of baby ducks, opossums, or squirrels. As many as 200 squirrels are treated from July through October, “which is a lot of mouths to feed,” Kinney laughs. A lot of mouths to feed mean a lot of hands needed to hold and nourish those nursing babies, as well as care for and successfully release thousands of other ill or wounded birds and animals, Hawkins says. “Our goal is always to rehabilitate and release, and I think we do a really good job at that. The hospital staff is amazing, the volunteers are amazing. We have over 160 volunteers that help us do the work that we do; we could not do it without them.” The dedicated volunteers, many who have been with the center for more than a decade, supplement 10 paid staff members. In addition to working in the hospital, some volunteers become certified to care for animals at home. Jackie Turner, who works one four-hour shift every week at the center, turned the garage of her Cupertino home into “my little hospital,” where she cares for one of her favorite animals, opossums. Volunteers like Turner and Victoria Wolter say the training and hard work they do at the center is all worth it. Wolter became a Wildlife Center volunteer “by accident,” when she found an abandoned baby bird in a parking garage 10 years ago and was introduced to the center’s work. She says at the time she was suffering from depression, but the more she worked at the center, the better she felt. “I thought I was going to be healing animals, and they healed me.” Working at the center, there’s a lot of hustle and bustle, with numerous teams working inside the hospital, as well as in outside pens and aviaries, but it’s noticeably quiet. People talk in hushed tones, and the animals’ cages are covered with towels. The quiet keeps animals calm and reduces stress that could cause more harm, but it’s also protocol to ensure that human behavior isn’t imprinted on the animals while in captivity. Predatory animals such as coyotes, foxes and bobcats, are a specialty of the center, which is seen as a resource by other agencies across the state. “We are one of the few go-to people for questions about these species, and there are a lot of networking opportunities for other animals as well, that people will reach out to us for assistance and guidance for certain animals in care,” Kinney says. Along with the host of predatory mammals and birds the center regularly treats, the staff sees a lot of different species of other birds, along with a good deal of raccoons, skunks, deer and more. The most common species the center treats are Mallard ducks, orphaned tree squirrels and baby opossums, according to Kinney, who started at the center as a passionate teen volunteer 14 years ago, and eventually was hired and worked her way up to hospital manager. The most unusual animals that have come through the center’s doors include a beaver and a brood of neonatal shrews, tiny mammals that eat insects. Possibly the most dramatic case involved a peregrine falcon that collided with PG&E power lines in the western foothills several years ago. It was badly burned and near death when it came into the center. Despite advice from others to euthanize, staff and volunteers were determine to help the raptor. After more than a year both in the hospital and in homecare, the bird eventually healed. On a beautiful spring day, staff and volunteers triumphantly released the falcon among the same hills and watched it soar into the distance. “If we have the resources and the expertise, we will do it,” Hawkins says. “If we know from our experience we can help an animal, we will give it a shot.” 84 South Bay Accent Clockwise from top: VolunteerJackie Turner examines a Virginia Opposum. A young Gray Fox is given sanctuary at the Center. Ashley Kinney, right, updates Laura Hawkins on the status of animal patients located in the main hospital. Victoria Wolters, volunteer, feeds a baby tree squirrel. A peregrine Falcon recovers from a wounded wing. CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: MAKDA ASRAT; ASHLEY KINNEY; MAKDA ASRAT (2); RUTH MCDUNN
South Bay Accent - Oct/Nov 2016
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