New England Wildlife Center
Preserving New England's Wild Legacy
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By: Greg Mertz, DVM

Join Dr. Mertz for this series of 10 micro-lectures from the Araquon Lodge.  This series will introduce you to the basics of how bodies are put together and how they work  in  the environment.  Let us know what else you  would like to  learn about comparative  anatomy and Dr. Mertz will talk about it  next time.

 

 

 



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By: Katrina Bergman



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By: Katrina Bergman
Categories: Uncategorized | 4 Comments
Video of one of our interns experience

Video experience from one of our interns

Christine is a student at Stone Hill College and just finished her internship at New England Wildlife Center.   When she was leaving, she presented us with this video that she made,   describing her learning and life experiences at the Center.

Wow!  It is inspiring to see the Center through the eyes of one of our students.  We are excited    to share her work with you.

Thank you Christine.    :)

 



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By: Greg Mertz, DVM
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The raccoon who made these prints must have disappeared right before I arrived on this wooden bridge.  Our nature trails skirt through the homes of many species of wild animals.



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By: Andrew Cartoceti, DVM
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This American robin was successfully rehabilitated after breaking its shoulder blade.  In order to keep the bone stable and give it time to heal, the bird had its wing wrapped to its body for two weeks.  Just like a human would have a cast or sling.  But because bird’s have a much faster metabolism than mammals, the birds broken bone will heal in 1/4 the time it would take a human!Marco Venturoli, our senior technician, is shown here releasing the robin back into the woodlands behind our Center.

 

Photos courtesy of Ashley Kramer, Student Intern.



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By: NEWC Intern
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This Virginia rail was happy to be recently released back into the wild.

Rails and other migratory birds often become injured during the spring and fall migrations as they are passing through Boston on their way to warmer locations.  The brights lights and large glass windows of big cities confuse the birds and result in collisions with buildings and other man-made structures.  An estimated 100 millions birds die in collisions each year!  Luckily, this rail was only stunned and was able to make a full recovery.

Photo courtesy of Ashley Kramer, Student Intern.



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By: Andrew Cartoceti, DVM
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This juvenile downy woodpecker was found by a good Samaritan in his backyard while it was being attacked by another bird.  The bird was rescued, but it had sustained serious wounds to its head that caused it to be uncoordinated and unable to fly.  When the bird first came to the hospital it was very disoriented and even had a hard time finding and eating the food in its cage.  With some care and patience, the woodpecker made a full recovery over the course of several weeks.  And after he began pecking wood again and acting like a normal woodpecker he was release back into the wild.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Photograph courtesy of Ashley Kramer, Student Intern.



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By: Andrew Cartoceti, DVM
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This year we raised 18 orphaned raccoons from a very young age.  All but two of them have been released so far.  Raccoons require a lot of care, as they develop very slowly and take a long time to reach an independent stage.  In the wild, some raccoons will stay with their mom through their first winter. 

Although they do not hibernate, they will seek shelter in the den they were raised in until mom kicks them out the following spring to raise a new litter.

These photos show two of this year’s raccoons being released back into the wild.

Some objects, like this rock, they are experiencing for the first time.  At first they are timid, but they quickly adapt to the environment around them.

These raccoons have a nice thick fur coat and extras stores of fat to give them the best chance of surviving their first winter on their own, since mom is not around to help.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All photographs are courtesy of Ashley Kramer, Student Intern.



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By: Greg Mertz, DVM

The Raccoon Bandits will perform at the Catbird Cafe on Friday, November 4, 2011. Doors will open at 7:00 PM.  $5 suggested donation to benefit the New England Wildlife Center.

 



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By: NEWC Intern
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This eastern grey squirrel was found in Boston Common with a huge abscess (pus filled pocket) under its chin.

After clipping and scrubbing the infected area, we are ready to lance (cut open) the abscess to allow it to drain.


Flushing the abscess helps to clean out debris and bacteria so that it can heal over faster.

This squirrel also had overgrown teeth that had to be trimmed back.

Several days after surgery, this squirrel is recovering nicely and is much more comfortable.

All images are courtesy of Ashley Kramer, Student Intern.



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By: NEWC Intern
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These juvenile red squirrels are recovering from a serious case of mange (mite infestation) in which they lost almost all of their fur.  The only fur that remained was on the their head, feet and tail making them look like a domestic cat with a lion-haircut.  Slowly, but surely, they are starting to regrow healthy fur coats to keep them warm in the colder months.

When these squirrels first arrived they were completely hairless on their bodies.

After just a few weeks you can see their new fur is just starting to show up.

