Episode Notes
NonprofitA non-governmental organization whose primary purpose is something other than selling goods or services. Specialist Julia and Community Education Specialist Andie discuss peaceful and compassionate coexistence with wildlife. Whether it’s through careful environmental management, robust predator protection for residents, stringent biosecurityMerck Veterinary Manual defines biosecurity as ”the implementation of measures that reduce the risk of the introduction and spread of disease agents [pathogens].” protocols, or engaging educational programs, animal sanctuaries can be at the forefront of demonstrating how humans and wildlife can truly share space compassionately. It’s about recognizing the interconnectedness of all living beings and actively working to create a safe and harmonious environment for everyone. Just as a gardener carefully tends to a diverse array of plants, cultivating each one to thrive while also fostering a healthy ecosystem that supports beneficial insects and wildlife, a sanctuary cultivates a compassionate environment where all residents —wild and domesticatedAdapted over time (as by selective breeding) from a wild or natural state to life in close association with and to the benefit of humans —can flourish together.
This Episode’s Referenced Open Sanctuary Project Resources:
- Compassionate Wildlife Practices At Your Animal Sanctuary | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Compassionate Wildlife Practices At Your Sanctuary Infographic | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Late Elementary-Age Sanctuary Education Lesson Plan #3 | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Managing Requests to Take In and Help an Animal Outside the Scope of Your Sanctuary’s MissionThe stated goals and activities of an organization. An animal sanctuary’s mission is commonly focused on objectives such as animal rescue and public advocacy. | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Predator-Proofing For Bird Residents At Your Sanctuary | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Biosecurity Part 1: Introduction | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Biosecurity Part 2: Creating And Implementing A Biosecurity Plan | The Open Sanctuary Project
- Going Green: Your Animal Sanctuary and The Environment | The Open Sanctuary Project
Episode Transcript (Auto-GeneratedThe following content was transcribed through an automated process and may contain transcription errors or misspellings.)
Julia Magnus: Welcome to another episode of the Open Sanctuary Podcast. I’m Julia, the nonprofit specialist, and I’m chatting with Andie Springirth, our community education specialist, who also has a background in wildlife rehabilitation. We’ve talked a bit on this podcast before about wild living animals. Today, we’d like to discuss a really crucial and often nuanced topic: how animal sanctuaries can peacefully coexist with wild animals, ensuring the safety and well-being of both beloved residents and the wildlife that shares their environment. You, our listener, likely founded your animal sanctuary because you are a compassionate person who cares about the well-being of others. You’re aware of how important it is to keep residents safe, healthy, and happy, including safety from predation and disease by wildlife. But of course, wild animals also deserve moral consideration and should be treated as respectfully and compassionately as possible. This can be challenging when you feel your residents and their food sources are threatened. Ultimately, however, prevention is the best route for minimizing any conflicts between your sanctuary and wildlife. Among other things, it’s all about compassionate practices, environmental management, and strong biosecurity protocols. Andie, do you want to maybe dive right in by talking a bit about some of the environmental management practices that sanctuaries can implement in order to help facilitate peaceful coexistence with wildlife?
Andie Springirth: Absolutely, Julia. A lot of what we can do to coexist peacefully simply involves how we manage our sanctuaries, grounds, and resources. One major draw, of course, for wildlife is readily available food that reduces the energy they spend on hunting and foraging for themselves. So, a basic but incredibly effective measure to prevent conflicts between your residents and wild living animals is to secure your sanctuary’s trash. If you have trash bins outside, it’s good to consider keeping them in a secure indoor location until trash pickup. But if this isn’t possible, you can ensure that all your trash is securely stored in the trash bins using special straps if needed to prevent hungry wild living animals from getting in. You should also put garbage out on the morning of trash pickup days or get some kind of secure outdoor enclosure for all of your trash bins. It extends beyond just trash. We need to be vigilant about all food sources, right? It’s important not to leave extra food out overnight to pick up food dishes when your residents are brought in for the night. Even a few leftover scraps can attract hungry wild living animals. So, properly store your food supplies in refrigerators, and sealable food bins inside some kind of wildlife-resistant structure. Also, if you have fruit trees on-site, it can be helpful to pick up fallen fruit regularly and dispose of them or feed them to your residents as treats if that’s appropriate and possible. For example, raccoons will happily gobble down any food left out for your residents. So, it’s just important to be sure to bring in any kind of food at night and properly dispose of it.
