Urban wildlife rehabilitation fills a critical gap, treating thousands of animals injured by human infrastructure, vehicles, and domestic pets each year.
Urban environments produce enormous volumes of wildlife casualties — struck by cars, entangled in litter, attacked by pets, or orphaned when parents are killed. Wildlife rehabilitators provide skilled veterinary-equivalent care, but the sector is chronically underfunded and dependent on volunteers. The welfare of individual animals in rehabilitation — minimizing handling stress, providing appropriate conspecific contact, ensuring successful release — requires specialized knowledge and facilities that are not universally available.