Blue Ridge Wildlife Center

Our mission is to ensure the future of native wildlife through rescue, rehabilitation, education and research.

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Found a wild animal in need? Call our wildlife hotline at [phone] to talk to one of our staff rehabilitators about your situation! We aim to rescue, rehabilitate, & release injured, orphaned, & ill native Virginia wildlife back to the wild. Donate to help us help wildlife!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Wood Ducks are a high-stress species to raise in captivity - especially if not raised with conspecifics. When they’re healthy, getting them back with their own family, or fostering to a wild parent, ensures that baby has the best possible chance at long term survival!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

The best place for a wild baby is with a wild mom - & that's what we were able to do with this single Wood Duckling!

This baby came in after being found alone but healthy. We have a pond near our hospital, on which our staff has seen a mother Wood Duck with four ducklings.

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

After scoping the pond out for a bit & sighting the family, we put our orphaned duckling out, who immediately started chirping. Mom responded right away, swimming out to this singleton & then bringing them back to her original brood, where they made their way back to cover.

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Found a baby squirrel? Use this chart to decide whether that squirrel can be reunited or not!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

DYK? Even if a squirrel nest falls or is destroyed, mom has multiple other nests she can and WILL use if she’s still alive. If you find baby squirrels that are uninjured, warm, & haven’t been in a pets mouth, they CAN be reunited with mom, which is always the best option!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Or our personal favorite:

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Happy Valentines Day! Need a creative card to send to your Someone Special? May we offer:

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Perhaps even:

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Jasper, our Ambassador Red Fox, is wishing everyone a happy snow day!

[Anna Chen @annachenreports]

The @BRWildlifeCtr, @LoudounAnimals and Kristi's Caring Hands Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education worked together to rescue this silly and curious raccoon who got stuck in a spare tire in Loudoun County.

Read more on @DCNewsNow about the rescue effort: https://t.co/JqC6hmMTCQ

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Thank you to the finders who recognized this as an emergency & got him help without risking any direct exposure to this high-risk rabies vector species. The finders contacted @LoudounAnimals who went out to rescue this raccoon with the help of Kristi's Caring Hands.

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

This raccoon was pretty sick & tired of being stuck going around & around in his predicament.
Fortunately, it appears he hadn’t been stuck in the tire for long as this patient was alert, well-hydrated, & VERY angry about the whole situation!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

We were able to quickly sedate with injectable anesthetics on intake & then remove him with gentle manipulation. 24 hours later, after recovering from anesthesia fully & getting a good meal in, this patient circled back to his found location where he was promptly released.

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Some stocking stuffer ideas

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

All we want for Christmas is for people to stop touching animals with bare hands

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Here we have some neat gift ideas-

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Feeling like Christmas already thanks to your all’s support buying items from our Baby Registry 🥹❤️

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Follow this Downy Woodpecker from rehab to release!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Why does our Wrapped look different than everyone else’s 🧐

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

While this individual isn't out of the woods yet, our team is delighted by the progress that has been made so far, and we're hoping that they'll continue to improve fully and be released back home!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Did you #TakeAWildGuess earlier? If you said an American Mink, you'd be correct! Some of you may have noticed the tiniest white chin patch from the original photo - a distinctive and unique field marking for identifying mink!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

Are you ready to #TakeAWildGuess at what species our LVT Chris is about to take out of this bin to examine?

Post your guesses and stay tuned for a reveal post this afternoon!

[Blue Ridge Wildlife Center @BRWildlifeCtr]

We gave pain medications & left them for the night, unsure of whether they’d make it through to morning.
To our surprise, they were more reactive the next morning, & able to groom & move better. Now they’ve been upgraded out of oxygen & into a larger enclosure to recover!