A rescuer bottle-feeds a tiny raccoon kit.

Rehab reprise

Last January I wrote about Wild Care, a rehab center started by Reva Lipe and Liz Todd (Jan. 10, 2022, Winter Woes and Worthwhile Projects: tinyurl.com/Gable-worthwhile-projects). Reva and Liz were alerted to the need because the Wildlife Center outside of Astoria heard from Oregon State that they could no longer take in birds from our side of the river. It was a big blow to those of us who care about our wild neighbors.

I found out about this when Reva and Liz were part of a great horned owl release a few blocks from the Ocean Park library. It was a dramatic and beautiful moment when that magnificent bird spread his/her nearly five-foot wings and lifted off. But the sad news about the Wildlife Center was a shock because so many of us Peninsulans had donated and volunteered there. And the ruling came just when winter weather is most lethal for seabirds and raptors.

But Reva and Liz have fixed that deficit. They established a small mammal rescue operation in Ocean Park, and they also applied to be a state and federal bird rehab center. That licensing came through in February 2022. As Reva says, “After a state inspection, Washington licensed us for bird rehab too. We also went through the Fish and Wildlife migratory bird certification process.” They passed the state requirements with ‘flying’ colors! But now they’ve hit a toughie.

“Unfortunately we were just told by our current landlord that we need to move in 90 days — so, we won’t be setting up any new enclosures now, though we’ve been awarded some grants for them. We just need to find a new home.”

According to Reva, Wild Care needs two to three acres of land, ideally with a hook-up because Reva and her husband live in a fifth-wheel on the property. “It’s a 24/7 job,” she says. “I often get calls in the middle of the night and we always need to be ready. Plus many baby mammals need feeding every two hours.”

“Liz and I worked on this project for two years. Originally we intended to buy land to set up the center, but then the prices went sky high. [And they’re even higher now.] So we’re renting a little over an acre and we can’t build any new structures until we move. We currently have a small exam room, a 10X20 and an 8X12 cage room, and several outdoor enclosures. It’s a good start.”

Little hands and open beaks

I went by for a tour last week and my heart was warmed by all the tiny mammals and birds receiving TLC from Reva and volunteers. “Currently there are 12 people helping with the various rehab activities. We need more help and we’ve talked to others who’d like to help, but at this point we need more room and we have to focus on finding a new place.”

When I arrived, first I saw a “gaze” or “nursery” of racoon kits rolling around trying to figure out if mom was around to suck on. Nope, they’d have to be hand-fed soon; though Reva said, “These guys are close to being weaned.” In the cage room were a couple adorable baby possums swinging in a little hammock. When we approached, one of them sauntered out and started on the “lick mat.” Reva pointed out that this one had come in with an injury to her left front leg. Her fingers of that hand were cramped together, but she was starting to use it more.

Possums get a bad rap, though they’re amazing mammals. They are super clean themselves and clean up in our backyards and environs by eating cockroaches, slugs, snails, rats and mice, over-ripe fruit, the remains of dead animals, even poisonous snakes. (They are even being studied because they appear to have developed an immunity to snake venom.) They are meticulous groomers, and scientists have shown that one possum can kill more than 5,000 ticks in a season. Possums are our friends, and their little pink hands are cuter than heck.

The job of a wild animal rehabber is a labor of love. Reva and her husband are retired and have given their lives over to this passion. Reva spent over 4,000 hours assisting at the Astoria Wildlife Center before setting up Wild Care, and she’s learned on the job. Plus if she has questions, she knows who to call to get answers. I smiled on my tour day when I got a last minute text from her. “I have to run down to the Planter Box. We just got a gosling and I have to get waterfowl starter crumbles.” Who knew? Reva. “You can’t give goslings regular waterfowl crumbles — it’s too rich for them.”

Pelican story

Reva also told me a story about a pelican rescue that should be a children’s picture book. Someone called about a pelican “with no wings.” So Liz and her husband Bill went to check it out and brought the pelican back to the rehab center. Its wings seemed to be all woven around themselves on its back in a strange way. Pelicans are very large birds, and, fortunately, that day at the center they had a big guy volunteer who helped hold the pelican while Liz gave it something to anesthetize it. Meanwhile, Reva began gently separating the birds wings which were all tangled up “probably from a bad dive.”

“Once we got that done, he started spreading and flapping his wings,” Reva continues. “Dr. Ruth did an x-ray and told us his wings were fine. Then we had to find a group of pelicans so we could release him with them. Our pelicans had left already so we had to drive around and we finally found a group in Cathlamet. We let him go there and had a couple people watch out for him to see if we would be accepted in the group. He was!”

It’s small victories of kindness like these that warm my soul. Humans have done so much damage to our miraculous world — it’s people like Reva and Liz and all their rehab volunteers who are adding love to the other side of the balance sheet. (Also kudos to Dr. Ruth Sheppard at Oceanside Animal Clinic in Seaview. She is actually trained as a wildlife vet.)

How can you help?

Monetary donations are, of course, always welcomed. Food, medical supplies, enclosure repairs and construction materials are always needed; as are volunteers both for direct work with the animals and birds, and for building pens, fences, and enclosures. But absolutely most critical now is acreage for a new home. If you have property that you can offer or would want to lease, or you know anyone who might (spread the word), please reach out to Wild Care.

Reva and Liz hope to find someone willing to donate or lease them land anywhere in Pacific County. “Then we can build more enclosures and a flight aviary. I’m hoping the community will come through and find a home for us — we are a 501©3 [IRS-recognized nonprofit] so it would provide a nice tax write-off.”

I know there’s a Wild Care home somewhere just waiting to be discovered so these dedicated folks can continue their good work. The Wild Care rehab website — tinyurl.com/2p9d2rcd — and the Facebook site — www.facebook.com/peninsulawildcare.org. The email for information is peninsulawildcare@gmail.com; and the phone is 360-947-3188.