Exotics

Years ago, we did a lot of wildlife and exotic animal education programs. We loved it. Educating the public about the wildlife in their backyards was our favorite thing to do. We loved seeing the people in our community and people loved seeing us, but mostly people loved seeing the unusual variety of animals we shared.

After a few years of doing this, especially when we were doing multiple programs each month, we noticed life in the public was not good for our animals. After these events many of our animals would show signs of stress. It only took a few times of seeing the negative impact that public display had on the animals, and we said no more.

For the record, we never used any of our native wildlife rehab patients for programs. It is our job to protect releasable wildlife from human imprinting, habituation, or desensitization to people. We usually shared some of our exotics and native non-releasable wildlife, like our King Snake named Pretzel or our giant tortoises. Folks loved our Tarantulas, Iguanas and Bearded Dragons. Our farm turkey, Buttercup, was quite the celebrity, too.

We stepped away from programs that required animal exhibition about 4 years ago. It hurt us a lot. Our youth education programs were free and not a source of any income, but it was a way for the public to have one-on-one encounters with their local rescue. The negative impact for us was we stopped receiving donations since we were not in the public eye as much. Ouch!

We learned that our main responsibility is the health and welfare of the animals in our care. Most of the animals that come to us, both wild and exotic, have been through unimaginable abuse and neglect. They came to us to heal, not to be sideshow freaks at an education program and certainly not to be used as an income resource.

We still enjoy the occasional local outing and will even bring our very social, crowd-loving tortoises to visit. We have been to schools and career days to talk about what we do, and to community helper day at our local elementary school to educate students about what to do if you find wildlife. We still have our yearly “Let’s Get Snakey” snake identification class, which we can also present to your business or organization. But we just cannot be irresponsible stewards of the animals who trust us to provide a secure, stable environment for the rest of their lives. And we cannot risk the chances for native wildlife in our care to not be able to be released back into the wild when rehabilitation is completed.

All wildlife (even most exotic pets) are high stress animals. There is no such thing as TRULY domesticating or taming a wild or exotic animal. Some species become human imprinted or human habituated, but wild and exotic animals NEVER lose their natural instincts. They just use the ability to trust those instincts enough to use them.

Not all zoos, petting zoos, or animal education facilities are BAD. There are a lot of great zoos and animal sanctuaries to visit in South Carolina. When you do visit these places, native wildlife on display should only be non-releasable wildlife. Releasable wildlife cannot under any circumstances, be human habituated, imprinted, or desensitized to people. This means non-releasable animals should never cohabitate with releasable wild animals. We believe in this so strongly at our rescue that once an animal is being weaned and ready for release, we do not even talk around them and a few weeks before release they rarely see us. We limit the number of different people a wild animal sees while in care. We need releasable wild animals to NOT associate people with food, security, or companionship. We need releasable wildlife to have a natural fear of people and pets.

Finally, if you attend events or facilities that have wild, exotic, or even farm animals on display, please know that no matter how docile and friendly these animals appear, a person, place, or even a smell could cause stress. Ask the animal handler before you try to touch or feed an animal. Some facilities may already have instructions in place at enclosures detailing what is allowed. Respect an animal’s personal space. Social distancing isn’t just for humans.

Bella, one of our dedicated volunteers
and supporters, at a 4-H presentation.

Rescue, Shelter, or Sanctuary

How do you know if a rescue is like the crazy ones you see featured in documentaries? How do you know the money you donate is going for the care of the animals? How do you know if the rescue you are supporting is one of those drama filled organizations with lions, tigers, and bears in their backyards.

The words rescue, shelter, and sanctuary are often used interchangeably, and this can be confusing to the public. Sometimes the misuse of these words is intentional. There are no legal definitions of these three words in our state so there is no way to gage if an organization is legit by what it calls itself. Many people are leery of donating to animal-based organizations because they do not want to unintentionally support an organization that is not what they appear to be.

