The Top Eleven

The Top Eleven Things You Can Do To Become A Super Bird Nerd!

WBS receives no federal or state funding.  Your Friend membership will help to support all aspects of our mission. In the photo above volunteer Jena Baumgarten educates visitors about Sassy the American Kestrel and her species. (photo: Gay Schroer)

Become A Friend Of World Bird Sanctuary – World Bird Sanctuary receives no state or Federal funding to do all we do.  That includes seeing 400+

birds per year at our wildlife hospital, conducting field studies such as banding and tracking bird populations, breeding birds both for reintroduction to the wild and for education purposes and presenting world class education programs to public and private audiences.  World Bird Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3), non profit, tax exempt organization.

Your WBS Friend Membership Includes:

*            One year’s subscription to our newsletter—the Mews News—printed three times per year.

*            Reusable WBS shopping bag

*            10% discount on all World Bird Sanctuary merchandise in our gift shop

*            10% discount on all public programs offered at World Bird Sanctuary, such as Owl Prowls, Nature Hikes, etc.

*            Invitations to members-only events held at World Bird Sanctuary

An individual membership costs just $35.00, a family membership is $50.00.  Click Here to become a friend.

Your $25 donation feeds me for one week  (photo subject - Captain, a young Bald Eagle) (photo: Dawn Griffard)

 DONATE!

*            $25.00 feeds one Bald Eagle for one week

*            $10.00 feeds a Screech Owl for one month

*            $20.00 buys bedding for our rabbit for two months.

Your donated dollars go a long way to take care of our animals.  Click Here  to make a donation.

Your inscribed brick will be installed in our amphitheater and will be a lasting tribute to the honoree (photo: Gay Schroer)

Buy A Brick! – celebrate a special occasion, a bird-loving family member, your business or organization or your family by buying a brick to be installed in our amphitheater for all visitors to see!  Or commemorate the life of a loved one who has passed on.  Bricks cost between $125.00 - $425.00 depending on size, inscription and logos.  Click here to order your brick. 

You can adopt Goblin (or any of our other animals) for a year  (photo:  Dawn Griffard) 

Adopt A Bird! – All of the birds and animals that call the World Bird Sanctuary home are available for adoption.  An adoption fee helps us take care of your specially chosen animal for one full year.  In addition to the warm fuzzies you’ll have knowing that you are helping your favorite animal at the sanctuary, you’ll also receive the following!

*            Certificate of Adoption with a full color photograph of your special animal

*            World Bird Sanctuary sponsorship for one year

*            One year’s subscription to our newsletter – the Mews News – printed three times per year

*            Natural history and life history of your special adopted animal

*            Plush bird toy

*            Reusable WBS shopping bag

*            10% discount on all World Bird Sanctuary merchandise in our gift shop

*            10% discount on all public programs offered at World Bird Sanctuary, such as Owl Prowls, Nature Hikes, etc.

*            Visiting privileges and photo opportunities with your special new member of your family (just call ahead first to make sure your adopted friend won’t be out on a program).

To Adopt A Bird or other resident animal Click Here or call 636-861-3225 and ask for Marion.

Sign Up For A FREE Schnucks eScrip Card – Every Purchase Counts!

The World Bird Sanctuary can benefit every time you shop at Schnucks Supermarkets.

Sign up for an eScrip card and Schnucks will donate up to 3% of every dollar you spend to World Bird Sanctuary.  There is no cost to you!  Just present your card (which you can easily keep on your keychain)

You can get an eScrip card at any Schnucks store and activate it with World Bird Sanctuary as your beneficiary.

Fill out on-line at www.escrip.com

Or download the form and we will send you one – it couldn’t be easier!

Rehabilitation of just one bird is costly .  Help to defray the cost and at the same time personally return a bird to the wild. (photo: Joe Hoffmann, WBS Hospital Manager, looks on as Dr. Stacey Schaeffer treats an injured Great Horned Owl) (photo: Gay Schroer)

Return to the Wild – Take part in the release of a rehabilitated bird!

