Fixin' Wild Things

The year’s first CIRG coffee program was a “second chance” for our speaker and members. Andrea French, a volunteer licensed wildlife rehabilitator, was our scheduled speaker last January but a heavy snowfall interfered. When inclement weather closes the Corning-Painted Post Schools, the CIRG program that day is cancelled. In this case, however, it was merely postponed…one year.

The main take-away she had for animal lovers in the audience was her advice to any who might come upon an injured animal or bird…”DON’T HANDLE THEM WITH BARE HANDS.” Doing so can result in a person contracting something they don’t want or need or, in reverse, pass on to the animal something that might hinder its recovery.

Injured wild animals should be reported to a licensed wild animal rehabilitator. There are three in our Steuben County area and all are licensed to house, care for and, it is hoped, return the animal/bird back into the wild.

It’s human nature for people to want to help an injured bird or animal, but she warned that harboring a wild bird or animal in the home is illegal in New York State. “Those who do that risk harsh penalties…fines or even jail time,” she said. A veteran of 19 years in helping critters and birds, French said she and her counterparts across the state have access to Cornell University’s veterinary units for first class care for any injured creature.

Many were surprised by her counsel to avoid feeding bread to wild birds because bread can contain nutrients that can be harmful to the birds and upset their digestive system. A newborn fawn, when people come across one, can seem helpless, but that’s seldom the case. Usually the mother is somewhere near, and though the fawn seems to be huddled and motionless, it is doing just what it’s supposed to do. “Newborn deer have no sense of smell. As a result, they have no sense of fear of people or other animals and, though ‘mother’ may not be beside the fawn, she is sure to be nearby. Mother deer have been known to attack persons who might try to pick the fawn up thinking it is hurt.”

French has treated a menagerie of mammals, birds and even a painted turtle. Her avian “patients” comprise an Audubon collection of birds: owls, hawks, bald eagles, almost every kind of migratory bird and even a couple of great blue herons. Last year, the survival rate of her charges was 37 percent.

French and her fellow wild animal rehabilitators make themselves available 24/7. They are true volunteers who undergo training, pay their own way and accept no pay for their services.

At the end of her program, she offered an album of photos of some of the animals she has cared for. Many of the retirees lingered well beyond the end of her program to view the book’s contents. Her parting word of advice: “Never touch a raccoon or striped skunk.” No one seemed to have a problem with that bit of advice.

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