Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is a term for the process of observing, admitting, assessing, treating as necessary, and releasing back into the wild, with post-release monitoring if possible.
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The goal of the Centre is the rehabilitation of British wildlife.
Observation is a key part of our work, and must be done before any handling of the animal. Wildlife casualties find human contact stressful, and as part of their self-preservation defence mechanism, they will “play dead”. We need to observe with the minimum of disturbance, so that the animal behaves as naturally as possible.
Assessment - age is an important factor when assessing wildlife casualties, and has an impact on what we do. Where the animal is found is important – an adult may have an established territory and need to go back there as soon as possible to avoid confrontation. Where possible, adults are released where they were found, as they will be holding territory in this area, and will therefore have knowledge of foraging areas.
Treatment – the vet draws up a plan of treatment and care, and the animal is placed according to its species and needs.
The observation and assessment continues throughout the animal’s stay, with the aim of achieving the return to the wild as soon as possible.
Release – for hand-reared orphans the considerations of going back into the wild are slightly different. Form many species the release is timed to coincide with when the juveniles would be leaving the parental territory. Considerations include:
- Natural habitat.
- Food supply.
- Dangers - natural and man made (such as roads)
- Weather - very cold or wet weather can make it difficult for animals to adjust to their new environment.
- Natural behaviour.
* Our public line is only answered during office hours - for emergencies after office hours please call our National call centre on 0300 1234 999
