Joanna’s Wildlife Blog:
A Week at the von Arx Wildlife Hospital
Joanna Fitzgerald, Director, von Arx wildlife Hospital at Conservancy of Southwest Florida

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May 15, 2013
Wildlife Hospital: Babies Galore
Two evening bats and a loggerhead shrike were among the 72 animals admitted to the von Arx Wildlife Hospital at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida. Other admissions included an American alligator, a Florida softshell turtle, a northern flicker and a pileated woodpecker.

A baby evening bat nurses formula from a small piece of sponge. The baby weighed just under 3 grams when admitted. Photo by Joanna Fitzgerald

Baby Bats One evening bat admitted fell through a hole in the ceiling and landed in a child’s bedroom. Most likely the baby bat fell off its mother as she flew through the bedroom. Finding a bat in a bedroom is a very serious situation since the bat could bite a sleeping person who would never feel the bite. The baby bat was very tiny and died two days after admission. The Collier County Health Department advised that the bat be tested for rabies since there was a potential for exposure to the child. The second evening bat was rescued from a cat’s mouth but unfortunately the rescuer wasn’t wearing gloves when he handled the bat. As with the first case, there was the potential for human exposure to rabies so the bat had to be euthanized and sent for rabies testing. Read more...

Previous Blogs

May 15, 2013
Wildlife Hospital Feathered Friends

May 8, 2013
Wildlife Hospital Turtle and Owl Tales

May 1, 2013
Turtle Trouble

April 17, 2013
Home Care Not Good for Wildlife

April 10, 2013
A Busy Week for Birds

April 4, 2013
Surrogate Mom to the Rescue

March 26, 2013
Hooked Turkey Vulture

March 21, 2013
Owls and Ospreys

March 12, 2013
Help from a Lot of Friends

March 6, 2013
Owlet Gets a New "Mom" and Short Stay for a Surprise Guest

February 26, 2013
Human Intervention Saves Wildlife

February 20, 2013
Rescue Dangling on the Edge

February 13, 2013
Bats and Snakes Treated

February 5, 2013
First Sign of Babies and a Snared Snake

January 29, 2013
Toxins and Foxes

January 25, 2013
A Life Hangs in the Balance

January 15, 2013
Injuries can be avoided

January 8, 2012
Helpful Hands

December 19, 2012
Helpful Hands

December 12, 2012
Do Not Disturb

December 5, 2012
Broken Wings and Disoriented Fox

November 27, 2012
"Relay" Group Effort Helps Save Wildlife

November 20, 2012
Window Woes and Pet Problems 

November 13, 2012
Window Woes and Pet Problems 

November 7, 2012
Avoidable Tragedy

October 31, 2012
Toxins and Trash Dumps

October 24, 2012
Conservancy von Arx Wildlife Hospital: Human Intervention has Bad Consequences for Bunnies

October 16, 2012
Heed advice from wildlife experts

October 3, 2012
Conservancy Wildlife Clinic Replaced with von Arx Wildlife Hospital

September 25, 2012
Nature and Pets Hard on Wildlife this Week

September 18, 2012
Orphaned

September 12, 2012
Lessons Learned

September 6, 2012
Increased admissions keep Conservancy Clinic busy

August 29, 2012
Wildlife Woes Continue

August 21, 2012
Babies Need Professional Care

August 14, 2012
Cars and Soccer Nets Hazardous to Wildlife

August 8, 2012
Foxes and Bunnies Make for an Exciting Week

July 18, 2012
Call first when you find injured wildlife!

July 13, 2012
Months of Care and Hard Work Pay Off

July 2, 2012
Impacts of Debby and In-Home Care

June 26, 2012
Conservancy Wildlife Clinic

June 19, 2012
Watch for Gopher Tortoises under Your Car

June 13, 2012
Take care of yourself when helping wildlife

June 1, 2012
Cars and At-Home "Care" Difficulties

May 18, 2012
A Volunteer efforts and caring public make a difference

May 15, 2012
Fox kits, fledglings and a Florida softshell make for a busy week

May 4, 2012
Fox kits, fledglings and a Florida softshell make for a busy week

May 1, 2012
Window Woes and Amazing Volunteers

April 20, 2012
Tangles, Interruptions and Releases

April 16, 2012
Mixed bag of admits and injuries

March 30, 2012
Fledglings and 22 Tons of Rock

March 27, 2012
Remarkable rescue and visiting birds

March 16, 2012
Volunteers Crucial to Success

March 9, 2012
Plight of the Pelican

March 5, 2012
Bunny banter and no wildlife as pets, please!

February 24, 2012
Snagged, saddened and new beginnings

February 17, 2012
Stinky and Flighty!

February 13, 2012
Assorted cases with mixed results

February 6, 2012
Orphans arrival and trapped birds make for a diverse week

January 30, 2012
Fishing lines and cool weather make for an interesting week

January 20, 2012
At-Home Care Produces Disastrous Results

2010 Archived Blogs