Message from Doris

What is a Wildlife Hospital?

Dear Supporters,

We have been working nonstop on our Predator Prevention and Education Barnyard Program, (PEEP).  Everything is moving along at a fast pace and we are looking forward to welcoming visitors to come see all the new developments.

We have more exciting news about our wildlife hospital. We have discovered that many people do not have much knowledge in regards to what a wildlife hospital is, what takes place in a wildlife hospital, and who works in a wildlife hospital.

Soon all of these questions will be answered for you! You will be able to come visit us and see for yourself, all of the amazing things that take place in a wildlife hospital. Here are some things to know ahead of your visit:

• A wildlife hospital is a professional setting where highly trained staff and volunteers are available to perform life-saving procedures on sick, injured and orphaned wildlife.
• Wildlife patients all receive a physical exam following a rescue.
• Wildlife patients then receive treatment and care according to their medical needs.
• Visitors will be invited to see all of this in action by invitation only.
• We will have a hospital viewing during our Saturday tours, any private tour, and possibly after bringing in a rescued wildlife patient depending on staff availability.
• You will be assisted by a trained wildlife docent who is knowledgeable about hospital procedures.
• You will be advised about proper wildlife viewing conduct.

These things have all been made possible by very generous donors. Amongst many other projects the Dorothy Secrest Foundation has contributed to, they also made it possible to purchase the $1,800 worth of building supplies.  The Ohana Construction Company of Petaluma sent three of their employees to actually build the deck at a cost of $3,000 in labor, which they donated. This wonderful gift was due to the efforts of our volunteer Hollan Tracy, who is a personal friend of this extremely professional and creative construction company. Hines Signs of Cotati discounted their professional signage.

You can see that something like this takes a great community effort. We are still adding safety features and more signage. We hope you will join us soon, to see how you as supporters have made it possible to care for the animals in our wildlife hospital.