What is conservation and rehabilitation?

What comes to mind when you think of wildlife rescue and conservation.  Images of oil covered seagulls, rescued chimps, beached whales, dehorned rhinos? What about all of the precious wildlife that isn’t found in some exotic place, some big reserve “in another province”, but a few kilometers from our homes, schools, and offices? Many people have helped a tortoise or chameleon cross the road or returned a baby bird back into its nest, but who is out there trying to find ways to protect those rare and fragile species and lend a hand to Mother Nature to help offset the impact human civilization can impose on the natural world?

I am passionate about wildlife and have considered this very deeply and realized that there was an immense need for a grassroots type of organization to affect change on a local level. Second Chance Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre was formed as a vehicle to gather enthusiastic folks from many different backgrounds who feel a calling to help wildlife. Through education, conservation, rescue, and rehabilitation, I feel we can be a force to help turn the tide of the rapid decline of many species of wildlife in Mpumalanga and its surrounding areas. Our long term goal is to build a center where we can focus and organize these efforts in a single place.  Don’t you want to be a part of that?  One of my mottos:  "If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem!"

Making a difference in the future of a species through conservation involves embarking on an arduous path, one that will take months and maybe years of discussion, research, as well as partnering with government agencies, universities, and national groups. However, wildlife rescue and rehabilitation is a method of protecting populations that we were able to begin immediately. We can make an impact not only for that individual animal but for local populations that contribute to health of an ecosystem and the survival of the species as a whole. It is well understood that at every step of the way education and public outreach is the key to ensuring our work continues for years to come. We aim to partner with existing wildlife groups to not only build on what they have already done but to ease the burden these amazing organizations have taken on.

We would love to have a group of individuals who could best serve wildlife rehabilitation centres by acting as a facilitator and transporter during wildlife emergencies. We would love to streamline the sometimes difficult process by providing the public with an easy method to call in wildlife emergencies and quickly dispatching an individual to assess the situation, capture, and transport the animal to the proper location for it to receive care. It is a long road to building a solid team of dedicated volunteers to expand and solidify this effort.

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