Five Steps To Becoming A Wildlife Rehabilitator

STEP 1:

• Attend six hours of approved education to wildlife rehabilitation.
  (i.e., The Wildlife Center of Virginia (WCV) wildlife rehabilitation seminars or fall conference, The Wildlife Response wildlife seminars, NWRA and IWRC annual conferences, basic and advance skills workshops.)

STEP 2:

• Locate/Obtain a sponsor - if you are applying for a wildlife rehabilitator's permit for the first time you will need to establish a relationship with another licensed rehabilitator that currently holds a valid Category II permit. A sponsor is a licensed wildlife rehabilitator who will provide education, training and support for you for the first two years of your wildlife rehabilitation experience (i.e. apprenticeship). This step is necessary in obtaining your permit.

STEP 3:

• Establish a relationship with a veterinarian - Your veterinarian will not only be the person who signs your permit, but will also help to provide medical care and support for your patients. It is essential or successful rehabilitation that such a relationship exists.

STEP 4:

• Set-up/Organize your facility - Purchase the necessary equipment (i.e., aquarium tank, heating pad, scale, hygrometer, handling gloves, and syringes) and food (i.e., baby formulas and solid foods) needed to care for your babies. Create medical logs/log sheets and feeding charts, build outdoor caging (if applicable), organize and clean work areas and housing areas.

STEP 5:

• Apply for permit - Contact Diane Davis with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) at (804)-367-1076. Now that you have completed step 1-4, contact Diane Davis (who issues the Virginia State Wildlife Rehabilitator Permits) and inform her that you would like to apply for a Category I Permit and that you have completed the above mentioned steps. She will then contact the game warden within your county or city who will have a permit application when she/he arrives and if you pass the checklist you will be approved on the spot. There is some paperwork to fill out and the permit application will be left with you to complete and mail back to the VDGIF with a $10.00 check. The fee covers administration costs and travel fees for sending the game warden to your home.
• Send in your permit application immediately following the game wardens visit.
• You can accept orphaned wildlife ONLY after you have completed all the above steps and have received a valid permit for the calendar year (which currently goes from 1/31-2/1).

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ABOVE GUIDELINES APPLY TO VIRGINIA RESISDENTS ONLY!