and show them that reptiles deserve all the respect that mammals get. We don't ask you to love them if its not your thing but we do want you to respect that fact that they are a living, breathing, feeling creature just like your dog. Your support for our rescue means we can afford to keep going out into the public for classes and community events. The more we introduce people to these animals, hopefully the less this kind of thing will happen. Please consider donating to our rescue birthday fundraiser where your donation will be matched by one of our followers! And please, please tell Vans this is not ok!

https://www.facebook.com/donate/997573898610746/

16/06/2024

Happy Father's Day to all the reptiles dads out there!
Help us make a difference in these animal's lives by making a donation in dad's name.

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15/06/2024
Don’t forget to join us today for BlueberryFestival! We will be set up in the Food Lion parking lot where you can catch ...
15/06/2024

Don’t forget to join us today for BlueberryFestival! We will be set up in the Food Lion parking lot where you can catch the shuttle to the festival!

14/06/2024

Fresh Start Rescue Inc is turning 7! Come help us celebrate. All donations up to $2,000 will be matched by one of our very generous followers!

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On this week's Specials Menu at Cafe Fresh Start we have a cool, refreshing salad featuring locally grown watermelon on ...
14/06/2024

On this week's Specials Menu at Cafe Fresh Start we have a cool, refreshing salad featuring locally grown watermelon on a bed of homegrown mixed greens. Omnivore options include your choice of insect served on top or on the side.

13/06/2024

Its Blueberry Festival time! This Saturday in Burgaw, starts at 9am. We will be parked at FoodLion out on 117 where you can park your car, grab some FREE WATER (because its gonna hot!) from the FoodLion tent, get some reptile love, and then catch the shuttle into the festival. The shuttle is the way to go, parking anywhere inside downtown Burgaw is just impossible.

We'll have our mobile unit, some of our ambassadors to interact with, and our merchandise to help raise money to care for all these animals.

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Some days you just need to hitch a ride with a friend
11/06/2024

Some days you just need to hitch a ride with a friend

We have a full schedule of library and summer camp classes coming up. This week we're visiting several of the Brunswick ...
10/06/2024

We have a full schedule of library and summer camp classes coming up. This week we're visiting several of the Brunswick County Libraries. Come see the reptiles!

Barbee library in Oak Island Monday 11am
Harper library in Southport Monday at 2pm
Leland library on Village Road Thursday at 2pm

Did you see us at the Library Tonight ? Check our schedule to see when we will be at a library near you !!!
06/06/2024

Did you see us at the Library Tonight ? Check our schedule to see when we will be at a library near you !!!

We only have a few more chances for you to come see the mobile exhibit before it gets too hot! Our mobile exhibit does n...
02/06/2024

We only have a few more chances for you to come see the mobile exhibit before it gets too hot! Our mobile exhibit does not run between mid July and Labor Day because its almost impossible to keep the animals cool enough even with the air conditioners. Yes, even reptiles who love the heat can get too hot!

For our last events of the season, we'll be in...

Burgaw at the FoodLion on June 15
Kenansville at the Duplin Events Center on June 22
Leland at the Shuckin Shack for 4th Friday Market on June 28
Wilmington at the Ogden Taproom for Wolfe's PopUp Night Market on July 6th (both of these markets are donating to Fresh Start as their non-profit of the night)
Shallotte at the PetSense Cookout on July 13

We'll also be at Waterline Brewing for 4th of July but we'll be inside with a few select animals for you to interact with - Come have a beer with us and enjoy all the festivities. This is absolutely the best place to be on the 4th!

Next week also starts summer camp season! We are fully booked this year and even had to turn some down so we don't work the animals too much! We're very thankful that everyone wants to book us and excited to have some new camps on the calendar. Don't be surprised if your kids come home and tell you they got to pet a gator at camp! (ok not really a gator but close lol)

If you haven't been to the highland games, this is the year to go!! The weather is going to be absolutely amazing - 81 d...
30/05/2024

If you haven't been to the highland games, this is the year to go!! The weather is going to be absolutely amazing - 81 degrees, partly cloudy, and super low humidity (it may even be chilly that morning!). The games benefit Paws4Vets. And of course, Fresh Start Rescue Inc will be there with our mobile display!! This is our first year so we're super excited to be invited and to watch the games!

Competition, dogs, reptiles, food, music, dancers, and more. Bring the family. This event does require tickets so please see their website for more info.

It's going to be a beautiful day! Come see us at Wrightsville Beach Brewery
25/05/2024

It's going to be a beautiful day! Come see us at Wrightsville Beach Brewery

There has been a long-standing opinion of many in the reptile world that reptiles are not sentient. They have no feeling...
25/05/2024

There has been a long-standing opinion of many in the reptile world that reptiles are not sentient. They have no feelings of joy or pain, they have no complex thought process, just instinctual reactions. I (Nicole) have never been one of them. You just cannot work with animals for as long as I have and not see that they do understand things. Maybe not the same as us, but in very similar ways.

