The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Central Florida was incorporated as a non-profit in 1992, in the state of Florida. That same year, IRS 501 (3)(c) status was granted, and donations are tax deductible. We have held wildlife rehabilitation permits through the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission as well as the United States Fish and Wildlife Service since 1989. The permits allow us to accept injured and orphaned native species for care, rehabilitate them, and release them back into the wild. We accept all native Florida species except marine mammals and sea turtles because we do not have facilities for their specific needs. Our organization does not receive any monetary funding or support from federal, state, or county governments. Our support comes from private citizens and local businesses.
During any given year, we average admitting 1,000 animals for care. In order to provide proper medical treatment, we rely on local veterinary hospitals which have offered their assistance to us. Our wildlife patients receive examinations, radiographs, blood work, and surgeries as needed.
While the majority of our wildlife patients are cared for at our facility, we are fortunate to have volunteer caregivers who provide care for animals in their homes. These volunteers are qualified to work with most of the species that are accepted for care by our center. We also have wildlife caregivers who, in their homes, specialize in working with one particular species such as eastern gray squirrels. Additionally, we have several volunteer transporters, who are on-call to obtain animals from the public or reported by the public, and then transport the wildlife to our facility. Due to the high volume of calls that we receive, in most instances, we rely on the caller to transport the animals to us if they are willing to.
We accept wildlife that have been orphaned and those requiring medical care 365 days per year.