Returning a bird of prey back to the wild can cost up to $1,000 in care and rehabilitation.  Your contribution of only $150 helps the sanctuary defer some of those costs and gives YOU the opportunity to participate in the release of a wild bird of prey!

Invite family and friends to join you in releasing a bird of prey at your home or nearby park.  Celebrate a wedding, birthday, anniversary, family reunion, school or corporate function with this special gift.

The World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital is a cornerstone of the World Bird Sanctuary and is entirely funded by donations from the public.

Help us give our patients a second chance to fly.  Click on the following link to sponsor a release today, then click on the Donate button – or call 636-225-4390, Ext. 101.

We train hard to be on the eagle flight team.  Your sponsorship helps to pay for our food, housing and training (Clark the Bald Eagle practices glove to glove flights)  (photo: Gay Schroer)

Sponsor Our Eagle Flight Team

Our Eagle Flight Team flies for special occasions such as St. Louis Cardinal’s ball games, corporate events, St. Louis Earth Day, Veteran’s Day events, and various local, state & government events.

Our team consists of four Bald Eagles:  Lewis, Clark, Buford and Norbert, who need their regular round-the-clock care along with travel and other expenses.  Your team sponsorship helps our eagle team with these expenses, but also celebrates the glory of the Bald Eagle’s survival in the wild in North America!  Together as a nation, we have brought these precious creatures back from the brink of extinction.

Every time our eagles fly it reminds all who experience the sight why these beautiful birds are our national symbol.  To sponsor an Eagle flight Click Here

We are so excited about our newest t-shirts.  They feature photos of our own birds!  Come check them out at the Raptique Gift Shop (photo: Dawn Griffard)

Purchase Items At Our Nature Center Gift Shop – The Raptique

Our gift shop features a variety of items for kids and adults alike.  Choose from plush birds and animals, geodes, pins, patches, hats, custom t-shirts (some featuring our own birds), toys, collectibles, hand painted glass mugs and wineglasses, jewelry and more!  All proceeds for the gift shop go directly to the support and care of our birds and animals.

During your visit ask one of the naturalists how I help the environment…I am a very interesting fella!  (Photo above is Kinsey the Turkey Vulture) (photo: Dawn Griffard

VISIT!

Come enjoy our sprawling 305 acres of oak-hickory forest.  Bring the family, take a hike, have a picnic at one of our picnic tables or under a shelter, talk to our birds and animals, watch the wild birds and animals, chat with one of our staff naturalists or volunteers.  Breathe deep the surrounding sweet air.  Become familiar with us and our animal family – become one of us.

Volunteers fill many niches at WBS-from working in the hospital to doing clerical & carpentry work.  For working with the birds volunteers receive on-the-job training from our experienced staff members.  (photo: Gay Schroer)

Volunteer

The World Bird Sanctuary offers many ways to volunteer with us.  You can be a Naturalist, an Animal Care Technician, a Rehabilitation Technician, a Docent, or assist with bird banding, maintenance or clerical work. 

Junior volunteers can start at age thirteen and can help as a Naturalist, in education programs and with animal maintenance.  To learn more about our Junior Volunteer program or to download a Junior Volunteer application Click Here.

Volunteering with us is a gratifying experience.  Some of our volunteers have been with us for twenty years or more!  Come fall in love with our birds and our lifestyle.  You’ll be glad you did. 

To learn more about our volunteer program or to download an application Click Here.

Submitted by Dawn Griffard, World Bird Sanctuary Naturalist

Why Am I Here?

This is the Question we at the World Bird Sanctuary wildlife hospital sometimes ask ourselves when times are tough.

Winter can be tough on us, as well as wild animals.  Just as we are susceptible to heatstroke and frostbite, wildlife can also get sick and injured from harsh weather.  Wild animals don’t have a magic shield that protects them from the extremes of our world’s climate, even though sometimes it seems they do better than us when it comes to surviving outside.  Animals burrow underground, migrate south and have thick fur or feathers.  All of these things help them deal with the cold.

