Remember: please don't rescue unless rescuing is needed!

If you think you've found a wild animal in need of help, follow these guidelines, then call our Wildlife Assistance Hotline at (207) 361-1400 before taking further action! This is especially important with babies and juvenile animals. During the nesting season (March-October) many healthy babies and juveniles can be found on the ground and appear injured but are actually building up their flight muscles and coordination with their parents right around the corner.

The best thing for a wild animal is to remain in the wild, and we've been able to coach many callers into successfully re-uniting babies with their parents. However, we do admit over 1,600 wild animals each year that have truly been injured or orphaned.

Wild animals require expert medical care to properly heal and be returned to the wild; they have similar if not more intricate physiologies and need medical support for head trauma, eye trauma, fractures, etc. Our Wildlife Assistance Hotline serves over 12,000 callers each year, and is available 365 days per year. Our fall/winter hours are 9am-5pm.

All wild animals are potentially dangerous- they view humans as large predators and their instinct is to defend themselves.

Should you decide to approach, use caution, wear heavy leather gloves, and whenever possible call our Wildlife Assistance Hotline first for species-specific advice on capturing a juvenile or adult safely. Remember: all mammals can carry rabies or potential zoonotic diseases. If you suspect an animal is rabid, call your town's animal control officer for help. Keep injured animals in warm, dark, quiet places, away from humans or pets.

**Please note: we accept animal admissions every day of the week and our fall/winter hours are 9am-5pm. If you have rescued an animal in the evening and need to keep it overnight…please click here for instructions. Immediately contact the Center for Wildlife (207) 361-1400, your local animal shelter, or the game warden for help.



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