Julia Magnus: So, another key aspect of preventing run-ins with wildlife is working around and sometimes with potential living spaces for wildlife on your property. I know this is something that we’ve talked about in our avian predator proofing resource and we also have a podcast on that subject, and we also talked about it in our podcast on coexisting with bees with our colleague Amber. Do you want to talk a little bit more about that?
Andie Springirth: Sure. Yes. Large piles of wood, rocks, and plant matter can make really ideal living spaces for a lot of different types of wild animal species. To discourage them from moving in, you can clear the piles of debris on your property or specific places on your property and regularly examine other potential hiding spots for unexpected animals. For those thinking about being more eco-friendly, you might wonder if this conflicts with supporting beneficial wild animals like pollinators. As you mentioned in our bee podcast, we talk about strategies that can actually serve both goals. For example, when it comes to being bee-friendly, sometimes the best environmental management is actually to just do nothing. I think Amber said that really beautifully in that resource. Just don’t do anything, right? So, when leaves fall, again, depending on where this is on your property, you don’t necessarily need to pick up leaf litter or the detritus in your yard because this can provide shelter for bees that want to overwinter there. Once temperatures are consistently warm enough in the spring, you can then clean up that particular space on your property. Similarly, allowing clover and other plants like dandelions to grow can feed bees really well. Of course, there are health considerations for certain residents if these are in their living spaces or pastures. Leaving those types of plants in other areas around the sanctuary could be an easy way to help pollinators. And even just putting up a little sign saying, “Pardon the weeds, I’m feeding the bees,” can help educate the public and shift perceptions about pollinator species. But beyond doing nothing, we can also actively provide nesting spots for native bees by leaving hollow plant stems until spring. For hydration, creating bee baths. This is something my six-year-old really loves to do in our yard. This can be as simple as putting a little dish out with small stones so the bees have a place to land and drink. It’s a super simple method, and it’s really fun for folks to observe and a nice way to help. Rain gardens are also an excellent example of environmental management that helps both the sanctuary and wildlife. Planting deep-rooted native plants in areas prone to flooding can help mitigate drainage issues from heavy rains while simultaneously attracting pollinator species. It’s truly a win-win situation. Speaking of plants, we can also use phone apps like Picture This to identify the plants on our properties, which can be helpful if you’re trying to plan for some kind of pollinator-friendly space or spaces. And of course, when it comes to learning if they are native or invasive, and importantly, their potential toxicity to some of your residents.
Julia Magnus: Those are some great tips, Andie. Okay, what if we shift now to discussing ways that you can protect sanctuary residents from predators? This is a primary concern for any sanctuary. Let me start off by saying it does not matter where you are. There are predators. I live in the middle of the city and we have visiting hawks, raccoons, possums, rats, and even coyotes, all of whom can present risks to my residents. I guarantee that even if you haven’t seen them yet, that doesn’t mean they aren’t there, and you will ultimately see them. So, plan ahead. Given that farmed animalsA species or specific breed of animal that is raised by humans for the use of their bodies or what comes from their bodies. are all prey species, protecting them is paramount. There are a couple of core guiding principles here. Do you want to talk a bit about those?