As you can see from the photo this bird is missing most of its major flight and tail feathers (photo: Gay Schroer)

We recently admitted a Bald Eagle to the Kathryn G. Favre wildlife hospital, which would not have survived the winter, even though there are thousands of eagles in the Midwest this year. 

This eagle slowly lost all its major wing feathers.  Most eagles molt all the feathers on their bodies over a two-year period. This particular eagle was found starving to death because it had lost so many feathers it could not fly, hunt or keep its body insulated from the elements.  After we acquired the bird, it continued to lose the remaining feathers.  When new ones would start to grow in, for some reason the eagle’s body would reject the feathers before they even developed.  

Without tail feathers and primary flight feathers this bird could not fly (photo: Gay Schroer)

We are not sure what caused this odd feather loss.  We are running tests and treating the bird with vitamins, antibiotics and rich meats.  These treatments sometimes induce a bird to molt, which we are hopeful will result in a new growth of normal feathers; only time will tell.  We know that we have a long fight ahead of us.

The deteriorated feathers on his body could not provide insulation from the cold (photo: Gay Schroer)

This eagle would have surely died of frostbite if a number of individuals had not intervened to get the bird to the proper authorities.  This bird does not understand that we are trying to help him.  With daily treatment eagles will defend themselves when we try to restrain them to administer medication.  These are the challenges we face when trying to save a Bald Eagle.  

We here in the wildlife hospital are always focused on the end goal—seeing the bird returned to the wild.  This is why I am here! 

If you would like to sponsor a Return to the Wild Click Here—or call 636-225-4390 to be routed to the proper person for more information.

Submitted by Joe Hoffmann, World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital Manager

From "How do we do this?" to "Mission Accomplished!" - YOU make it possible.

2014 has been a successful year in achieving our mission.  We at World Bird Sanctuary could not have done it without you.  We plan to maintain this momentum in 2015 - but we need your financial support to help us do it.

to help ensure our success in 2015.

A busy year for our wildlife hospital!     

The almost 450 raptors admitted to World Bird Sanctuary's Kathryn G. Favre Wildlife Hospital this year were cared for without any state, federal or local government funding.  Each year the hospital and its patients rely entirely on donations from members of the public to treat and care for wild injured birds.  

Volunteer veterinarians Dr. Schaeffer (R) and Dr. Broyles (L) treat a
Red-tailed Hawk admitted to the wildlife hospital.

Among this year’s successes were a bald eagle whose foot got caught in a coyote trap, numerous barred owls and great-horned owls, orphaned red-tailed hawks, and one very lucky broad-winged hawk that was treated by our wildlife hospital and completed his migration to Florida via a plane ride!

To maintain this momentum we need your help.  Donate now to help our wildlife hospital help sick, injured and orphaned birds in 2015.

The Office of Wildlife Learning inspires action!

One of the best parts of being a naturalist presenting live bird programs at World Bird Sanctuary's environmental education department is facilitating what we call ‘the light bulb moment’ – that instant when we watch a child in our audience light up as they see a raptor fly for the first time.  

School children learn about Xena the Eurasian Eagle Owl
on a field trip to World Bird Sanctuary.

As that owl flies over that child’s head, you can see the appreciation and wonder at experiencing wildlife first hand.  For many children, and even adults, this moment is the one that sparks a life-long interest in the natural world, and preserving habitats and those that live in them.

Donate today to be part of ‘the light bulb moment’ and foster a desire to preserve wildlife and the habitats where they live in generations to come.

Our success is your success

We have over 37 years of success in achieving our mission through our four focus areas, and numerous accolades and awards for our achievements in wildlife conservation and education.

Watch our video to learn how your investment
in our mission makes a difference every day

The mission of World Bird Sanctuary is to preserve the earth's biological diversity and to secure the future of threatened bird species in their natural environments. We work to fulfill this mission through education, propagation, field studies and rehabilitation.

We know that our mission is important to you too – we invite you to donate today and be part of the solution to challenges facing our wild birds in the years to come.

The World Bird Sanctuary is a consistently successful and credible conservation organization, which makes investing in us one of the safest philanthropic decisions you can make.  You know that we will use your donation wisely.  World Bird Sanctuary meets all 20 charity standards set by the Better Business Bureau. 