 



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By: Kyle Richards
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By: Kyle Richards
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Pumpkins and Carvers Needed

New England Wildlife Center will be holding its annual pumpkin trail, Night of a Thousand Faces, Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th of October from 6PM-8PM.  Everyone is invited to come carve the pumpkins that will be showcased on the trail.

Bring the whole family in to carve pumpkins Thursday 27th and Friday 28th 10AM-5PM.  Pumpkins and carving supplies will be available for all.  Make sure you come back on the event night to find your pumpkin on the trail!

To find out how to receive free admission please read below :)

 

Pumpkins at Halloween

Image via Wikipedia

 

FREE ADMISSION to ANNUAL PUMPKIN WALK

When you make a donation of a freshly carved pumpkin(s) on Friday 28th or Saturday 29th between the hours of 10AM-3PM you will receive a ticket that can be redeemed for one free admission to the pumpkin trail on Oct. 29th/30th.

Free admission for one(1) valid Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th of October 2011.  Fresh pumpkins may be carved at home and dropped off on the same day or brought and carved at the Center.  Carving supplies will be offered at NE Wildlife Center Thursday/Friday 10AM-5PM and Saturday 10AM-3PM.  Feel welcome to bring your own carving kit as well.  Free admission tickets are limited to one  (1) per family.

For more information please contact the Center @ 781-682-4878



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By: Greg Mertz, DVM
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Nigel, the eighteen year old Iguana.

Two Ball Pythons.



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By: Greg Mertz, DVM
It's the box that worries me.

It’s the box that worries me.

 

 A blue footed bearded dragon.

 



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By: Kyle Richards
By: Greg Mertz, DVM
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This red-tailed hawk was hit on the right wing by a line drive golf ball. Fractured his ulna. Recovering after surgery.



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By: NEWC Staff
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Whoooah!! Odd Pet Vet, A.K.A. Dr. Greg Mertz is now on Twitter! Tweeting away from his iPhone about the exotic patients, nature encounters, or simply anything extraordinary and educational that comes to his mind! You can follow him @oddpetvet by clicking the link below:

http://twitter.com/#!/oddpetvet



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By: Andrew Cartoceti, DVM
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The Red-Tailed Hark in this picture was admitted on May 30th as a young orphaned hawk. This hawk would not have been able to survive in the wild on its own.  Now it has gained a substantial amount of size and will soon be soft released.

The Red-Tailed Hawk scientific name “Buteo Jamaicensis” has a very wide range from Alaska and Canada throughout North America and occasionally found as far south as Panama. This species of hawk gets its name from the red feathers found on its tail which come in after they mature around the age of  3-4 years old.  These are one of the larger hawks from North America with a wingspan of 43-57 but also one of the most common raptors in North America. Red-Tailed Hawks display sexual dimorphism in size, with females averaging much larger. Due to their large population and that they can easily be trained to hunt the Red-Tailed hawks are often captured by falconers to be trained and hunted.

-Jackson Hoit, Student Intern



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By: Greg Mertz, DVM
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Welcome to Gallup! He is Penelope’s new friend.  Gallup is a 9 month old wethered Alpine goat.

Gallup was raised and donated to the Center by Jenna Illingworth.  Jenna is a student at the Norfolk Agricultural High School in Walpole.

On the first day together Penelope did not give Gallup a very warm greeting.  She refused to stand any where near him.   If he came close she would run to the other side of the pen.  She gave him dagger eyes.

Today, three days later, they are inseparable.  In fact last night they held a two goat meeting about how to cause the most trouble as a team.  In fact when I did this photo session I went inside their pen to get some close-ups of Gallup.  When I bent over, Penelope came up behind me and bit me in the butt.

Goats!



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By: Andrew Cartoceti, DVM
Rolls of Paper Towels

We are in desperate need of paper towels to keep our hospital clean.  Donations of paper towels (and other supplies) can be dropped off at 500 Columbian Street in South Weymouth at any time.  If the doors are locked, you can leave them outside.



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By: Kyle Richards
By: Greg Mertz, DVM
Categories: Education | Add a Comment
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Undergraduate Interns and students from Norfolk Agricultural High School listen to executive director, Katrina Bergman, talk about the green features of the Thomas E. Curtis Wildlife Hospital and Education Center built to (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) LEED specifications.  Students also toured the building, and learned about renewable energy, green building materials and low impact maintenance.



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By: Andrew Cartoceti, DVM
Categories: announcements | 3 Comments

We are in desperate need of chlorine Bleach to clean and disinfect our hospital.  It takes several gallons each day to mop floors, wash bedding and disinfect hospital surfaces.  Most of our bleach comes donated from local BJ’s and Walmart, but with so many baby animals in the hospital we are constantly running out.  Donations of new bottles of bleach would greatly help us keep clean and germ free.



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