Rehabilitation Techniques
Injured, Sick Raptors and Orphaned Babies:
Raptor rehabilitation is the process of providing medical care and physiotherapy services to injured, sick, and orphaned wild birds of prey. We use current best practices for conducting physical exams, patient stabilization, and we provide care to these raptors until they can be returned to their natural habitat. This is our vision.
Why is Rehabilitation Necessary?
Since 1991, Wild At Heart has rehabilitated over 16,000 raptors. Specialized round-the-clock care and large flight areas enable hundreds of magnificent birds to enjoy a second chance at freedom every year.
Most birds that we admit into our care have injuries attributed to accidental or intentional human interference.
- Most birds arrive at Wild At Heart with injuries such as broken bones, concussions, and damage to eyes, ears, and feathers because they have collided with cars, flown into windows or power lines.
- Many raptors have been poisoned by rodenticides which occur when people use these chemicals to kill unwanted pests. Rats, mice, or possibly other animals eat the poison, and then the birds eat the poisoned prey.
- Other raptors have been ignorantly taken from their nest as babies, attempted to be raised as domestic pets, and eventually come into our facility with severe nutritional deficiencies.
- And, far too many raptors have been senselessly shot with BB guns or sprayed with shotguns fragments every year.
Flight Aviaries
Our flight aviary compound has 22 large flight enclosures specifically designed for each unique species we care for. Each cage is outfitted with perches, stairs, and ladders for birds that are not yet able or ready to fly. Each enclosure has trees, grasses, rocks, branches, and pools to keep the environment as natural as possible. The flight enclosures allow for low stress physical therapy and conditioning so these raptors can be as wild as possible while in captivity.
We receive birds from all over Arizona. We are largely a hands off facility and try to reduce the stress of captivity as much as possible. Our large aviaries are an outside hospital for the birds. They regain strength while being able to feel the sun and other elements. From here they find their way to freedom, giving them a chance to soar on mended wings again!
