Crippled eagles, impaled snakes and wounded squirrels are just a few of the patients a little-known service of the University’s veterinary college sees on a daily basis.

A division of the Department of Zoological Medicine, the wildlife treatment crew provides a donation-funded veterinary service staffed mostly by undergraduates and clinicians who volunteer their time to help Georgia’s wildlife.

The treatment crew accepts wild animals of all kinds except for rabies vectors, poisonous animals and healthy orphans. They ask those who bring in patients to fill out a short form and make a donation to the program. The clinic relies almost entirely on charitable contributions to fund everything, such as anesthesia, X-rays and blood tests.

Dr. Christine Fiorello, the assistant professor of exotic animal, wildlife and zoological medicine at the veterinary college, acts as the program’s supervisor.

“We operate on about a $3,000 budget for the year,” Fiorello said. “To give you an idea of the cost, we had a bald eagle come in injured last winter and that animal was here for about 10 days … it cost us more than $1,100.”

Despite limited resources, the crew keeps the quality of veterinary care high for its patients.

But the program faces more than just financial challenges – the animals’ behavior also presents a unique problem.

Since a display of weakness in the wild is an invitation to be eaten, even severely suffering animals attempt to maintain a healthy fa�ade to disguise their vulnerable condition. As a result, time is of the essence for many of the animals brought into the clinic.

“By the time you can tell that they’re sick,” Fiorello said, “they’re usually pretty far gone.”

Unfortunately, a large number of the animals the program receives are victims of human encroachment.

“Most of the animals we see are injured because of something to do with humans,” said Fiorello, who specializes in the effect of people on free-ranging wildlife.

“The biggest thing, what would make the most difference, is to tell people to keep their cats inside,” Fiorello said. “We saw 227 animals last year, and 41 of those were known cat attacks.”

If someone comes across an injured animal, Fiorello suggests confining it in a ventilated box and calling the group.

“You can’t really go wrong giving us a call because we can always look at it and tell you it’s fine,” said Kate Holbert, 23, a treatment crew student manager. “And in reality most things that are healthy you’re not going to be able to catch – with the exception of babies.”

Baby animals in particular often are picked up by well-meaning passers-by who assume they need help when they would actually be better off left alone.

“If it seems healthy and it’s not in immediate danger, see if the mom comes back,” Holbert said. “Maybe don’t pick it up the first time you see it – just keep an eye on it.”

Driven by a passion for wildlife, the volunteers of the wildlife treatment crew share a simple desire to help animals in need.

“It’s nice to give at least some of them a chance to make it back,” Fiorello said.

“It reminds you a little about why you wanted to be a vet in the first place.”