Pain meds are now commonly prescribed by exotic vets, anesthesia is used in medical procedures, snakes can be tap trained, lizards can be trained in a number of ways including tap, clicker, and target. These animals are way more intelligent than we give them credit for. I have also seen snakes and lizards recognize that when someone else is holding them, hey this is not my human, and try to go back to the familiar person. I've long been convinced, based soley on my animals behavior, that even snakes can recognize their owner, possibly based on our smell.

Do they react or bite from instinct? Yes, all animals do. If you startle your dog when it's asleep, it can react aggressively. If you kick a dog, most will try to bite you in return. We think about dogs in the pound being scared and alone, I've seen the same behavior from reptiles that come here. To be scared of a new place means you recognized/remember the sights, smells, people, etc of your old place. That requires more thought and memory than most people think reptiles have.

We still have many people in the community that don't believe these animals feel, including some large names that I've seen do medical procedures without meds or even a clean environment. We will never get these animals to be taken seriously as pets or to have coverage under animal cruelty laws, if even those who work with them don't believe they matter.

There will always be people who treat any animal horribly. But I hope that more studies like this will help get rid of the 'disposable animal' mentality when it comes to reptiles.

Far more animals than previously thought likely have consciousness, top scientists say in a new declaration — including fish, lobsters and octopus.

18/05/2024

Due to logistical issues, Fresh Start will not be at Burgaw Brewing for the Pender Pet Project today. Sorry to anyone that was coming out to see us today!

We still have the paint your own 3D reptile party tomorrow in Wilmington so be sure to book your spot there!

What are your plans for this wet weekend? Fresh Start Rescue Inc will be at the Blair Elementary spring fling tonight. L...
17/05/2024

What are your plans for this wet weekend? Fresh Start Rescue Inc will be at the Blair Elementary spring fling tonight. Looks like it will be cloudy but no rain.

Saturday we are scheduled to be in burgaw at The Pet Project event but the weather looks like it's probably going to be fairly wet for most of the morning. So we're not sure yet if we'll be able to attend this one. But please if you're in the area, stop by burgaw brewery because there will be other rescues there for you to learn about and support. The Lawrence Herd is hosting this event to bring awareness to the local rescues.

And then Sunday is our monthly paint your own reptile class in downtown Wilmington! Reserve your space now, this one is filling up! This is a fun event for all ages. You can paint a 3d printed reptile, get to meet some of our ambassador animals and learn all about them. It's a great time to get all your reptile questions answered.

Public Service Announcement: Tomorrow, May 12th, is Mothers Day. Just in case anyone forgot lol. If you're looking for s...
12/05/2024

Public Service Announcement: Tomorrow, May 12th, is Mothers Day. Just in case anyone forgot lol.

If you're looking for somewhere to take mom for the day, bring her by the Leland Brewing Co for their Mothers Day Market. Lots of beer, crafts, food, and of course - Fresh Start Rescue Inc!! We'll be there from noon to 5 with the mobile display, all our fun merchandise, and your favorite ambassador animals.

Mom really wants a photo of her holding a burmese python on her special day!!

Thank you so much to the 501st Carolina Garrison for raising funds at comic con for Fresh Start Rescue Inc. Moonshine is...
09/05/2024

Thank you so much to the 501st Carolina Garrison for raising funds at comic con for Fresh Start Rescue Inc.

Moonshine is ready to join!

09/05/2024

Battle of the pond! Two large male common snapping turtles battling it out, likely to determine who gets the pond in this neighborhood. We watched for a good 15 minutes before we had to get to our class. We did come back to check a few hours later and there was no sign of either of them. They would fight, stop for a minute, then fight again so hopefully they just got tired and one decided to retreat.

07/05/2024

Mike is on his way down to wilmington to pickup the 5th stray reptile in the last 10 days. These are captive born reptiles that cannot survive in our climate, animals that were likely released on purpose.

We're still closed to intakes... what happens when we have to say no to these strays too? where do they go then?

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Our Story

Fresh Start Rescue Inc is a 501c3 reptile rescue. We have been rescuing iguanas for years in Wilmington under another non-profit and have now become our own organization. We rescue all types of reptiles and exotic animals. Our rescue members and volunteers include specialists in the care of iguanas, snakes, chameleons, geckos, and exotic wildlife. We have spent years learning to properly care for these animals, and now our goal is to help find loving forever homes for reptiles in need. Nicole and Mike Spencer started Fresh Start Rescue Inc and Fresh Start Farm is our retirement dream. After years of public service we have moved to 5 acres in a small town and created our dream farm. We have goats, chickens, ducks and turkeys. We produce and sell organically grown produce and free range duck and chicken eggs. We will be adding honey to that list soon. Profits from the farm support our rescue.