Andie Springirth: Yes, I would love to, Julia. Predator protection should really start before you even begin constructing living spaces. So, when you start out, it’s a good idea to carefully survey your property for any already existing wildlife homes. Of course, then avoiding placing, for example, resident bird living spaces near a tree that you know you may have discovered is favored by your local raccoon friends would be a really good way to minimize any potential conflict. So, first one, start predator protection before you construct living spaces if that’s possible. Another core principle is to make sure that you secure your sanctuary’s physical infrastructure. By installing appropriate fencing and wildlife-proof housing, you and your sanctuary ensure that predators’ efforts to reach your residents are fruitless, causing them to move on in their own hunt for sustenance somewhere else. It’s important to remember that many farm bird species are particularly vulnerable to predation and require more protective living spaces than larger mammals, which is why we have an entire resource and podcast dedicated to that. If you want more details on that, we’re going to have that resource in the show notes. Please do check it out. Also, smaller mammals, younger and older residents, and injured or ill residents are particularly vulnerable and require extra protection, too. For specific predators, the sources offer various types of tailored advice. For bears, electric fencing barriers can be an effective tool. Cougars are excellent climbers. So while regular fencing is unlikely to deter them, some have reported success with electric fencing, flashing lights, and motion-detecting sprinklers. For coyotes, coyote roller fencing can be effective and securing housing with perimeter fencing buried down into the ground or running 18-plus inches outward and horizontally—this is called an L-shaped footer—can prevent them from digging under. Foxes also can be deterred by an L-shaped footer around the outer perimeter of fencing. For airborne predators like hawks and owls, you can add mesh predator netting to the tops of outdoor living spaces to protect smaller residents from their predation. Reducing mouse and rat populations can be done by securely storing and disposing of food. Of course, this will make your sanctuary less appealing to avian predators. Whatever methods you’re using, it’s just important to make sure that you monitor them consistently to make sure that everything is still working as you intended originally and not having any possible unintended consequences. One example of that is making sure that no wild living birds are getting caught in the mesh that you may have installed for some of your residents. Along those lines, it should probably go without saying, but we’re going to say it anyway. At the Open Sanctuary Project, we do not condone any practices that cause harmThe infliction of mental, emotional, and/or physical pain, suffering, or loss. Harm can occur intentionally or unintentionally and directly or indirectly. Someone can intentionally cause direct harm (e.g., punitively cutting a sheep's skin while shearing them) or unintentionally cause direct harm (e.g., your hand slips while shearing a sheep, causing an accidental wound on their skin). Likewise, someone can intentionally cause indirect harm (e.g., selling socks made from a sanctuary resident's wool and encouraging folks who purchase them to buy more products made from the wool of farmed sheep) or unintentionally cause indirect harm (e.g., selling socks made from a sanctuary resident's wool, which inadvertently perpetuates the idea that it is ok to commodify sheep for their wool). or death to wild living animals. These include lethal traps and poison. But even with that said, there are some other non-lethal practices which may be well-intended but are not effective and are in fact potentially harmful. Do you want to mention those?
Julia Magnus: Yes, I think that’s a good idea, Julia.
Andie Springirth: We’re talking about trapping and relocation, which it’s important to know are generally unsuccessful and they can also lead to very serious welfare issues and even death for the wildlife that are being moved and are involved. It may seem compassionate, but these tactics really don’t prevent new wildlife from making similar attempts. Trapping and removing wild animals is a short-term solution because it just doesn’t address what is attracting them to the specific site in the first place, like food or even den sites. As long as these remain, other animals are going to just replace them as soon as they’re removed. Another important thing to know for our audience is that studies have shown that relocated wild animals have very high mortality rates due to an inability to find food in these new territories or water, even suitable dens. It can also create new territorial disputes, or it can also just cause them to simply try to get back to their home range. So, for these reasons, it’s really important to consider alternative preventive measures such as the ones we previously mentioned when you’re trying to manage wildlife concerns.
Julia Magnus: Thank you so much for sharing that information. Actually, there was a long period of time I didn’t realize that and so it really was informative.
Andie Springirth: Yes. So, Julia, how about we talk about another question that can arise when it comes to wildlife impacts on your animal sanctuary, to which of course I’m talking about protecting your residents from diseases that can be carried by wild living animals. Of course, the biggest recent example which has basically dominated our work for some time now has been highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI. This is a really serious health threat to birds, of course, and it’s now known that mammalian residents are also at risk. So, Julia, would you be able to talk a little bit more about biosecurity in this way?
