The long term care of captive wildlife involves time, attention to detail and, if the animal requires foods that are not in season, inconvenience and expense.

Many rehabilitation centers rely on education animals to impart to adults and children alike the lessons so necessary to ensure the continuation of wild species and wild places. By displaying these animals and describing their injuries, conservation status, conflicts with humans or domestic animals and their natural history, rehabilitators create an opportunity to change minds and policies.

Education animals are often described as wildlife ambassadors, and as such, they do much to further understanding and instill compassion in those who meet them. However, these animals make the sacrifice of life-long captivity. Some are displayed only at the rehabilitation center, while others travel to classrooms, television stations and public events. Many rehabilitators take pains to ensure that education animals are conditioned to crowds, noise and travel. They minimize stress and handling or, if the animal is on display, ensure it has as much privacy and normalcy as possible.

While some education animals are non-releasable as a result of imprinting, others have injuries that render them unable to survive in the wild. Often, the initial injury worsens or causes distress and discomfort as the animal ages. Therefore, lifetime captive animals require and deserve good veterinary care, excellent husbandry and as natural a life as is possible.

Many education animals or non-releasable animals do double duty as foster parents, an invaluable service to orphaned or injured youngsters. Wildlife neonates who have the benefit of natural parenting and role modeling are excellent release candidates. In turn, they benefit their foster parents by allowing them opportunity to interact normally with their own species.

Neonates and young animals that are to be placed with foster parents must be examined and treated for parasites and diseases.

Many animals are not ready for release in time for migration or to prepare for winter. They may be immature, their injuries or illnesses may need more time to resolve, or they may need to be held until they molt. Long-term captivity can involve months or even years. These animals must be managed carefully so that their health is optimal, their levels of stress are minimal and so that they do not bond with their caregivers. Animals that come into care as adults are far less likely to encounter problems with bonding and present less concerns at release than do orphaned or injured neonates and juveniles.

Regardless of whether the animal is releasable or will spend its lifetime in captivity, it requires privacy, routine and assessment.

• It must be weighed periodically to ensure it is eating and maintaining weight, and must be undergo routine physical examinations to ensure that it is free of parasites and is maintaining good health.
• Environmental, dietary and foraging enrichment will help decrease captive stress.
• If the species is social, housing it with (or within view of) a conspecific or conspecifics will further relieve captive stress. It may be necessary to transfer the animal to another facility that has a conspecific in care, or to accept a conspecific from another facility.
• The diet of all long-term animals must be supplemented with vitamin C. Even species that synthesize the vitamin do not do so at high enough rates and levels to offset stress-related losses.
• The natural photoperiod for that species at that time of year should be observed and ambient temperatures should be comfortable. The animal will require exposure to sunlight or full spectrum lights for a period of at least ½ hour per day.
• Its diet should reflect the range of foods it eats in nature, offered free choice. It must have opportunity to partake in all activities normal to its species.

Some long-term care animals are used in captive breeding programs, and their young are released to the wild. Captive breeding programs are usually implemented or supported by government agencies and/or universities and, depending on the species in question, levels of success vary. If animals are to mate and produce young, attention to environmental and dietary enrichment is crucial.

Information on enrichment can be found on the right menu of the Wildlife Care section of this site.

For more information on some issues involving long-term captive animals and captive bred animals, choose one of the topics below.

Information on health and care issues of long-term, foster and education animals is available through IWRC and NWRA. The organizations publish journal articles and offer presentations at conferences and seminars. Visit their websites for listings of publications and conference/seminar schedules.

IWRC
International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council

NWRA
National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association