Picking up injured wildlife
- There is almost NEVER an occasion when you
should remove a baby wild animal from its natural
environment.
- It is always better to call a wildlife
rehabilitator to remove or assess a wild
animal than to do it yourself.
- If you've already picked up a young animal,
please put it back exactly where you found
it, or under/in a shrub nearby where its mother
can find it.
Determining whether wildlife is injured, sick, or orphaned
- Before you assume an animal
is in trouble, wait and watch: young animals
are often left alone for hours at a time
while their parents gather food.
- If an animal is shivering,
obviously injured, or if its parents have
been killed, then call a wildlife
rehabilitator.
- Sick animals will often
be very lethargic and may sneeze, drool,
pant, shiver, or sit ruffled.
- Injured animals may limp,
drag limbs, or have obvious wounds.
- If the sick or injured
animal is a large game animal, such as a
deer, javelina, mountain lion, or bear, or
a potential danger to handlers, such as a
coyote or large bird, call the closest Arizona
Game and Fish Department office or Radio
Dispatch at (623) 236-7201.
I found a bird.
Does it need help?
- Birds often fall out of
nests.
- Young birds often spend
a few days on or near the ground while they
are learning to fly but are still being fed
by their parents.
- Place a fallen bird in
a tree or shrub or on a shaded portion of
a roof, out of the way of cats, dogs, and
children.
- If you can safely reach
the nest, you can put it back. It's a myth
that bird parents will reject their young
if they smell like people.
- If a baby bird shows obvious
signs of illness or injury, call a wildlife
rehabilitator.
I found a deer or elk. Does
it need help?
- Deer and elk mothers leave their fawns lying
alone for the entire day while they feed.
- Because deer and elk can transmit chronic
wasting disease to other deer and elk,
they should almost never be brought in from
the wild.
- If you have taken a young deer or elk from
the wild, immediately take it back to exactly
where you found it. Do NOT release it in a
different location; its mother will not find
it.
- If you cannot return it to the wild, call
the Wildlife
Center or the closest Arizona
Game and Fish Department office immediately.
The Arizona Game and Fish
Department Wildlife Center can be reached
at (623) 582-9806
for questions on injured, sick, or orphaned wildlife. |