Thank you.

Submitted by Catherine Redfern

Barred Owls In The Hospital

Barred Owls are the most common bird admitted to the World Bird Sanctuary’s Kathryn G. Favre Wildlife Hospital. 

Most years we may receive between 50 and 100 injured Barred Owls.  These owls are very active in the late winter while preparing for breeding season.  Then in the spring the parents are busy hunting. 

A Barred Owl with a wing injury (photo: Joe Hoffmann)

Barred Owls sometimes get into trouble from being too focused on their food and not on everything else around them.  They like to hunt near the edge of a woods.  Many grassy areas by roads and highways are perfect hunting grounds for birds of prey.  As an owl hunts near the road they don’t always notice the oncoming traffic.  That is when they are struck by a vehicle.  Sometimes they bounce off with just a bruised body; other times they have broken bones. 

Always being aware of wildlife as you drive is important.  As mentioned above, we inadvertently create good habitat for wildlife along our roads.  Staying off cell phones keeps your eyes on the road, and your eyes on the road will help you brake for wildlife when/if the need arises.

We thank you and I am confident the owls thank you, too.  In fact the owls in the hospital were hooting the entire time I was writing this blog, so I guess they agree. Thanks again for slowing down.

Submitted by Joe Hoffmann, Sanctuary Manager for the World Bird 

"Return to the Wild" program celebrates wildlife hospital successes!

Sick and injured birds of prey that enter our wildlife hospital at World Bird Sanctuary will often need an area to be released back to the wild, so we have designed a program to make this a unique experience for the general public to enjoy.  The “Return to the Wild” program gives World Bird Sanctuary supporters the opportunity to take part in the release of a bird of prey back to the wild!

L-R: Dr. Stacey Schaeffer and Dr. Shannon Broyles, with 

Roger Holloway and Joe Hoffmann of World Bird Sanctuary, examine and treat a Bald Eagle with an injured wing.Photo: Sherry Seavers 

 The Kathryn G. Favre Wildlife Hospital at World Bird Sanctuary specializes in the rehabilitation of birds of prey, and also the reintroduction of these birds back to the wild, after their treatment is complete.  The actual return to the wild is where the public can be of great help to our organization and provide a memorable experience for those who witness and take part in the release. 

On the day of the release, a World Bird Sanctuary staff member will bring the bird to the release location, from where donors have the option to release the bird out of their own hands, or by simply opening the travel crate to let the bird fly away in its own time.

A Red-shouldered Hawk is returned to the wild after being successfullytreated in the wildlife hospital.  Photos: World Bird Sanctuary.

This is a memorable way to celebrate a special occasion – birthday, anniversary, wedding, tribute, graduation or memorial, or even just enjoying giving the special bird its second chance at life!

To find out more about our “Return to the Wild” program, you can contact our wildlife hospital staff at 636-861-1392, or click here for more information.

World Bird Sanctuary would like to the thank the skilled veterinarians of St. Louis Hills Veterinary Clinic for volunteering their time and resources to treat the sick and injured birds admitted to our wildlife hospital.

Dawn and Dawn

A Dawn dish detergent bottle walks into a wildlife hospital . . . .

The week following Halloween, I got a rather unusual message through our Facebook page, with an accompanying photo that made me look twice.

Dawn Levinson, of Valley Park, MO, messaged me to tell me that she had a donation for our wildlife hospital.  “Great!” I said.  “Would you like to mail it to us or deliver it?”  Dawn chose personal delivery. 

Staff members Roger Holloway and Joe Hoffmann and volunteer Robert Korb accepting a most unusual donation from Dawn Levinson dressed as a bottle of Dawn detergent

It was Dawn’s intention to use Halloween to raise money for Dawn detergent’s Everyday Wildlife Champions – to support their work helping wildlife rehabilitation centers.  However, Dawn was told that the fund did not accept personal donations – instead, their work was funded by a percentage of Dawn product sales.  They suggested that she make the donation to a local wildlife hospital.