For the sake of simplicity we will use our rescue as the main example here.
We are a rescue. We take in animals, wildlife specifically, and rehabilitate them and release them back into the wild as soon as they are ready. That is our mission. We keep wildlife wild. We are not a shelter nor a sanctuary. We do not provide long-term placement for wild species. We do not foster nor adopt wildlife. Native wildlife that NEEDS long-term care is placed with other permitted facilities who can provide the specific care that species needs. We cannot allow visitors because wildlife cannot be released if it is human habituated or imprinted. Most wildlife rescues are home-based to keep the animals from being exposed to multiple people. We rely on other agencies to let you – the public – know we are legit, and our animals receive proper care.

Shelters are usually for domesticated pets or exotic species. Shelters are a very important part of every community. Shelters are typically a place where people can safely surrender their pets. Shelters may also rescue an animal and provide care until the animal finds a permanent home.

I know. It’s already a little confusing. Be patient with me.

Sanctuaries are the places getting the bad publicity at the moment and rightfully so in many cases. When most of us think of a sanctuary we picture a peaceful, serene place where non-releasable animals -both wild and exotic- can live their lives in habitats that mimic each species natural environment. You may even picture hundreds of acres of land with more than enough room to roam. Because there is NO LEGAL definition of what a sanctuary is, in most states a sanctuary can be a place that just keeps animals in cages forever. No minimum amount of land required. They can get nonprofit status. They can solicit donations. And other than providing adequate shelter, food, and water there are no standards that must be followed. The key word here is adequate. The word sanctuary gives a false sense of comfort that everything is legit.

How can you tell if a rescue/shelter/sanctuary is legit? Here are some simple questions to ask. There are exceptions to rules sometimes but use your judgement and ask more questions if needed.

-Check the nonprofit / 501 C3 status of the organization with the Internal Revenue Service. In SC nonprofits should also be listed with the Secretary of State as a charitable organization if they are soliciting donations. You can view the transparency of the organizations by visiting the website for the IRS and SC Secretary of State. The SOS will even list how much of the organization’s funds are used for the organizations mission. Keep in mind that it can take up to a year for misuse to be reflected on these sites.

-What does the organization do? Are most of the animals purchased or traded for other species to have on display? Some rescues and sanctuaries are actually petting zoos in disguise.
Animals on display DOES NOT equal bad intentions. Some sanctuaries will actually (legally) solicit donations for the animals they keep on display. The big question is: Were the display animals TRUE rescues or were they purchased from breeders with the intent of being displayed. If it’s the latter, you should question why these places bring in animals to have on display and then ask YOU for donations to pay for them.

-Is breeding allowed? Unless the organization has designated conservation status and is permitted to work with threatened and endangered species, the answer should always be NO. FYI – there are no wildlife rescues in South Carolina that qualify for conservation status. Sure, we all work towards conservation, but none have conservation status.

-Do they allow public contact with WILD animals that are intended to be released back into the wild? This should be a no-brainer. Wild animals being rehabilitated for release should never be part of a petting zoo or display. Ever.

-Is the organization involved in the community? This is very important. If an organization needs your support to operate, they should also contribute to the community that supports them in some way.

Not all shelters and sanctuaries allow visitors due to ordinances or safety rules, but if they do you can see for yourself if they are clean, organized, and if the animals are healthy. I know of a few sanctuaries in our county that are amazing! The bottom line is KNOW what you want to support. If you want to support a wildlife rescue whose mission is to keep wildlife wild and release rehabilitated wildlife back into its natural habitat (wink, wink) then be sure that is the mission of the organization you choose to support. If you donate to a shelter that provides care and placement to abandoned, neglected, or homeless pets then be sure that is what they do. If you are passionate about an animal sanctuary, be sure they meet YOUR definition of the word sanctuary. All of the above should be community helpers. None of the above should ever operate for profit or personal gain.

Sideshow Freak

How Do You Know?

Rescue, Shelter, or Sanctuary