Come Gather with Us

Change can sometimes be good, sometimes bad but the changes for our Education Department is GREAT! Moving into our new facility is opening up a wonderful new component for education. In the past our educational leaders and the animal ambassadors would and still do travel to your location of choice for an educational program. With our new Gathering Room we can offer educational programs on site. On October 20th we offered our first in house program to the Passage School students at Lad Lake. What a great experience we had not only the kids but also myself. With this new room the environment is much more inviting and receptive to an up-close and personal experience with the animal ambassadors that make up the education department. The kids could ask as many questions as they wanted to without any time constraints. Because the ambassadors were at their own home the kids could spend more time with them too. The critters appreciate not having to be packed up one-plus hours before the program and not going out into extreme heat or cold.


Question and Answer time with Dakota the Great Horned Owl


The space itself invites a more natural setting for wildlife education. Our building is surrounded by beautiful pines and prairie fields. You come into the Gathering Area to warm hues trimmed in maple and pine. The room is outlined with our herp educators who would love to inspire you.



Private lessons with Daphne the Muscovy duck



In addition to our programming, if your group or organization is in need of a gathering place give us a call to make arrangements to hold it at our facility 262-965-3090.

Guest Blogger L.K.

Where'd you get that turtle?

Today we received a phone call from a gentleman who had a turtle question. Getting turtle questions is quite common during certain times of the year here at WINC because there isn’t as much education reaching the public about them as there is about animals like birds or raccoons. The difference was that the turtles he had questions about had come from Florida, not Wisconsin!

Although the Wildlife In Need Center answers nearly 10,000 phone calls each year and has admitted over 36,000 wildlife patients representing over 140 species that are native to Wisconsin, we often get calls like these as well because very few other agencies and nonprofits in the area are equipped to answer these types of questions. Unfortunately,

WINC cannot provide any care for or advice on care for domestic animals.

...even if the animal in question is considered “exotic” and may be difficult to find advice on through traditional resources. What we can and always try to do is help these individuals to seek out the resources that might actually be beneficial for their individual situation.


According to About.com "The sale or distribution of turtles with a carapace length of less than 4 inches has been banned in the US since 1975 (Title 21 CFR 1240.62)." The sale of these quarter-sized turtles to the caller 2 year ago should not have been allowed under federal law. About.com goes on to explain that "The ban was brought into effect under the Public Health Services Act by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to address the problem of Salmonella infections in children." While reptiles of all kinds carry Salmonella, the Salmonella they carry that can actually infect humans is passed to the turtles from us to begin with. This is why we institute high levels of sanitation and security with all of our turtle patients here in the clinic.

 In the caller's case the turtles had been purchased at a store in Florida while he was away on business and had now outgrown the tank and time he was willing to invest in them. Although I just said we couldn’t provide advice on domestic animal care, we don't have to be a domestic animal shelter to promote EDUCATION when it comes to the decision to make an animal a part of your home. Pets are a responsibility that should not be taken lightly regardless of what species they may be. Consider the age they might live to, the size living quarters they might need during that time, and what amount of care and socialization they are going to require from everyone in your family among other things. If you have an exotic pet you need further resources on, talk to your local humane shelter, a trusted and reputable pet supply center, or visit our Resources page for links to helpful people in these situations. Both the caller and I were grateful that he’d called before releasing these turtles in a pond down the road from his house. I was able to direct him to contact one of several reptile specialty breeders in the area to see if they would be willing to help find suitable new homes for them instead.

The unexpected consequences of being unemployed

The other day we received a call from a gentleman regarding a nest of baby birds. It’s not an uncommon call this time of year. This nest was different however, because it was inside of the engine compartment of his truck! Squirrels and other small animals will build nests from time to time in a vehicle that gets left out while the owner is on vacation for example, and they can build a nest and move their babies into it from another nest in a matter of hours or days. A bird however, needs time to build it’s nest, lay its eggs, and then incubate those eggs before there’s even a prospect of finding baby birds in a place like this.

So, how long has this truck been sitting that it can’t sit for another week and a half until these baby birds fledge the nest? His response was that being out of work for the past 18 months hasn’t given him very many reasons to drive it! The couple of times he had driven it, he hadn’t realized they were even there! Thankfully, they were tucked safely right above the wheel well and hadn’t made a peep until they were hatched and big enough to realize that they were away from their parents!

Because he now had a reason to drive the truck and didn’t want to be taking the babies away from their parents I advised him to attach the nest onto a mid-sized ladder, place it in a flower basket hanging from a shepherds hook, or another object that would keep it up off the ground. This way the nest would be safe from kids and pets in the neighborhood and if he placed this object directly near the side of the truck that it was originally, the parents shouldn’t have too much trouble finding them to continue their care. Because these birds had their nest in a covered area to begin with he could’ve also placed the nest within a box for protection, either on its side or with a hole cut in it for a doorway.

We raise hundreds of orphaned songbirds each year with the help of our adult and junior volunteers. If you are 12 or 13 with an interested parent or guardian or 14 and up and interested in helping us help them contact us today!

