As temperatures rise and animals begin raising their young, we’re seeing a familiar wave of “firsts” roll in: the first squirrels, the first baby cottontails, and, of course, the first raccoon kit. 🦝

These babies were stuck between a rock and a…bulldozer?! Meet our featured patients this month: Eastern Gray Squirrels 25-010, 011, and 012!

Ah, February—the season of love!
Chocolates, roses, romantic dinners… and the unmistakable scent of skunk? 👃

We tend to hear the most about wild animals that get the heck out of Dodge (migrate) or get the heck…under Dodge (hiberate). What about the many species that don’t do either to survive the winter?

Our ED chats with our animal care staff about the patients that stuck with them the most in 2024.

Gobble, gobble, gobble,Snood, caruncle, and wattle!No idea what we just said? Keep reading this month’s Critter Corner. ⬇️ As Thanksgiving approaches, turkeys take center stage in our minds and on some of our tables.  But Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo)  have been strutting through North America’s landscapes for millennia—long before they became cultural icons. This month, we’re talkin’ turkeys! […]

When one squirrel is released, another arrives! 🔄 🌰 Shortly after we successfully released September’s Patient of the Month, a charming melanistic squirrel, we welcomed yet another unique baby. (Baby season ain’t over til the fat squirrel sings!) Meet Eastern Gray Squirrel 24-984, a slightly asymmetrical yet still adorable patient.  This young male squirrel originally arrived […]

It’s the most magical day of the year: National Opossum Day! 🎉 You might be thinking, “A whole day dedicated to opossums? Really?!” In honor of our most marvelous marsupial neighbors, we’re shining this month’s Critter Corner spotlight on the fascinating Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) so you can learn about just how much these eco-superheroes do. […]

September’s Patient of the Month is small, dark, and handsome. Meet 24-873, a melanistic Eastern Gray Squirrel currently in care at the Sanctuary.  This fascinating baby squirrel arrived at RWS in mid-August after his nest was cut down by some folks doing tree work in Augusta County. Our friends at the Wildlife Center of Virginia transferred […]