Maybe there’s a raccoon in your attic, or an injured rabbit under your porch. Or there’s a baby skunk in your garden that you think might be orphaned. What do you do?
One good idea: call Urban Wildlife Rehabilitation (413-788-7888 or 781-1505) for advice, or check out its website at www.urbanwildliferehab.org.
A nonprofit with offices in Springfield, Chicopee and Westfield, Urban Wildlife Rehab rescues injured and orphaned small mammals and cares for them before releasing them back into the wild. It also does educational outreach, advising the public on how best to deal with wildlife encounters. (One piece of sage advice: don’t assume a baby animal alone in your yard has been orphaned; its mom may be close by, but she won’t retrieve her baby with people hovering about.)
Urban Wildlife Rehab is a small operation that relies on the work of volunteers and donations from the public. To that end, the group will hold a fundraising skating party at UMass’ Mullins Center on Saturday, May 4, from 4 to 6:20 p.m., with music, treats and Urban Wildlife shirts and other items for sale. Tickets are $8 for kids, students and Mullins season-pass holders and $10 for everyone else, with skate rentals at no charge. The money raised will go toward food, medicine and other supplies Urban Wildlife Rehab needs to do its work.•