We’re getting lots of calls about baby birds now, especially ones that are on the ground. If you find baby birds that have blown out of the nest the best thing to do is to try to return them to their nest. If that’s not possible then you can easily provide them with a replacement nest. To do this take a small plastic container – if it doesn’t already have holes in it, like a strawberry basket for example, then poke some in the bottom to prevent it from filling up with water. Fill the container with dried grasses, small twigs or other dried natural materials that won’t hold in moisture like green materials would. Then you can tie it, hang it, or attach it to the tree, bush or structure they fell from at a level which you can reach. Six to 8 feet is best, but even 3 or 4 feet will be safer than being on the ground. For more information contact your local rehabilitator or the Wildlife In Need Center at 262-968-5075

A kid from Chicago

Although we are not set up to be open to the public we are still happy to encourage the learning and respect that come from getting the opportunity to see (and interact) with our wild neighbors.

That’s why I agreed to have a young gentleman and his younger sister come in one day this summer with their extended family with whom he was staying for the weekend. The adults in the group explained that the kids were from Chicago so while visiting, they were looking for as many opportunities as possible to get them outside to see both animals and nature.

As I mentioned, and many of you know, anytime the public gets beyond the doors of our office it is a rare situation as we are not permitted to operate as a nature center or zoo. Several of our permitted educational ambassadors are housed in or near our office however, and they also work with people all year long through scheduled educational outreach programs. Because of this and the fact that the beautiful weather was helping to keep our wild neighbors out of trouble (the office was not too busy) I agreed to speak with them for a short time about the Center and share some of these ambassadors with them.

First they were introduced to the Center and what we do. Currently, our office is home to Slither, a Western Fox Snake, Maize, a Corn Snake, and Jewel, an Ornate Box Turtle (an endangered species in Wisconsin). Although some people get a little squeamish around reptiles and amphibians, most children are naturally curious and giving them the opportunity to interact with animals who have been trained to work with people helps to give them a more positive outlook and respect for these creatures who serve an important purpose in our lives.

Next, we walked outside to check on Dakota, our educational Great Horned Owl and Indigo, our educational American kestrel in their outdoor enclosures. The young man was absolutely fascinated by Dakota as he had never seen an owl in person before. Lastly, we stopped by the outdoor enclosure of Waldo, our educational Woodchuck. Waldo was lounging in his hollow log to keep cool in the midday sun but was content to have us enjoy him from afar. The entire family was thrilled by the concept of being able to see such an animal so close up, especially such a handsome specimen.

With construction of our new facility including an entirely new educational wing we are calling “the gathering area,” we hope to have this kind of impact on many more young people who may never have these opportunities otherwise. Our hope is that the educational experience itself will be enhanced exponentially through displays, video monitors, interactive materials and more. If you would like to help support our educational mission please consider making a donation to help cover the cost of these new materials, tools and books. You can do so online or over the phone with a credit card or by mail. You can also stop by our current location any day of the week between 9AM and 5PM. For more information about our education outreach program or our new facility visit our website.

Foxes Away!

The caller had a fox that had been “hanging around” his yard and wanted to know what could be done about it. What was really going on was that a fox had been passing through his yard several times a week throughout the past several months. Since this was not the time of year that there would possibly be pups or a den involved this is what I told him:

The reality is that foxes have adapted well to urban life all across the country and even in other parts of the world; coyotes, raccoons and skunks too. Since he had never witnessed the fox hunting in his own yard, nor had he noticed any signs of a den in the area it is most likely that two areas of this fox’s territory happened to fall on either side of this neighborhood.

But what about his dog and children? Foxes, and most wild animals for that matter, don’t want to have anything to do with humans or our pets. Aside from playful fox kits, they usually don’t want to expend any more energy than is necessary to procure their next meal. Since they are omnivorous, this could range from some berries under a mulberry tree to an occasional cottontail, but rarely anything larger. Unless we interfere with their natural behaviors by trying to habituate them or by taking risks that put vulnerable pets in tempting situations, the average person will never have a bad experience with an animal like this.

When incidents do occur between dogs or cats and wild animals it can turn out badly. We get hundreds of animals into the Center each year that have been rescued from the jaws of Fluffy or Fido. When larger animals are involved such as foxes, the situation usually involves a dog or cat trying to protect its own territory. This is why I always urge people to consider this fact with regards to their pets’ safety: if an animal is small enough that you would be concerned about an animal like a fox or a raccoon it shouldn’t be left alone, period. In my opinion, this also applies to every pet we take responsibility for. Additionally, cats who are let outside reportedly kill millions of songbirds each year regardless of how much they are fed. All pets will ultimately live longer, healthier lives if they are kept indoors or allowed outdoors only in safe, supervised situations. Most pet dogs and cats are more likely to have an incident with another dog or cat in their lifetime than with a wild animal that causes harm to them if we do our best to keep these guidelines in mind. While it is rare, there have been reports of foxes learning to live in harmony with outdoor cats and one gentleman even called to report that his dog had apparently befriended their local fox and he was having the hardest time trying to convince him to do otherwise!

As far as children go: it is our responsibility as adults to teach them respect for wildlife. This doesn’t mean that they should fear their wild neighbors. With development drawing more wildlife into the urban realm, now more than ever, we need to teach the kind of understanding that will help our children to protect the earth and all of its inhabitants into the future.

Most people will never be able to get close enough to a wild animal in a normal, respectful situation to be at risk of injury unless that animal is severely injured or ill. If a wild animal appears to be showing signs of being sick or injured, teach your children that the first thing to do is to go tell an adult. The best thing that adult can do is remove the children from the situation; then go back and assess the situation from a safe distance before or while they contact the Wildlife In Need Center or another wildlife specialist. These professionals can help to determine what may be at issue and whether or not action needs to be taken.