Community

Spring is the start of the wildlife baby season
Written by Virginia Tavenner

Spring is the start of the wildlife baby season and soon people in our community will come across baby squirrels, bunnies, opossums, ducklings and birds that are in need of assistance. Their parents were killed, their nests were destroyed, and they were attacked by a cat, or are just too injured or sick to be reunited with their parents.

Many babies don’t need to be rescued but well-intentioned members of the public don’t always know this. So they scoop up the baby and begin making dozens of phone calls only to find out that there are no local, state or federal agency resources to help them. Eventually, they find the volunteers within the Virginia Beach SPCA Wildlife Program.

These volunteers are state and federally licensed wildlife rehabiltators that are trained to care for wildlife with the single goal of releasing them back into the wild with the skills these babies need for long term survival. They allocate a portion of their home, their property and their lives specifically toward the care of wildlife. They pay all the costs for formula, housing and medical care out of their own pockets. They attempt to achieve a balance between their professional lives, their volunteer work and other obligations. They do this for the wildlife but they also do this for the people that rescue these orphans.

I have been fortunate to have followed a career path that has allowed me to have a 20+ year relationship with the VBSPCA, with both the shelter and the Wildlife Program.

In 1989 I transformed from the person that rescued orphaned or injured wildlife to the person that cared for them. On average 400-800 birds come into my care each year. Finding the perfect balance between profession, family and community is always a challenge; sleep (as in ‘the lack of’) is usually how I achieve balance. And although I’m certainly not impacting the 30% decline of songbird populations, I know I’m impacting the life of each bird that I receive. That’s the reward that makes it worthwhile.

Perhaps you are looking for a new way to give back to the community or maybe you are also ready to make the transition from rescuer to care provider. The Virginia Beach SPCA Wildlife Program provides care to almost 2000 orphaned and injured wildlife each year. We have opportunities available for rehabilitators, transporters and referral line volunteers. We’d love to have you join us as we prepare for this year’s springtime event.

Virginia Tavenner is currently the administrator of the VBSPCA Wildlife Program http://vbspcawildlife.com and owner of Definity Group, which offers website consulting, design and development services http://thedefinitygroup.com