This is how it came to be that a vivacious young lady, dressed as a bottle of Dawn dish detergent, wandered into the World Bird Sanctuary wildlife hospital to present us with donations that she had collected in an actual empty Dawn dish detergent bottle.  Our wildlife hospital is supported entirely by donations – we do not receive any state, federal or local government funding.  If that donation walks through the door in a detergent bottle – we’ll take it!

Thank you Dawn for a unique donation delivery!  It will be used to purchase supplies needed to treat the birds that are admitted to our wildlife hospital.

Submitted by Catherine Redfern, World Bird Sanctuary Development Director

Survivors

Since the World Bird Sanctuary was founded in 1976 we have released four pelicans, one Trumpeter Swan, and six Great Blue Herons.  We have admitted twenty-three White Pelicans, about forty Great Blue Herons, and eleven Trumpeter Swans.  The swans are rare birds that are considered species of concern. 

Volunteer Bob Warbin hand feeding an injured White Pelican

You may ask why we have released so few of these birds.  The main reason is that they are survivors.  When they get injured they may live with that injury for a year or two until they are literally on their last leg.  They often arrive at the door of the World Bird Sanctuary wildlife hospital starving and emaciated, many times with a broken wing that has healed crooked and is not fixable.  We hand feed them and nurse them back to health and then we find them a home with us or another wildlife facility around the country. 

We are proud of the birds that recover to be released--even if those individuals are rare.  The others that remain with us or that are re-homed to other wildlife facilities may breed, and in return their babies will be released into the wild to increase their populations. 

Keep your eyes open for these birds near rivers, lakes, and ponds.  Several hundred Trumpeter Swans can be seen during winter months, near Alton, IL.

Submitted by Joe Hoffmann, Sanctuary Manager, World Bird Sanctuary

Tomorrow Only: Help the WBS Wildlife Hospital when you shop at Whole Foods Market!

Shop at Whole Foods Market Town & Country or Whole FoodsMarket Galleria tomorrow, Thursday, July 25^th, when 5% of the total sales from each store for that day will be donated to World Bird Sanctuary’s wildlife hospital!

Bald Eagle Meet-and-Greet at Whole Food Market

• Enjoy a unique shopping experience at Whole Foods Market’s Community  Support Day at World Bird Sanctuary:
• Meet owls, hawks and eagles from World Bird Sanctuary – see exactly how your support makes a difference!
• Meet the staff who run the wildlife hospital – find out what it takes to treat an injured bird and prepare it for release back to the wild!
• FREE entry for a Return to the Wild gift certificate – you can win a Return to the Wild and feel the joy of returning a previously injured bird back to the wild!
• Purchase a bird house for your garden – made by Bob Sayer, who salvages wood from construction sites that would otherwise be destined for the landfill.  Instead, it becomes a new home for birds in your yard!
• Find out about the fun, free, family-friendly events at World Bird Sanctuary.
• Enjoy a children’s sing-a-long at various times throughout the day (at Town & Country store only).

An injured Red-tailed Hawk is treated at the World Bird Sanctuary wildlife hospital

 It costs approximately $50,000 per year to operate the Kathryn G. Favre Wildlife Hospital at World Bird Sanctuary.  Your support of Whole Foods Market’s Community Support Day will go directly to helping treat and care for the 400-450 birds admitted to the hospital per year.

  

We wish to express our thanks to Whole Foods Market for supporting World Bird Sanctuary through their Community Support Day program, and through their ongoing efforts to encourage us all to shop in a more environmentally sustainable way.

We hope to see you at Whole Foods Market tomorrow, Thursday, July 25^th, where your shopping will make a difference to the birds admitted to World Bird Sanctuary’s wildlife hospital.

Date: Thursday, July 25^th

Time: 11am – 7pm

Place: Whole Foods Market Town & Country and Whole Foods Market Galleria

Support our Wildlife Hospital when you Shop at Whole Foods Market next Thursday!

