Our Main Shelter (including the Adoption Center and Front Office) will be closed Saturday, 9/30, for Bark & Wine! The Wildlife Center and Thrift Store will be open their regular hours.

Mar 30, 2023

Werndli Wildlife Apprenticeship Challenge

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Please consider joining this challenge to help DCHS's Wildlife Center add a SECOND Werndli Wildlife Apprenticeship!

Over the years, DCHS’s Wildlife Center has experienced overwhelming growth from increased patient admissions and greater public demand for services to help treat sick, injured, and orphaned animals. There just weren’t, and still aren’t, enough wildlife rehabilitators in Wisconsin to meet the needs of the community nor the number of animals requiring life-saving measures. Thousands of birds, mammals, and reptiles are admitted to our wildlife program each year, and they can only be cared for by trained and permitted professionals – a process which takes years to achieve.

Slow and steady additions to the Wildlife Center over the last decade have allowed for more staff to join the team, now reaching six permanent members. Since 2019, thanks to the funds provided by the Werndli Charitable Fund, our team has been able to give back. Through their incredible support, DCHS’s Wildlife Center is able to offer a paid 12-month, full-time wildlife rehabilitation apprenticeship that includes personalized training and sponsorship from several licensed wildlife rehabilitation staff. The program’s goal is for an apprentice to achieve all of the skills and knowledge necessary to gain a basic wildlife rehabilitation permit by the end of the term. Each year since 2019, one lucky aspiring wildlife rehabilitator has earned the Werndli Apprenticeship position.

Werndli apprenticeship funds have given DCHS the opportunity to provide a stable income for those entering a career in wildlife rehabilitation, foster a positive learning environment to teach future generations of license holders, and grow the number of trained individuals in our region. Each Werndli Wildlife Apprentice has become a permitted wildlife rehabilitator, and we are so proud of all they have accomplished!

Thanks to a matching gift challenge from the Werndli Charitable Fund, our community has the opportunity to further support wildlife rehabilitation by helping fund not one, but two, wildlife apprentice positions starting in Fall 2023! The Werndli Charitable Fund will match donations up to $15,000 to fully fund a second apprenticeship position.

Donate now to have your gift doubled and invest in the future of wildlife rehabilitation in Wisconsin!

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Sep 7th, 2023

Supporting Our Community Together

Your incredible support provides that extra help needed to keep families together.

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Sep 5th, 2023

Clear The Shelters Helps Pets Find New Homes

DCHS helps more pets find loving homes in August, besting other recent months by a wide margin, thanks to the Clear The Shelters adoption event.

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Aug 28th, 2023

An Ode to Crows

Enjoy an ode to crows, learn about theses interesting birds, and read a rehabilitation story from DCHS's Wildlife Program Manager.

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Aug 1st, 2023

DCHS Hosts Clear The Shelters 2023

DCHS holds month-long adoption promotion to help more pets find loving homes during Clear The Shelters 2023.

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Jul 31st, 2023

New Beginnings for Senior Dogs

Thanks to a generous grant award from The Grey Muzzle Organization, DCHS could provide necessary dental care to senior dog Barbie.

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Jul 17th, 2023

It's Raining Woodpeckers!

Over 1,000 animals have already been admitted to DCHS’s Wildlife Center for rehabilitation in the first half of 2023. What species of songbird are we seeing the most? Woodpeckers!

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