Wildlife Diaster Network

[Cloninger]

In California there are 4 authorized facilities for the medical treatment, care for and rehabilitation of wildlife caught in a disaster.  The one I support is Gold Country Wildlife Rescue.

Gold Country Wildlife Rescue(GCWR) is a member organization of the Wildlife Disaster Network (WDN).  We provide our services, facilities, and expertise to both support and provide acute medical and rehabilitative care to the wildlife victims of a disaster. The WDN is a network of volunteer veterinarians, biologists, and wildlife rehabilitation specialists coordinated under the leadership of the University of California Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife(CDFW) to assist with the search, rescue, and care of wildlife injured in disaster zones.  The WDN volunteer veterinarians donate their time and some of the medications and bandages, and GCWR provides the additional resources to support the overall treatment and care of these animals as part of our mission to support their successful return to the wild.

 

Generally, as the wildlife rescued by WDN volunteers are victims of disasters that occur in Northern California, WDN veterinarians will coordinate with CDFW and the Incident Command of a disaster to determine a search and rescue strategy as well as the appropriate rehabilitation facility for treatment and care. CDFW and/or a WDN volunteer veterinarian will contact GCWR to coordinate the transport of an animal to our facility.  Ultimately it is CDFW that approves and determines where to send the wildlife for medical and rehabilitative care. We are permitted by CDFW and US Fish and Wildlife Service to provide wildlife rehabilitative care. 

 

DOES ANYONE KNOW OF SIMILAR ORGANIZATIONS IN THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO?  PLEASE LET ME KNOW.    Jim