Wildlife Hospital Volunteers

Due to COVID-19, WildCare had not yet scheduled orientations for 2021.  All upcoming orientations will require pre-registration. If you have any questions please contact Brenna Maillet, Volunteer Manager at volunteer@discoverwildcare.org or call 415-453-1000 x21.

Volunteer Training

All incoming volunteers attending annual orientations will be required to attend a shadowing day and complete our 4-class New Hospital Volunteer Training Series, a full 10 hours of in-depth instruction in animal care and wildlife hospital operations.

Once working in the Wildlife Hospital, volunteers progress through 3 training levels (click for WildCare’s Training Level System) learning increasingly advanced skills in medical treatment and animal handling. Volunteers are expected to master the skills of one level before progressing to the next, however volunteers are encouraged to ask questions and observe procedures at any level in order to increase their training and experience.

WildCare’s Wildlife Hospital is a teaching hospital, and staff and senior volunteers are always available for questions and help.

In addition, volunteers are required to attend at least one California Department of Fish & Wildlife-approved educational class per year, participate in safety training and successfully pass an annual safety quiz. Classes are held frequently at WildCare and volunteers are encouraged to attend as many classes as they wish.

• Volunteers must be 15 years or older (see our Young Adult Community Service Program for middle school students ages 12 – 14.)
• Volunteers age 15 – 17 will be part of our WildCare Student Volunteer Program. Learn more here…
• All volunteers must attend a Volunteer Orientation.Please note: There is a non-refundable $15 registration fee for this orientation.

  If, after attending orientation, you decide to volunteer, you will pay the volunteer training fee of $65, for a total of $80.

  This fee includes a year’s membership to WildCare and materials for the training classes.Partial scholarships are available on a case by case basis. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

• All volunteers must fill out, sign, and turn in all required documents.
• New incoming volunteers must attend a shadowing day and four required classes (a full 10 hours) of hands-on training for the Wildlife Hospital.
• Volunteers 18 and over must commit to one 4-hour shift a week.Volunteers ages 15-17 must commit to one shift a week between 1.5 to 4-hours long (hours are adjusted during school).The minimum commitment for new hospital volunteers is from March through the end of WildCare’s “Baby Season” (usually ending late October).

We always ask potential volunteers to seriously evaluate their schedules and other commitments before they join our volunteer team, because WildCare’s hospital is 95% volunteer driven and our wildlife patients depend on the volunteers for their food, caging and medical needs.

Volunteers are expected to attend their scheduled shift every week, and missing a scheduled shift can impact our patients’ well being!

We ask all incoming volunteers to make a commitment to a regular volunteer shift from the date of their first training class through our “Baby Season” which usually ends in late October.

Due to the extensive training needed, this is the minimum requirement and most volunteers continue to volunteer beyond this original commitment.

Each trained volunteer must commit to one 4-hour shift in the hospital per week. You will volunteer on the same shift every week.

Shifts are scheduled 7 days a week at 9am – 1pm or 1pm – 5pm year-round.

During the summer, shifts are also needed in the songbird room from 5pm – 9pm. These late evening and early morning shifts are available to volunteers in their second year. At any given time some shifts may be full and not taking new volunteers.

Volunteering with wild animals involves some inherent health risks and WildCare is committed to minimizing or eliminating these risks.

The health and safety of our volunteers is our top priority. Protective clothing such as gloves, eye protection and face masks is required when handling many of our patients.

Volunteers who do not follow proper safety precautions in the hospital will be asked to leave WildCare.

• It is recommended that people with compromised immune systems DO NOT volunteer in wildlife rehabilitation.
• We recommend that anyone volunteering at WildCare inform their regular doctor that they are working with wildlife.
• Pregnant women are not allowed to volunteer with the animals at WildCare.
• Proper safety and hygiene precautions must be followed at all times.
• Volunteers are required to have a current tetanus vaccine, but no other vaccinations are required.

Volunteers are required to wear closed-toe shoes at all times.

Other clothing guidelines are at the volunteer’s discretion, but we recommend comfortable long sleeves and pants.

Always wear something you do not mind getting dirty! Work at WildCare is very hard on clothing. Most volunteers have separate clothing they change into when they arrive.

Medical scrubs are always a good choice.

Some diseases that are not transmittable to us may be a danger to our pets. These are called epizoonotic diseases. Potentially sick wild animals must never come in contact with domestic animals. The following precautions should be considered:

• Be careful to change out of your volunteer clothing and wash well before going into pet-occupied areas of your home.
• A special pair of shoes should be set aside for exclusive use in the Wildlife Hospital.
• Volunteers with pet birds should take additional precautions as some avian conditions may be more easily transmitted between WildCare’s patients and pet birds. Wash hands frequently and well, change clothes before handling pet birds, and inform your supervisor and Medical Staff that you have birds so that your contact with contagious patients may be minimized.

With these precautions, the risks to you and your pets will be kept to a minimum.

Everyone at WildCare loves animals, and most of us share our lives with domestic animals.

With the precautions taken above, your pets (and ours!) will remain healthy and safe while you volunteer at WildCare.

All animals can carry, contract and spread various diseases, and the wildlife we handle is no exception.

Although many diseases are species-specific, some may be transferred between species and to us.

Diseases we can contract from animals are called zoonotic diseases or zoonoses.

Zoonoses are a concern in wildlife rehabilitation. However, proper hygiene (washing hands before and after handling animals, eating, or using the washroom) and proper safety techniques (wearing gloves or masks as required) greatly minimize risk.