Shop at Whole Foods Market Town & Country or Whole FoodsMarket Galleria on Thursday, July 25^th, when 5% of the total sales from each store for that day will be donated to World Bird Sanctuary’s wildlife hospital!

Bald Eagle Meet-and-Greet at Whole Food Market

 Enjoy a unique shopping experience at Whole Foods Market’s Community  Support Day at World Bird Sanctuary:

·         Meet owls, hawks and eagles from World Bird Sanctuary – see exactly how your support makes a difference!

·         Meet the staff who run the wildlife hospital – find out what it takes to treat an injured bird and prepare it for release back to the wild!

·         FREE entry for a Return to the Wild gift certificate – you can win a Return to the Wild and feel the joy of returning a previously injured bird back to the wild!

·         Purchase a bird house for your garden – made by Bob Sayer, who salvages wood from construction sites that would otherwise be destined for the landfill.  Instead, it becomes a new home for birds in your yard!

·         Find out about the fun, free, family-friendly events at World Bird Sanctuary.

·         Enjoy a children’s sing-a-long at various times throughout the day (at Town & Country store only).

An injured Red-tailed Hawk is treated at the World Bird Sanctuary wildlife hospital

 It costs approximately $50,000 per year to operate the Kathryn G. Favre Wildlife Hospital at World Bird Sanctuary.  Your support of Whole Foods Market’s Community Support Day will go directly to helping treat and care for the 400-450 birds admitted to the hospital per year.

  

We wish to express our thanks to Whole Foods Market for supporting World Bird Sanctuary through their Community Support Day program, and through their ongoing efforts to encourage us all to shop in a more environmentally sustainable way.

We hope to see you at Whole Foods Market on Thursday, July 25^th, where your shopping will make a difference to the birds admitted to World Bird Sanctuary’s wildlife hospital.

Date: Thursday, July 25^th

Time: 11am – 7pm

Place: Whole Foods Market Town & Country and Whole Foods Market Galleria

Barred Owls Don't Listen....

2011 was one of the Kathryn G. Favre Wildlife Hospital's busiest years. 

A baby Barred Owl being treated in our Wildlife Hospital for a broken leg 

We received 379 birds and one snapping turtle.  101 Barred Owls must be a new record – but I'm still checking our books!

Most of these birds are collision victims – many people say, "The owl hit my car."  I often wonder…if a human was struck by a car, would we say, "That person hit my car?"  It has always seemed strange when I hear that, but I am so pleased that these people take the time and effort to catch these birds and bring them to our hospital rather than abandoning them on the side of the road.

A Barred Owl in one of our flight mews being conditioned to fly again 

Collisions are accidents and people should not feel at fault.  What we all can do is slow down a little when we are in dense wooded areas and near rivers – the perfect habitat for these birds.  These are areas where animals get very active around dawn and dusk.

 A Barred Owl ready for release

I will also continue to tell the owls to stop hitting our cars….but don't count on them paying any attention to me when I release them!

Submitted by Joe Hoffmann.

Wildlife Hospital Faces Closure

World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital facing imminent closure.

“Unless the World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital generates donations of $40,000 in the next 60 days, we will be forced to close the 35-year old hospital on June 1^st,” says a solemn Walter C. Crawford, Jr., Executive Director of World Bird Sanctuary.

An injured Barred Owl receives treatment from Drs. Eric and Stacey Siebel-Spath,who so generously donate their services, while two volunteers look on

The raptor hospital admits and treats approximately 300 sick, injured or orphaned birds of prey per year, and has released more than 4,000 birds back to the wild!  It has achieved this over the last 35 years with no state or federal funding, instead relying entirely on donations from members of the public to keep its doors open. 

Wildlife Hospital financial challenges compounded by Sunday’s windstorm

In addition to the regular financial challenges that the hospital is facing, the windstorm on Sunday 28^th March added another cost to the wildlife hospital.  The 130ft long physical therapy and flight cage was extensively damaged by a tree that was blown over by the wind.  Breaking through the top and side of the cage, damage is estimated at around $5,000.  “Fortunately, the Bald Eagle currently housed in the cage was unharmed and did not escape, but we now have no cage big enough for the eagle to exercise its flight muscles and build up strength, threatening its chances of release back into the wild,” explains Crawford. 

