WRA
About WRA
MISSION:
WRA Wildlife Rescue Association of BC provides leadership in rehabilitating wildlife and in promoting the welfare of wild animals in the urban environment.
ABOUT WRA:
The Wildlife Rescue Association of BC is a charitable, not-for-profit society, located in Burnaby, British Columbia. A small group of concerned citizens formed the Association in 1979 to assist growing numbers of orphaned and injured wild animals, primarily in the Lower Mainland region. The public had formerly brought these animals to veterinarians, local naturalists, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), none of whom were equipped or specially trained to care for wildlife.
Within three years of the Association's launch, a few staff and numerous trained volunteers were caring for over 800 patients annually. By 1987, the annual caseload had more than doubled again, leading WRA to move to its current, more spacious location on the south side of Burnaby Lake Regional Park . The new site, open 365 days a year, would grow to include a rehabilitation facility with examination and isolation rooms, as well as numerous outdoor aviaries and pens that could easily be modified to accommodate many species.
Today, with the aid of ten full-time staff, a consulting veterinarian and 200 volunteers, WRA admits an annual average of 3,000 patients representing over 140 species of birds and mammals. We also teach people how to co-exist with wildlife, and have become one of the primary response groups for wildlife impacted by oil spills and pollution damage.
WRA's work is made possible by many people's generous gifts of time, supplies and financial donations, which account for about 80% of WRA's annual budget. Together we are demonstrating the many ways a committed group of people can protect wildlife and the remaining wild places in our communities.
ANNUAL REPORTS:
2010 Annual Report
2009 Annual Report
2008 Annual Report
2007 Annual Report
2006 Annual Report
2005 Annual Report
HOW WE HELP WILDLIFE:
• We medically treat and rehabilitate wildlife. WRA is a place of refuge where injured, orphaned and pollution-damaged wildlife are expertly cared for, rehabilitated and returned to the wild. Operating under provincial and federal permits, we have treated over 70,000 animals since 1979.
• We maintain a year-round telephone information line for the public. WRA's telephone line is open 365 days a year to respond to public appeals for help with injured wildlife as well as concerns about problem wildlife. We handle over 12,000 public inquiries a year. Both municipal and provincial governments refer citizens to WRA.
• We work with government and other agencies to protect wildlife. WRA is a primary response group for wildlife in the event of oil spills or other environmental crises. We provide a specially trained response team that works to reduce injury and suffering to wildlife impacted by pollution damage.
• We teach the public about urban wildlife. WRA conducts education presentations for both youth and adult groups, and participates in a variety of community events.
• We provide front-line information to disease control agencies. WRA's rehabilitation facility is a potential point of entry for animals suffering from various debilitating diseases. We cooperate with public health experts and researchers to inform about hazards such as West Nile Virus and Avian Flu, and thus help safeguard community health.
• We obtain and organize data about wildlife. WRA reports to both provincial and federal ministries about issues impacting wildlife in British Columbia .
• We train and support a diverse volunteer group of 200 individuals. WRA maintains an expert team of wildlife caregivers, transporters and communicators who work to give wildlife a second chance in the wild.
• We keep abreast of best practices in wildlife medicine and rehabilitation. WRA is an active member of the Wildlife Rehabilitators Network of BC (WRNBC), the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC), the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association (NWRA) and the Oiled Wildlife Trust (OWT). We participate in national and international wildlife rehabilitation conferences.
• We are involved in non-invasive research programs to increase knowledge of wildlife and wildlife rehabilitation through both in-house projects and collaborations with government and academic institutions (Research Aims & Goals).
