New Pool for WildCare’s Pool Birds
The wonderful people at Hendrickson Pools made an incredibly generous donation to WildCare, just in time for the holidays!
Two of WildCare most popular educational Wildlife Ambassador animals are Marshall the American White Pelican (named in loving memory of Joan Coil Carvalho) and Baja the Brown Pelican. These two large and charismatic birds share their pool with a striking Brandt’s Cormorant named Farallon, and a charming Heerman’s Gull named Herman.
But for several years the pool birds’ pool has desperately needed repairs and a new pumping system. The entire enclosure for these birds has needed a remodel, both for the safety of the birds and for our WildCare volunteers who provide their care.
In the spirit of the holidays, the wonderful people at Hendrickson Pools, a local pool company based in San Rafael, stepped forward and offered to repair and remodel the entire enclosure as a donation! Special thanks also to S.B.I. Building Materials in Windsor, CA, which donated the beautiful tumbled bluestone for the pool patio, and Burkett’s Pool Plastering, Inc. of Ripon, CA which donated the gorgeous pebbled finish in the pool.
“It was our pleasure to provide everything needed for the WildCare pool bird enclosure,” says company founder Dan Hendrickson. “We value the work WildCare does, and we were happy to provide our expertise, labor, and all the materials needed to completely renovate the pool bird enclosure in WildCare’s Courtyard.”
As WildCare continues its search for a new site, maintaining the safety and usability of our existing facility in central San Rafael remains a priority. Fortunately much of the generous donation by Hendrickson Pools can be transferred to a new location as needed.
Come visit!
WildCare’s Courtyard is free and open for the public to visit our live, nonreleaseable Wildlife Ambassador animals 365 days a year. Come see the beautiful new pool and watch our pelicans, cormorant and gull enjoying the pristine water! Click for directions to WildCare. We’re open 9am – 5pm seven days a week!
One of the best parts of the new pool set-up is the absence of the center pole that used to support the net over the pool. Our birds can fly across the pool now! They also have a much larger area in which to swim, and with the new filtration system and the addition of a gentle current to the pool, our birds will be both healthier and happier.
Watch Brandt’s Cormorant Farallon and American White Pelican Marshall as they see their new pool for the first time!