If you came across orphaned or injured wildlife, would you know what to do? This is the time of year when you could come across a wild animal in distress, and we want to ensure you have all the information you need to help them.
Important note
Whenever young animals or birds are found, an attempt should be made to reunite them with their mother. Parents provide the best care for young wildlife. When young are inadvertently removed from their parents, it decreases the likelihood that they will survive, even with expert human care. Each wildlife species has its own specific needs and requires specialized care to recover.
Who can you call?
If you find wildlife that appears sick, injured or orphaned, don’t remove it from its natural habitat. Call a licensed wildlife rehabilitator who can help you assess the situation and provide advice on what to do next.
Click here for the provincial list of authorized wildlife rehabilitators.
Some larger municipalities have animal control services that will respond to calls concerning wildlife. Contact your municipality to determine if there are animal control services in place, and what types of animal calls they have the capacity to handle.
In cases of suspected animal cruelty
In the province of Ontario, the government’s Provincial Animal Welfare Services agency investigates animal cruelty concerns. Animal welfare concerns can be reported by calling 1-833-9-ANIMAL ( (1-833-926-4625)You can also call your local police services. The Ontario SPCA and Humane Society does not have the legal authority to investigate animal cruelty concerns.
Visit ontario.ca to learn more about animal welfare concerns.
If this information was helpful, visit our blog to learn more about how to co-exist peacefully with wildlife.
The post Who can you call about orphaned/injured wildlife? appeared first on Ontario SPCA and Humane Society.
Leave a comment
