Help Alesia care for injuried or orphaned wildlife
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Hi, I am Alesia Willis a Wildlife Rehabilator.
Last year, 2024 I took in 90 animals and helped most of them to be released. The hardest part is not being able to save them all. Today I went to pick up a possum hit by a car, a mom with 8 babies, a broken leg and severe head trauma. I took her to the vet and he stablized her leg, but she died before I could get her home. So now I am trying to save her babies, they are so tiny, only 10 grams. This year is off and running, with 8 possums and 2 tiny squirrels. Gonna be some long nights in my future. Thanks for helping any way you can.
I have been volunteering at shelters for 30+ years, but 3 years ago I got my license and have been raising and caring for these babies in my home since. I had no idea how expensive it would be.
But I can not turn them away.
Last week I spent $60. on groceries just for 7 opussoms. This will last about 2 weeks. It is very complicated feeding these animals a health diet. I know they eat dead animals, but if not fed a correct diet they will develop
Metabolic Bone Disease and will be in pain and have deformities for the rest of their life. This is MBD his legs are twisted and bent across each other. They are not releaseable with this disease. So since I have seen it first hand, I try very hard to keep it from happening. I had this little Mama for about a month treating wound and worms and helping her keep her passel fed. They were all released into the wild.
Squirrels can also get it. Someone had found a baby squirrel and kept it as a pet feeding it nothing but peanuts until it became to much trouble to care for. At that time the poor little girl could not stand on her legs, she army crawled around the cage. I brought her home and started her on an intensive diet to try to correct as much as I could. Within a month she was climbing all over the cage and running around just like a regular squirrel, it was a miracle. Just a little TLC and a correct diet and many prayers. This is not always the case.
This is a very time consuming hobby I have got myself into during baby seasons, but I love it when I can get them health and release them back into the wild(after crying because I am loosing them).
This little guy somehow got burned before he was found the scar skin has white fur, so he is easily recognized by his "White Hip" and still comes to see me occasionally to get peanuts 3 years later. It is hard letting them go I get so attached to them, but it is what they want and enjoy. Seeing them run up and down the trees, jumping and playing is very rewarding.
- I am asking for donations of food or money so that I can have what I need here when they come in needing help. Last year I took in and released about 50 animals. At times having 20+ at a time. I had some that did not make it, but my hope is that I eased their suffering, they were warm and not hungry when they died. That is the hardest part watching them die no matter how hard you try to save them. The foods that I regularly need are for squirrels are formula, fresh fruits and veggies, roasted unsalted peanuts, mixed nuts in the shell, wildlife mix ( corn, peanuts sunflower seeds) sunflower seeds, acorns, pine cones with the seeds in them and any other native nut/seed. Possums are harder, they eat formula, veggies, a little fruit, insects, proteins like chicken, fish, seafood, meow mix cat food which is mixed into a balanced diet. I spend alot of time making their food to be sure I keep them healthy so they can be released fat and sassy.
- I also get rabbits which eat rabbit formula, rabbit pellets, hay, seeds and grains, local wild growing greens(clover, dandelions, grasses) then veggies and a little fruit. If you see some idiot on the side of the road picking dandelions and clover, it is me. Rabbits are the hardest to raise, they will die if you look at them wrong. Very hard, you have to reduce their stress level and keep it down. But I guess because I remain calm with them I have had very good success at raising and releasing them. I get in other animals also, if I can not treat them then I transfer them to someone who can.
- I have most of what I need except for foods and medicines. I have cages, blankets, bowls, syringes, most of what I need right now. I do need some nest boxes, right now I am using cardboard boxes until I get lumber and time to build wooden boxes. Scrap lumber can be used for these, since the boxes are very small for baby animals.
- Release sites are always a needed.
- If you have wooded property with some water available that is not overly developed, without roads being too close or dead end, and there are not dogs and cats that run free all the time and are willing to have wild animals released please let me know.
- This is a release site with nesting box provided for them until they find their own place. Most of the time you don't have to anything. Sometimes it is benefitial if you put food out for a little while after release.
I have started a wish list on amazon, but am not sure how to get it out there yet. I have tried to add it to this site. Alesia's wildlife rehab If interested in that, I think I can send you a link.
- Guess that is all for now. I am sure I will think of something else later and add it then.
- Thank you for taking the time to consider helping.
Organizer
alesia willis
Organizer
Grantsboro, NC