This is a series of diaries highlighting animal rescues around the country and noting and celebrating the work they do to help animals who have no voices but ours to speak for them. I have decided to make this a daily series because there are so many wonderful rescues out there who need human help and weekly just doesn't seem to be enough. I have long wanted to start a rescue but lack the resources or time available to do so right now so this is my attempt to do my part. I hope that these rescues will benefit from the kindness and benevolence of the community here at Daily Kos. They are amazing organizations and worthy of Kossack attention and care.
I am here, alive and all around you
I have no voice
In your trees, your air, your fields, your oceans, your world
I have no voice
I am a mother, a father, a protector, a soul
I have no voice
I can walk, crawl, sing, fear
I have no voice
You must be my voice
Northern Lights Wildlife Society - Golden, BC V0E 1H1, Canada
The website is here
You can donate here
Who Are We?
The Northern Lights Wildlife Society is dedicated to give injured and/or orphaned wildlife a second chance at survival. The Founders of the society, Angelika and Peter Langen immigrated to Canada in 1982. Both trained animal keepers, they had previously worked in zoos in Germany. After living in Smithers for several years, they became aware of the fact that there was no place for injured and/or orphaned wildlife to go to and that such animals ended up being killed. With great enthusiasm they approached the local wildlife branch only to find out that rehabilitation programs were met with great uneasiness by the government. After years of discussions and formulating permits, their dream finally became true in 1989.
At first the shelter was used very reluctantly by the authorities. But as first success became apparent and as the public became aware of the shelter's existence, the demands on the shelter grew rapidly. With the Langen’s covering most of the costs and almost all of the work involved, the shelter soon reached dimensions that required a new approach in order to secure adequate housing and care for the animals in need.
As a result the Northern Lights Wildlife Society was formed in 2001 and in 2002 the society became a registered charity. The shelter has now entered a new era. The board is actively looking for sponsors and volunteers to ensure the shelter's ability to care for all wildlife that is brought to our attention. Most birds are referred to other shelters , as there are a number of excellent bird shelters available already.
Though all mammals and birds are accepted, the shelter in Smithers has become a haven for bears, moose and deer. The shelter has become an expert in bear rehabilitation. Up to September of 2012 a total of 201 black bears, 8 Grizzly Bears and 3 Kermode bears have found a temporary home here and have been or will be released to the wild. With many other shelters unable to work with such large mammals, due to space and/or housing restrictions, the Smithers shelter has become a last refuge for bears from all over BC.
The moose and deer raised at the shelter and released into the nearby park have done extremely well and have proven the success of the program, by producing and raising young in the wild year after year. Careful management, thrives to prevent the animals from becoming too human oriented, as that would prove to be a hazard to their own health (i.e. hunting season), as well as to the safety of humans ( i.e. hikers )
Fortunately most animals seem to make a distinct difference when dealing with their handlers or strangers. This fact ensures that proper care can be given, while still securing the safety of other humans. Up-to-date none of the animals raised at the shelter have become nuisance animals.
Along with the care of the animals, NLWS also feels that education and scientific work is of great importance to ensure our coexistence with our magnificent wild animal population.
NLWS actively offers programs for schools and groups throughout the winter and works with university students from around the world, offering unique study opportunities with the animals in care.
In addition NLWS has begun communications with the government to address rehabilitation of large carnivore mammals. As a result of these talks, BC is now world leading by offering the first Grizzly Rehabilitation project.
What We Stand For
Mission Statement:
To assist and support wildlife by providing shelter and care for injured and/or orphaned wildlife, rehabilitating such wildlife, providing public education and collecting and publishing research data.
Philosophy:
In today’s world our wildlife faces ever increasing challenges in their daily quest for survival as they share the space with humans. The immediate and obvious threats arise from death or injury due to such things as cars, trains, barb wire fencing and poaching. Furthermore, the continuous loss of habitant, ignorance of wildlife needs, public reactions and resulting government actions plus a general lack of data to assist in the creation of rules and laws that secure wildlife survival, pose a monumental hurdle in the quest to provide living space for wild animals.
Through providing shelter, feed and medical care we can help injured and/or orphaned wildlife until they can be rehabilitated in their natural habitant. Not only does this supply a moral solution to the question of: “what to do with such animals”, but it also offers an excellent opportunity for educating and involving the public and hence creating a better understanding and respect for the animals we live with.
The careful collection of scientific data and its availability to all interested parties ensures better knowledge and provides a platform for future projects and studies.
Mandate:
To ensure that the government and other related organizations are aware of our existence.
To provide transportation and possible capture of animals in need.
To provide species specific feed, shelter and medical care for the duration of their stay.
To provide species specific feed, shelter and medical care for non releasable animals for the purpose of public education and awareness, data collection and possible breeding programs.
To provide adequate facilities for the various types of animals in our care o minimize human contact in order to ensure a high rehabilitation success rate.
To prepare the wildlife for rehabilitation.
Transport to rehabilitation grounds.
To provide access on all data (ie milk formulas, feeding schedules, medical info etc) arising from caring for wildlife.
To enhance public education through presentations, written materials and if possible interaction with wildlife “ambassadors” (non releasable or captive born wildlife).
Release of Drew & Jason and Lori & Dean
2011 Grizzly Release in Bella Coola BC Canada
The day was not off to a good start, heavy clouds hung in the sky as we were preparing for the planned transport of our four grizzlies. The team of volunteers had worked hard to prepare everything, but the weather was totally out of our hands. Bad weather would prevent the helicopter flight from taking place and that could spell huge trouble for this release.