Julia Magnus: For sure. Specific to HPAI, sanctuaries caring for avian residents must stay informed about HPAI risks in their region and more broadly in order to be able to take appropriate protective measures. This includes things like implementing a biosecurity checklist as well as cleaning and access logs to avian residents and heightened quarantineThe policy or space in which an individual is separately housed away from others as a preventative measure to protect other residents from potentially contagious health conditions, such as in the case of new residents or residents who may have been exposed to certain diseases. measures. Beyond HPAI, anytime you’re considering temporary housing for wild animals outside of your mission, biosecurity is vital. All incoming animals must be isolated, and strict disinfection and quarantine procedures must be followed. A fence alone is an insufficient barrier because many diseases are airborne. Anyone coming into contact with an isolated individual must follow strict protocols, including potentially in isolationIn medical and health-related circumstances, isolation represents the act or policy of separating an individual with a contagious health condition from other residents in order to prevent the spread of disease. In non-medical circumstances, isolation represents the act of preventing an individual from being near their companions due to forced separation. Forcibly isolating an individual to live alone and apart from their companions can result in boredom, loneliness, anxiety, and distress. suits, boots or boot covers, gloves or hand disinfectant, foot baths, and masks. If there’s a risk of airborne disease, which HPAI is, and it has also been known to impact humans, it’s just so important that you always put your and your sanctuary’s safety first. Always wear your gloves whenever possible when handling wild living animals and thoroughly wash your hands after. It’s also very important to disinfect every piece of equipment the wild animal has touched. If you get bitten, scratched, or licked by a wild animal, you should seek medical attention immediately. It’s really critical to be aware of rabies vector species in particular, which are wild animals that pose a higher risk of rabies transmission, such as raccoons, groundhogs, skunks, foxes, coyotes, and bats. Andie, you want to talk a little bit more about those guys?
Andie Springirth: Yes. Yes. Friends, if you find an orphaned, sick, or injured member of any of those, we call them RVS species—that means rabies vector species—that is still alert and can move around, it’s vital that you not touch them with your bare hands. They really should only be handled and transported by people who are pre-vaccinated against the rabies virus and are also licensed wildlife rehabilitators. With that said, any bare-handed contact that you have with an RVS animal is considered potential exposure. Unfortunately, the animal would have to be euthanized to confirm rabies or not in that species. Also importantly is that if you have bare-handed contact with an RVS, a rabies vector species, you really should seek medical attention immediately. I do want to add to Julia, you mentioned if you’re bitten, scratched, or licked. Unfortunately, it can also be if they hiss at you because it’s through their saliva. So, if it’s aerosolized, that’s also considered contact. So, for RVS wild animals, just stay safe. Let’s mention a couple of other examples of how wild living animals in your sanctuary area might introduce biosecurity concerns. Unfortunately, there are a lot of ways which probably a lot of our listeners will be aware of in general, but it’s good to have some more specifics. Possum feces can carry the protozoan responsible for equine protozoal myeloencephalitis. I’m going to mess this up. It’s called EPM, but it’s myeloencephalitis. Am I saying that right? Amber, our colleague, would probably correct me with that, but you have probably, as a sanctuary staff member or volunteer, it’s commonly just called EPM in the sanctuary world. Snakes can also carry strains of salmonella in their feces. Likewise, if one of your sanctuary residents puts a toad in their mouth, you really should take them to the vet immediately because the poison from the toad’s glands can be lethal for a lot of different species unless you are already aware of which species those are. I would always say contact your vet. Conversely, when it comes to our wild friends, if you see a wild animal that has been in the mouth of a cat or a dog, please contact a wildlife rehabilitator immediately because the wild animal will likely need medication to survive some kind of impending infection or to address serious injuries that are caused by cats and dogs. And it can be a really good idea, as always, just continue communicating with your vet and other organizations in your area to maintain an understanding of other potential risks associated with your local wild living animals. We definitely are not going to be able to mention every single type of wild species that you potentially are coming into contact with depending on where you are. So, I’m sure you can think through your head the most common ones, but those are some of the ones we just wanted to briefly mention that you will likely have some kind of sighting or interaction with. So, Andy, we’ve actually saved the best for last, and I’m particularly excited to talk to you about educational programming at sanctuaries to promote peaceful coexisting with wildlife through education. The Open Sanctuary Project offers a late elementary age sanctuary education lesson plan. It’s number three that focuses specifically on pollinator gardening. Do you want to talk about that a bit? Because I find it delightful.
