If “the selfless service of caring for injured, sick and orphaned wild animals” is for you, then April 24th is your day. That’s the one time this year the state Department of Environmental Conservation will give its test for those interested in becoming a licensed volunteer wildlife rehabilitator.

Read the announcement, which tells you how to get more information.

After the break is a story I wrote last year about a local wildlife rehabilitator. At the time, she was holding a “baby shower” and was seeking supplies to help with the inundation of baby animals she and other rehabilitators see each spring. Her phone number and email are at the bottom of the story and I know she’s looking for supplies again this year.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Wildlife rehabilitators seek help

CARMEL

Something they don’t teach you when you sign up with the state to care for injured and orphaned wildlife: You really should keep your animal-rearing supplies in a separate refrigerator.

If you do, there’s no chance of a mix-up when making risotto.

“He thought he was sprinkling Parmesan cheese,” said Maggie Ciarcia, a wildlife rehabilitator, recalling her husband rummaging for ingredients. “It turned out to be Esbilac powder,” a milk replacement used to nurse mammals.

Such is the life of a state-licensed, volunteer wildlife rehabilitator, a role Ciarcia has filled for 13 years. Ciarcia has fostered opossums, rabbits and flying squirrels, robins, blue jays and finches. Many of her charges are babies, finding themselves at her home after being ousted from theirs by unwitting tree workers or, for opossums, by car tires striking mothers carrying their broods.

“They all stay separate in my mind,” said Ciarcia, 55, who began her caring career in a Peekskill townhome before moving to her Carmel house six years ago.

Like tax preparers, spring is the busy season for wildlife rehabilitators. As the days grow longer, Ciarcia and her colleagues are girding themselves for the expected influx of yet-to-be furry or feathered young ones. But doing Mother Nature’s mothering isn’t cheap. Expenses – food, medication, heating pads to substitute for maternal warmth – come out of their pockets.

To cushion the financial burden, Ciarcia and a network of rehabilitators in Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess counties have banded together for a wildlife baby shower. It’s a chance for the public to buy and donate items used in wildlife care – from milk replacements to Q-tips to (human) baby food.

“It’s certainly a good idea to make people aware of what we do and that the cost of what we do is borne by us,” said Joanne Dreeben, 65, office manager for an auto parts supplier.

Dreeben has been taking motherless squirrels and songbirds into her northwest Yonkers home for 25 years. Dreeben said that from late February to late October (baby season), she spends up to $700 for supplies – not including veterinarian bills.

The two are among about 1,300 wildlife rehabilitators across New York licensed by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. Candidates must pass a two-hour exam. In addition to caring for the injured and orphaned, rehabilitators have assisted in the recovery of the peregrine falcon and helped expand the river otter’s range. Currently, some rehabilitators are working with the DEC to protect New York’s bat population, which is being decimated by a mysterious affliction called white nose syndrome.

Wildlife rehabilitators annually care for “tens of thousands” of animals, DEC spokesman Wendy Rosenbach said.

“As humans encroach more and more on wildlife habitat, many wild animals become displaced, injured or orphaned by our activities,” she said. “Wildlife rehabilitators provide hands-on care for these animals and, if successful, return the animals back to the wild.”

Care often starts with a ringing telephone, a bit of species roulette for rehabilitators. The caller could have a young fox, a wood thrush or even a bobcat. There are some certainties.

“You’re going to get bit, scratched or pooped on. It’s the lay of the land,” said Ciarcia, a recently retired software manager.

Other constants are getting up at 4:30 a.m. to mix formula, frequently feeding cheeping birds or eyes-sealed-shut squirrels, and cleaning cages. The volunteers are essential, said Laura Simon of The Humane Society of the United States.

“Animals continually get orphaned by people’s activities, and they’re the only human hand available to help,” Simon said.

For all the unpredictability, Ciarcia has learned several truths: Opossums love to eat, empty tissue boxes are perfect for carrying baby birds to work so they can be fed throughout the day, and feeding baby mice is tough.

“Trying to find a mouse nipple is very difficult. And then you have to dilute the formula enough so it will go through the (tiny) nipple,” she said.

These days, Ciarcia is sharing her home with eight baby gray squirrels, a couple of flying squirrels and several adult opossums. The possums survived run-ins with cats and dogs, and one found himself trapped in a large hole in Brewster.

She traces her wildlife rehabilitator career to a childhood desire to be a veterinarian. Now, her nurturing of nature is an attempt to offset human missteps.

“We’re part of the problem. We run things over. We clean lots for housing,” Ciarcia said. “We should be part of the solution.”

Reach Michael Risinit at mrisinit@lohud.com or 845-228-2274.

What you can do

Following is a list of suppliers, supplies and drop-off locations for those who want to contribute to the efforts of local wildlife rehabilitators.

– Fox Valley Animal Nutrition, www.foxvalleynutrition.com, 800-679-4666: Formula-32/40-Under 45 grams for Rabbits, Squirrels and Opossums; Formula-Over 45 grams for Rabbits; Formula-20/50-Over 45 grams for Squirrels; Formula-25/30-Over 45 grams for Opossums. – Omaha Vaccine Co., www.omahavaccine.com, 800-367-4444: Esbilac powder or liquid, KMR powder or liquid (both are milk replacements), oral feeding syringes. – Drs. Foster and Smith, www.DrsFosterSmith.com, 800-381-7179: Check for costs on various supplies such as Esbilac, KMR or MultiMilk. – Various wildlife supplies: heating pads (not the automatic turn-off type), Purina Kids Goat Milk replacer, paper towels, white tissues, Q-Tips, flannel or fleece pieces for bedding, unscented baby wipes, Kaytee exact baby bird formula, Beech Nut Stage 1 or 2 baby food (mixed, peas, carrots, squash, string beans), Purina Cat Chow, EVO cat food, Oral feeding syringes-O Ring Syringes in 1-cc, 3-cc, 5-cc, 10-cc sizes, bags of Timothy hay, Mazuri/Brown rodent blocks. Gift certificates from any of the above pet suppliers or drop-off locations would be appreciated.

Call Maggie Ciarcia at 845-669-4687 or maggie119mae@yahoo.com.