The media arrived first, so look in your newspapers and TV stations. Discovery Channel, Canada AM, CFTK-TV, Province and Vancouver Sun are some of the more well known media coverage’s we received. Lots of filming and pictures went on and of course the interviews that Peter and I always dread. J IFAW communications and photography expert Michael Booth also arrived and would be the only media person that would document the whole release with film and pictures.
Just after 11 am BC Wildlife Veterinarian Helen Schwantje arrived along with Nigel Caulkett
from the Calgary University. Nigel is a wildlife anesthesiologist and had offered his expertise to the project to ensure the right mixture of drugs for the bears safety and comfort as well as to conduct some studies on the bears metabolism while tranquilized. . The bears were darted by Helen with the tranquilizer gun. By the way she is an excellent marks(wo)man. Drew received the first dart, then Dean, Jason and Lori. By now the rain was coming down in earnest and all of us got a good soaking. Dean was sleeping first and Jason dropped almost immediately, but both Drew and Lori fought hard to overcome their sleepiness and needed top-ups. Once asleep the bears were carried out of the enclosure (it took a minimum of 6 people to lift one bear) and outside were assessed by the veterinarians. Blood, hair and skin samples were taken for DNA and other analysis.
Dr. John Beecham , an internationally recognized bear rehabilitation expert, had agreed to fit the bears with the all important radio collars. Dr. Beecham has been an invaluable adviser in the creation and growth of this project and we were happy to see him again for this release. Each bear received a colorful necklace, Lori pink, Drew red, Jason orange and Dean yellow. These collars will take location information every hour and send it to our computer every 4 hours. A sophisticated GPS program than translates those signals into a Google map which gives us a very accurate movement pattern for each bear. The collars will gather information until September 2012 when they are programmed to fall off the bears. The bears also received a tattoo on the inside of their lip to allow for positive identification in the future if it should become necessary. We also tranquilized black bear Cinnamon , as he also is a Bella Coola resident, and loaded him on our truck for transport.
Each grizzly bear was loaded into a culvert trap and transported to town for weighing at the local mill. Lori and Drew reached a respectable 130 kg (286 lb) and Jason and Drew came up with an incredible 170kg (375 lb). Exact weights where an important fact for fuel calculations of the planned helicopter flight. The bears were then loaded onto a flat deck trailer. Bandstra Transport, a trucking company that has facilitated transport for countless animals coming to the shelter, this time helped us to release some. At 6 pm truck driver Bert pulled out of the Bandstra Yard with 4 bears on board, followed closely by our truck carrying Dr. John Beecham , Michael Booth and Peter and myself. The second vehicle carried Helen Schwantje, Nigel Caulkett and shelter volunteer Annette Zimmolong.
A 13 hour trek began and ended with a lot of very tired people in Bella Coola the next morning. By 10 am the traps were unloaded ad Hodgsen Freight and we thank Daryell for his support as unloading would have been nearly impossible without his help.
Thankfully the dreadful rain that had marked our whole journey now subsided and allowed us to relax as flying would be possible. The team now grew with Conservation officers Len Butler and Andrew Milne joining, as well as local Bear Aware coordinator Elli Archer. You may remember that CO Milne was instrumental in the rescue of Jason and Drew and that Drew was named after his rescuer. CO Milne was happy to see his protégée again and marveled at his size. Tony Hamilton the BC governments Large Carnivore Specialist also joined at this time. The traps now were moved to West Coast Helicopter for flight preparation. Helen and Nigel again worked their magic and tranquilized the first set of bears Lori and Dean. The task was to keep them sleeping for the duration of the flight (about 45 minutes) but to become awake quickly once dropped off in the wilderness. Peter (as he is “papa” bear), Conservation Officer Andrew Milne (as protection, should the bears awake prematurely and pose a threat to human safety) and Michael Booth (our media connection) from IFAW were chosen to accompany the bears in a second helicopter.
Lift off turned into a very emotional few minutes for me, with a number of conflicting emotions churning inside me. There was definitely joy and pride to see them go, but also a good dose of fear and worry for their future and we will miss them in our shelter were they have been a source of wonder and awe for the past 7 months.
The helicopter returned 2 hours later to pick up Drew and Jason. The pilot reported that the drop off had worked extremely well and that Dean was up and moving, but Lori was still sleeping. The other helicopter and crew had stayed with the bears and was meeting Drew and Jason at their drop off point. (The bears where dropped in two separate alpine valleys with excellent berry crops) The second take off also went without a hitch and Drew and Jason were on their flight to freedom. Annette, Elli and I made a trip to release black bear Cinnamon, who was more than happy to leave us humans behind him.
A couple of hours later the helicopter and people returned. Peter reported that they had to return to the first release site after releasing Drew and Jason, as Lori was still sleeping when they left. Concern grew to panic when at approach they found Lori still in the same position as they had left her. Had she died? The anxiety in the helicopter reached astronomical levels as it descended once more and then a sigh of immense relief escaped from each person as a groggy Lori stumbled up to a sitting position as the helicopter approached.
The collars are working well and we will report periodically on the movements of the bears. We are all VERY tired, but also VERY, VERY HAPPY that these 4 bears are back where they belong. Nature can be cruel and unforgiving and there are no guarantees that the bears will survive, but this is their home, their life and we thank everyone, the volunteers, supporters, donors, IFAW, and the BC Government for making this project possible. Now we can only hope that the gathered scientific data will support to implement this project into an ongoing bear management option. We are still at least 3 years away from conclusive answers, but we certainly made some very good steps in the right direction because of many, many people that lend their support to this pilot project. All of you are wonderful and have our heartfelt gratitude. I hope that this story and the pictures will give you some of the joy and satisfaction that we felt, as we left the bears sitting by a stream!
Angelika Langen