Andie Springirth: Thank you, Julia. I sure do. I will say it is a delightful lesson plan. And that’s kind of the point is that it’s a joyous exploration for young visitors at our sanctuaries. The lesson plan incorporates pollinator gardening essentially as a tool for sanctuary educators to teach their program participants about pollinator animals that are native to their sanctuary’s local area and their importance—their more broad importance to local and global communities. This lesson plan explores some of the ways that children can help them by creating an enriching pollinator garden. It also talks about important pollinator species like bats, butterflies, beetles, and hummingbirds, as well as the threats they face, including pesticide use, fungicides, insecticides, and habitat loss, which here’s the tie-in to our sanctuary work, right, which are often due to modern agricultural and farming practices. The second part of the plan guides participants in creating a pollinator garden at your sanctuary. This is kind of like the hands-on part, which can involve building or purchasing raised garden beds. Of course, for accessibility purposes, highly recommend raised garden beds. One of the most fun parts for participants and sanctuary educators, I think personally, is getting in the dirt with the kids to make seed balls and choosing seeds that are native to your area that will attract your local bees and then planting them. To round the lesson out, participants are invited to create these small posters to advertise your sanctuary’s pollinator garden, which promotes awareness beyond the sanctuary space. But beyond specific lesson plans from an educational lens, sanctuaries can also utilize their social media platforms as spaces to educate their audience about pollinators in general and to share what their specific sanctuary staff and volunteers are doing. This can also really inspire local community members by showing them what’s doable in their own areas. One great way to engage the public is to involve them in something like what the University of Illinois calls their bee blitz. It’s essentially inviting the public to snap photos of bees in their local areas and then uploading them for scientists to monitor. Again, as we mentioned, all of these resources will be in our show notes if you want to look more into these ideas. Definitely encourage folks to do that for inspiration. As we mentioned earlier with bees, simple signage is a form of education and it can be very powerful. You can also host native plant sales or one of my favorites are plant swaps at your sanctuary. These are fun community events that connect people together who might not otherwise engage with each other or with your sanctuary. And bonus, this fosters connection, trust, and ongoing relationships, which I know we all are yearning for more right now. And it’s a wonderful way to broaden the reach of compassionate coexistence.
Julia Magnus: Thank you so much for sharing that, Andie. I really do love your lesson plan so much, especially the amazing illustrations that you do accompany them. So, I really do hope folks go check that out. We’ve got that linked in the show notes for you. Thank you so much for having this discussion with me today. Summing up, whether it’s through careful environmental management, robust predator protection for residents, stringent biosecurity protocols, or engaging educational programming, animal sanctuaries can be at the forefront of demonstrating how humans and wildlife can truly share space together compassionately. It’s about recognizing the interconnectedness of all living beings and actively working to create a safe and harmonious environment for everyone. Just as a gardener carefully tends to a diverse array of plants, cultivating each one to thrive while also fostering a healthy ecosystem that supports beneficial insects and wildlife, a sanctuary cultivates a compassionate environment where all residents, wild and domesticated, can flourish together. If there are more subjects that we could cover that could be useful to you, please feel free to contact us via our contact us page at opensanctuary.org. We’re always happy to hear community feedback and welcome suggestions for new resources. Also, if you found this information valuable, please consider leaving us a five-star review. If you like what we do and you’d like to support our work, we warmly welcome donations. We are a 501c3 organization. So your donations are tax-deductible and help us sustain our mission of providing freely accessible resources so that every sanctuary is a success story. Thank you for listening, for your support, and we look forward to talking to you next time.
Andie Springirth: Thanks, Julia. Bye, friends.
