ALBERTA INSTITUTE FOR WILDLIFE CONSERVATION

  WILDLIFE CONSERVATION THROUGH REHABILITATION EDUCATION, & RESEARCH

Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation (AIWC) is a registered charity and non-profit society that has been operating a wildlife hospital since 1993. We are located northwest of Calgary, Alberta, Canada and service Calgary, Southern Alberta and the Northwest Territories.

OUR VISION:

“AIWC strives to enrich the lives of Albertans by fostering an appreciation of nature so we may ultimately co-exist harmoniously with wildlife and seek lifestyles that enhance conservation efforts.”

OUR MANDATE:

•Provide comprehensive and humane rehabilitation for injured, sick, or orphaned wildlife with the goal of releasing them back into their original habitat.

•Research current wildlife issues, thereby contributing to a greater understanding of the challenges they face in a human-dominated world.

•Promote public awareness and encourage greater stewardship of wildlife and habitat through educational programming.

OUR PEOPLE:

AIWC is managed by a team of wildlife biologists and wildlife technicians with a combined

rehabilitation experience of over fifty years. They receive assistance from 5 volunteer

veterinarians, and over 100 highly trained volunteers, many of whom are also biologists, animal health technologists, and certified rehabilitators.

OUR CENTRE:

Our trauma centre is a donated church that was completely renovated to include a clinic, surgicial suite, x-ray room, developing room, and hospital cages for wildlife needing intensive care. There are also secondary care areas for patients needing more exercise and waterproofing as well as a unique brooder room for raising ducklings, goslings, and shorebirds. Outdoor enclosures include a large flight cage for raptors, a runway for flight conditioning of large avian species, five songbird houses, an ungulate pasture and corral, a deluxe waterfowl pen, and a large mammal enclosure that is suitable for digging and climbing mammals.

In 2006/07, we finished construction of a tractor shed with quarantine and numerous landscape enhancements to help break the wind and improve privacy for the animals.

In 2009, we completed construction of the annexe building. This expansion provided AIWC with a large multi-purpose meeting area, plenty of office and printing space. This addition to our facility also allowed for the completion of our surgical suite, xray and developing room in our clinic building. Then through more hard work in 2009, AIWC has become an accredited veterinary clinic by the AB VMA.

OUR PATIENTS:

We accept native injured and orphaned wildlife, ranging in size from hummingbirds to baby moose. 95% of our patients are injured or orphaned due to human activities. They are often orphaned by needless "rescuing" of babies who should have been left where they were. They may be hit by cars, electrocuted on powerlines, tangled in barbed wire fences and fishing lines, injured by pet cats and dogs, or poisoned. In 2007, we treated 1800 patients! We expect our numbers to continue to grow yearly.

OUR LOGO:

FLASH: A Powerful Symbol for Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation:

Flash was a very young owl when she flew through an electrical substation in 1995 and received about 8000 volts of electricity. She knocked out the electrical service to thousands of homes and had a temporary impact on those communities. Her impact at Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation has been electrifying in a very different sense. It was impossible to imagine that she could have survived the accident. Her feathers were so badly burnt there was nothing left but quills. Her feet, wings, and even eyelids were burnt. Every day she had to put up with treatments. Her bandages were checked and changed and her condition closely watched, to make sure there were no complications. She also had to be fed by hand, as her feet were too badly burned to handle her own food. The best medical treatment and tender loving care were important, but it was her fierce spirit that pulled her through against all odds.

Flash grew into a beautiful adult great-horned owl, but unfortunately, damage to one wing made release back to the wild impossible. The stubborn attitude that helped her miraculous recovery made her unsuitable as an education animal, but Flash had an important job at AIWC. Each spring, young owlets arrive at the centre and Flash became their foster parent - teaching them how to behave like owls. She passed on her wild spirit to many generations of owls.

At AIWC, Flash will always be remembered. After her amazing recovery, we replaced our old logo with a picture of her. To us, she is a powerful symbol of the thousands of injured and orphaned wild animals that we have seen since 1993. She also reminds us that every wild spirit is an individual and deserves a fighting chance.

Tel: (403) 946-2361 Fax: (403) 946-5689 Box 68, Madden, AB, T0M 1L0