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Frequently Asked Questions

Q.  I found a baby bird, what should I do?

A.  If the bird is sick or injured, place it in a box with a lid and air holes and bring to the SPCA Wildlife Care Center (WCC).
A.  If the bird is fully-feathered and hopping on the ground, leave it alone, most likely the parents are nearby

Q.  There’s a turtle in my pool. How can I get him out? Or... Will you come and get it?

A.  Simply place a ladder or piece of wood in your pool to act as a ramp for the turtle and it will come out on its own.

Q. There’s an iguana in my yard. Will you come and get it?

A.  The WCC is a not-for-profit private hospital for sick and injured animals; therefore we do not remove perfectly healthy ones. We devote our resources for those that need rescuing.
A.  There is a product that can be found in the Garden Center called ‘Garlic Guard’ that deters iguanas.

Q. There’s a raccoon or an opossum in my attic or garage. Will you come and remove it?

A.  Same answer as above and use the 3-step method.
     Create a noisy, odiferous bright place by:
     Placing a rag in a cleaned out can and pour household ammonia to saturate the cloth.
     Turning on a portable radio tuned into an AM talk show and play for a week.
     Turning on a bright light like a Maglight (something that will not get hot)

Q. I just killed a snake. Can you tell me what kind it is? Or... Is it poisonous?

A.  The next time you see a snake and want identification, PLEASE call before you harm it.
A.  Although there are 45 species of snakes found in the state of Florida, there are only 4 snakes in South Florida that are venomous. It is unlikely that you will encounter one, but if you will describe the snake we can probably identify it for you. There are also websites on the Internet that may be helpful to you for identification purposes.

Q. There’s a raccoon out and it’s the middle of the day. Does it have rabies?

A.  Seeing a raccoon out in the middle of the day does not necessarily mean it’s sick. It could have been disturbed from its original resting place, or it could be a mom raccoon that is feeding her babies and is extra hungry.

Q. Does the WCC pick up dead animals?

A.  No, the WCC uses all its resources to rescue and rehabilitate live animals.
A.  Broward County Animal Care & Regulation picks up dead animals.

Q. Does the WCC take abandoned eggs and hatch them?

A.  We do not have the proper incubation system to hatch eggs. Our incubators are used to provide proper temperatures for orphaned animals.

Q. A bird keeps attacking me when I go outside, what can I do?

A.  You probably have a nest in one of your trees and the parent birds are protecting their young. We suggest you hold a newspaper over your head when coming in and out of your house. An umbrella will also work well. When you want to garden or spend time outdoors, another idea is to wear a hat with big black eyeballs (made of black construction paper) pasted to the back of your hat. The birds tend to swoop at the back of a person’s head not towards the face.

Q. A bird keeps tapping on my window. How can I make it stop?

A.  The WCC can provide you with a silhouette of a hawk that can be taped to your window. The bird will think there’s a predator flying toward it and will be deterred from tapping on your window.

Q. There are ducklings in my pool and the mom is here. What do we do?

A.  Try to scoop them up with a pool net and gently place them near their mom
A.  You may need a second person to distract the mom in order to rescue the babies

Q. I found a raccoon in the dumpster. Will you come and remove it?

A.  If the raccoon is not in distress, but simply needs a means to climb out of the dumpster, we suggest putting something in the dumpster to act as a ladder (a ladder, a log or heavy branch, a chair).

Q. Can we visit the Wildlife Care Center?

A.  The WCC is not open to the public. Many of our patients are recovering and will be released back into the wild. Limiting human contact reduces stress and ensures a speedy return to their natural environment.

Q. There are too many muscovy ducks living in my community. They make such a mess and many are dying. What can I do?

A.  The most humane way of controlling a muscovy population is collecting the eggs before they hatch. Once a nest is found, insure the egg laying is complete by counting the same number of eggs for 3 days. Once the eggs are collected, chill them (below 50°) for several hours before disposing in the garbage. Leave 3 eggs in the nest or she will just lay more.

Q. There is an opossum in our yard, I’m afraid that my child or my dog will be hurt. What should I do?

A.  The opossum is generally very fearful of humans. In fact it falls into a catatonic state when frightened, hence, the term "playing ‘possum." Being that there body temperature is so low; the opossum does not harbor the rabies virus. The opossum enjoys eating fallen fruit, rodents and cockroaches so having one in your yard can be more help then hindrance. Opossums eat venemous snakes and scorpions therefore are good to have around.