Wildlife Assistance
Each year we receive numerous calls from citizens who, with the best of intentions, have “rescued” a newborn wild animal. The most common situation is people who find deer fawns in residential areas and mistakenly believe that the animals were orphaned or abandoned. Although these good samaritans believe they are helping the animals, the opposite is actually true. Once you remove a wild animal from its natural surroundings, its chances for survival and successful reintroduction into the wild are greatly diminished. The next time you see a newborn animal in the wild, remember this saying: “If you care, leave them there.”
In the rare case that wildlife needs assistance, please contact a permitted Wildlife Rehabilitator. A rehabilitation expert can make an informed decision on whether intervention is in the animal’s best interest. It is also important to remember that not all young-of-the-year animals will survive. This is nature’s way of controlling populations.
The Animal Help Now service, available at AHNow.org and through free iPhone and Android apps, leverages digital technologies to immediately connect people involved with wildlife emergencies and conflicts with the most appropriate time- and location-specific resources and services. Animal Help Now serves the entire United States.
Animal Help Now also advocates on behalf of wildlife and educates the public about minimizing everyday threats to wild animals (such as vehicle strikes, window strikes and cat and dog attacks).
In addition, Animal Help Now provides guidance on finding assistance for domestic animal emergencies, such as lost and found companion animals, abuse and neglect, etc.