You are walking down the street or maybe out in your backyard and you see it.

A baby bird on the ground.
A rabbit that is not moving.
A squirrel that looks hurt.

You want to help.

But helping the wrong way can hurt the animal more than doing nothing at all.

Here is what you need to know.

Step one: Do not touch it yet

Stand back. Watch for a few minutes.

Most baby animals are not abandoned. Their parent is nearby getting food or watching you from a safe spot. If you grab the baby, the parent will not come back until you leave.

For birds: If it has feathers and is hopping around, it is a fledgling. It is learning to fly. The parents are close. Leave it alone unless a cat or dog is coming.

If it is featherless and you can reach the nest, put it back. It is a myth that the parents will abandon it because it smells like humans.

For deer: A fawn lying alone in the grass is normal. The mother is feeding somewhere else. She will come back. Do not touch it. If mom is nearby when you or your dog approach it, she may attack you - those hooves are razor sharp.

Step two: Is it really hurt?

Signs the animal needs help:

You can see blood or a broken bone
It is lying on its side and cannot get up
It is covered in flies or bugs
A cat or dog brought it to you
It is a baby bird with no feathers and you found the nest but it is destroyed

If none of those things are true, leave the animal alone. You are not helping by taking it.

Step three: Call someone who knows what they are doing

Do not bring the animal to a vet unless you call first. Many vets do not treat wildlife.
Do not bring it to a pet store.
Do not bring it to us.

Call a wildlife rehabilitator. These are people with permits and training. They know what to feed each animal. They know how to release it back to the wild.

Scroll down to the bottom of this article for a list of phone numbers in southern Alberta.

Step four: If you absolutely have to contain the animal

Maybe you called a rehabber and they said bring it in. Or maybe it is the middle of the night and no one is answering.

Here is how to keep the animal safe until morning.

Get a cardboard box. Not a wire cage. Not a plastic tub with no air holes. A simple box.

Put a towel or old t shirt in the bottom. Do not use a towel with loops. The animal's toes can get stuck. A flat sheet or an old pillowcase is better.

Put the animal in the box. Close the lid. Poke small holes for air.

Put the box in a dark, warm, quiet place. No kids. No pets. No TV.

Do not give it food or water. A baby bird can drown on a single drop of water (the parents do not bring their baby water). A baby rabbit cannot digest the wrong milk (they are lactose intolerant). You will kill it with kindness.

Leave it alone. Take it to a rehabber as soon as they open.

Why you do not want to raise it yourself

Maybe you are thinking: I could do what the Medicine Hat Owl did. I could raise a baby bird or squirrel myself.

Stop. Read this first.

We found Gonzo the starling on a porch at 44 grams with their eyes sealed shut. They are alive because Kelly made a choice. Kelly knew the drill of having to feed them every 20 minutes from sunrise to sunset and decided to do it anyway.

Here is the math

🐥Gonzo gets 2-3 feedings/hr from 6 AM to 8 PM, 14 hours every day.

14 hours times 2 feedings per hour = 28 feedings per day.
14 hours times 3 feedings per hour = 42 feedings per day.

🐥Gonzo poops every time they eat.

28 to 42 poops per day.

Every day.

For weeks.

This is not a polite little poop in a pile, this is reminiscent of the Ass-Blasters of the Tremors franchise - Gonzo does a butt wiggle while backing up to the side of the pan, pops it up and over the side, then unleashes a poop torpedo. 😂 He does not achieve liftoff but that too is coming.

🐥Gonzo has already soiled two shirts and a pair of jeans. They are remorseless.

You will clean poop off your hands, your shirt, your furniture. You will wake up twice in the night to change a hot water bottle because the baby cannot stay warm on its own. You will weigh it every morning and worry if the number goes down.

Even if you do everything right? The bird might still die.

Gonzo is alive because Kelly made a choice knowing that the wildlife center would have told her to let them die; starlings are not protected.

But if you find a native bird or a rabbit or a squirrel? There are people who do this for a living. Call them. Let them do the 24 hour care.

One more thing

We will not raise animals that other people find. We have our hands full with Gonzo. Please do not show up at our door with a box of anything. We will point you to this article and send you on your way.

Who to call in southern Alberta

Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society (Calgary) - 403-214-1312

Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation (Madden, NW of Calgary) - 403-946-2361

Alberta Birds of Prey Foundation (Coaldale, near Lethbridge) - 403-331-9520

Medicine River Wildlife Centre (Central Alberta) - 403-728-3467

WILDNorth (Edmonton region) - 780-914-4118

Alberta Fish and Wildlife non emergency (Lethbridge area) - 403-381-5266

If you are outside these areas, call Alberta Fish and Wildlife and ask for the nearest wildlife rehabilitator.

The bottom line

The best thing you can do for most wild animals is nothing at all.

Walk away. Let the parents do their job.

If the animal is truly hurt, call a rehabber. Do not play hero. Do not try to raise it yourself unless you are ready to lose sleep, clean poop, and possibly watch it die anyway. Nature can be cruel; sometimes it is best to let Nature takes its course.

And if you are still thinking about raising a baby bird after reading this? Go back and read the math again.

28 to 42 feedings per day.
28 to 42 poops per day.
Every day.
For weeks.

You have been warned.

Love,
🦉The Medicine Hat Owl and 🐥Gonzo the starling (who is worth every single poop)

So you found an injured or abandoned animal. Now what?