zz.Sponsor An Animal Ambassador – bak

Sponsor an Educational Animal

Sponsor the care of an educational animal for a year. Sponsorship pays for their food, handling, housekeeping, and enclosure maintenance. For sponsorships with Nickerson, Up Up and Garv, you will also get a meet-and-greet at your selected venue with your host animal! Know that your donation changes the life of an animal all year long. (Our animals can have more than one sponsor!)

Meet Our Educational Animals

Meet GARV the Eastern Box Turtle

GARV (short for “Garvey”) is an Eastern Box Turtle. He is over 20 years old, and is Wild Care’s first Educational Ambassador! GARV was brought to us in the winter of 2015. The turtle had been kept as a pet (illegal in the state of Massachusetts), and was tossed out into the snow while his caretaker was away.

The turtle was brought to Wild Care for care, and was severely malnourished. We began providing necessary medical treatment and proper nutrition.  With our help, the turtle made a swift recovery. Wild Care staff quickly realized that unfortunately, GARV was too tame to be released back into the wild. We applied for a permit from the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, and received acceptance in the Summer of 2016, to keep turtle GARV permanently as our educational Eastern Box Turtle!

GARV has been traveling all over Cape Cod in the past two years – from classrooms, to Wild Care’s various events, to the Blessing of the Animals at Dennis Union Church, etc. He was even featured on public television, courtesy of the Cape Cod Community Media Center. This wonderful turtle has been teaching young and old alike about the natural history and value Eastern Box Turtles bring to Cape Cod, and warming peoples hearts along the way. ♥️

GARV’s care has been generously sponsored by
Garvey Communication Associates Inc., in 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, and 2017.
We have recently renamed GARV in honor of his sponsor.

Thank you John Garvey and your wonderful team, for your love of turtles
and for your kindness and support!

 (Care includes: Food, daily handling and exercise, housekeeping and cleaning, and a bodyguard at events.)

 

P.O. Box 15294
1500 Main Street, 20th Floor
Springfield, MA 01115

Phone: (413) 736-2245 | Fax: (413) 736-2247
www.gcaionline.com

Would you like to sponsor GARV’s care in 2022?
There’s enough love to go around! Annual sponsorship is $750.

Email Stephanie Ellis, Wild Care Executive Director, to learn more about the benefits of sponsorship! [email protected]

 

Meet Nickerson the Eastern Screech Owl

Nickerson was brought to us as an owlet, when her nesting tree was cut down in Nickerson State Park (unbeknownst to the trimmers). The owlets were in bad shape and a reunion with their parents was not possible. Nickerson suffered an eye injury when the tree fell. She and her siblings were rehabilitated at Wild Care. Her siblings were released, but it was quickly determined that Nickerson was blind in one eye and was not fit for release. Being a young bird, Nickerson was a great candidate to become an educational animal, providing us the opportunity to teach the Cape Cod community about the importance of Eastern Screech Owls to our ecosystems, and why tree felling during spring and summer months hurts wildlife. In 2017, Wild Care acquired a federal permit to keep Nickerson as our educational owl ambassador. She’s been out-and-about ever since. Find her at Wild Care events, local events, schools and more. We hope you’ve had a chance to meet this delightfully charming owl. You’ll be seeing more of her this year.

Thank you to Lydia Leclair Photography for sponsoring Nickerson’s care in 2022!

Would you like to sponsor Nickerson’s care in 2023?
Sponsorship is $1,000.

Meet “Up Up” the Eastern Screech Owl

Up Up came to us on April 29, 2017 as an owlet. He was displaced from his nest when his nesting tree was cut down. He was found on the ground and brought to Wild Care. No other owlets were found. Sadly, he had a wing droop and a fractured wing. A wildlife veterinarian deemed him non-releasable due to the fracture (he is not capable of survival in the wild due to the injury). Being a young owl, we thought he would make a great candidate for an educational animal-teaching people about how they can minimize impacts on wildlife (don’t trim trees until winter), and why owls are an important part of our ecosystem. Up Up is a bundle of beauty, joy and energy. Up Up is truly a great educational ambassador, and we are blessed to have him as part of our team here at Wild Care.

THANK YOU Karen and Arthur Boujoukos for your generous sponsorship of Up Up for 2022!

(Photo t0p: Julia Cumes. Photo bottom: Ken Johnson)

Email Stephanie Ellis, Wild Care Executive Director, to learn more about the benefits of sponsorship! [email protected]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet Ilean the Mallard

Ilean is our Foster Mom Duck. She came to us early in 2016, by way of a new volunteer who overheard our staff discussing the need for a foster duck come springtime. Orphaned ducklings need a “real” duck mom to imprint on, and teach them duck behaviors. They also need to maintain a healthy fear of humans. A volunteer had a friend who had raised a domestic Mallard for two years from a tiny duckling. It was a female with a deformed leg who had nesting instincts. A perfect fit for both us and the duck! Her friend agreed, and Ilean has been part of our Wild Care family ever since. (She was named “Ilean” because she leans to one side.) Ilean was raised with chickens, so her “Quack” is more like a “Cluck”. But, she more than earns her keep here by teaching the ducklings how to preen, and letting them snuggle up against her for protection. Having Ilean at Wild Care has been a big help, and we all love her!

Thank you to Mary-Ann Agresti, Rick Bishop and Abby Bishop for Sponsoring Ilean’s care in 2022.

Would you like to also sponsor Ilean’s care in 2023?  Sponsorship is $200.

Email Stephanie Ellis, Wild Care Executive Director, to learn more about the benefits of sponsorship! [email protected]

 

Meet Mallory the Mallard

In the summer of 2021, we received a group of orphaned Mallard ducklings from the Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, Massachusetts. All the ducklings were fostered at Wild Care by Ilean, our resident foster Mallard and Educational Ambassador (see above). They were all eventually released, except for one special duckling. Mallory.

 

 

In Memory of “Bill” the White-Footed Mouse

We sadly announce the passing of Bill, our Educational Ambassador mouse.
Nov 2019 – Nov 2022.

Bill lived a very happy, and long life – for a White-footed Mouse. He was a sweet mouse and will be missed by all of our staff and volunteers. Thank you to all who have sponsored his care for the last three years.

Bill’s Story: “My name is William Puck, but you can call me Bill! I am a White-Footed mouse and I am a native species on Cape Cod. I was found in the parking lot of the Charles Moore Arena as a baby, wandering around and chewing on grass. A kind person noticed me, and brought me to Wild Care, where they found out I was starving, and had a severe skin and eye infection. The nice people at Wild Care gave me Pedialyte, and antibiotics, and fixed me all up

Unfortunately, the eye infection left me blind, so I am unable to be released back into the wild. But even though I can’t see, I can easily get around with the use of my whiskers. I now live at Wild Care as a mouse ambassador where I teach people about the important roles that mice play in the environment!

Here at Wild Care, I enjoy eating different types of vegetables, nuts, seeds and fruits. I love to run on my wheel!!!”

Thank you to Mary-Ann Agresti, Rick Bishop and Abby Bishop for Sponsoring the care of “Bill” the Mouse in 2022.

Email Stephanie Ellis, Wild Care Executive Director, to learn more about the benefits of sponsorship! [email protected].

More info and program requests…

Printable Brochure Educational Animal Brochure Sponsorship

Online Form for Wild Care Education Presentation