A Great Blue Heron being examined to determine the extent of it's injuries

“There are no other facilities in the state that are equipped to deal with the 300 or so birds that we receive every year.  Most of the birds are admitted to the hospital as a result of human encounter – collisions with vehicles, collisions with windows, being attacked by pets, being accidentally shot or trapped, or being maliciously attacked.  As a result, we have a responsibility to do what we can to return them to their natural habitat.  They require special handling, diets and facilities to give them the best chances for return to the wild.  Without our wildlife hospital, I don’t know what will happen to all these sick and injured birds that will need treatment.” 

The World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital needs immediate funding.

“The Wildlife Hospital does not charge for services and earns no income of its own.  With the recent recession our supporters have been as generous as they can be, but the hospital still needs help,” says Crawford.  “We are appealing to our supporters in our community to help us in any way that they can.”

In January 2005 the World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital moved from Tyson Research Center (a facility closed to the public) to the current site, which is open to the public daily from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, with no admission fee.  This increased visibility, coupled with current economic conditions that have forced many smaller wildlife rehabilitation centers around the country to close, has contributed to the Wildlife Hospital’s increased caseload.  This in turn has resulted in rising operating costs for the World Bird Sanctuary’s Wildlife Hospital.

“In addition, the economic recession has reduced discretionary income among our support base, and the recent tragedies in Haiti and Chile have forced our supporters to make even more difficult choices regarding which causes they donate to, and how much they can donate to each,” explains Walter, “At World Bird Sanctuary we have already taken steps to reduce unnecessary expenditure, such as:

• Freezing salaries and new hires for at least one year.
• The Executive Director has taken a pay reduction.
• Elimination of travel and related expenses for attendance at conferences and seminars.
• We are successfully aggressively pursuing in-kind donations of products and services that we would normally pay for.
• We are reducing utility costs with conservative measures put into effect that will reduce any possible wastes of electricity and water.
• We have laid off two staff and extended the work week of all current staff.  We have reduced staff housing and vacation benefits.  We cannot lay off any further staff without severely impacting our ability to deliver on-site visitor services, off-site environmental education programs and care of our animals.”

While we receive volunteer veterinary services from three veterinarians, and we have a dedicated volunteer base to help us care for the animals, we still have expenses that need to be covered.  Costs to run the Wildlife Hospital are currently budgeted at $40,000.00 per year.  The highest costs incurred include medication, food, supplements, other medical supplies, veterinary diagnostics and maintaining bird housing, and costs associated with running and maintaining the hospital building.   

Volunteer veterinarian, Stacey Siebel-Spath, examines the x-ray of a newly admitted patient

The World Bird Sanctuary wildlife hospital has never earned any income.  Instead it has been supported by other departments within the organization.  However, with the continuing financial difficulties that we and our donors are facing, we can no longer afford for the Education and Behavioral and Training Departments to subsidize the running costs of the Wildlife Hospital.  Closing the Wildlife Hospital is a difficult and heartbreaking decision to make, but one that may be necessary if we don’t receive funding.

About the World Bird Sanctuary

The World Bird Sanctuary’s mission is to preserve the earth’s biological diversity and to secure the future of threatened bird species in their natural environments.  The World Bird Sanctuary works to fulfill this mission through education, propagation, field studies and rehabilitation.

The World Bird Sanctuary (501(c) (3) non-profit) was founded in 1977 by Walter C. Crawford, Jr., and is one of North America’s largest facilities for the conservation of birds.

We are essentially looking for a few generous individual donors or a corporate sponsor who would like to sponsor the Wildlife Hospital for one year, with naming rights.  If you or anyone you know can help, please call Catherine at 636-225-4390 ext. 102.

If you would like to make an online donation to our wildlife hospital click here  

If you would like to mail a donation to the wildlife hospital you can send it World Bird Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital Appeal, 125 Bald Eagle Ridge Road, Valley Park MO 63088