Baby animals start to emerge in the spring — what to do if you spot one

A wildlife group that helps injured and orphaned animals in Calgary says it sees a lot of baby animals coming in at this time of year. But its staff cautions that not all animals that appear to be abandoned actually are.  

The number of animals in care at the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society increases exponentially in April and May and into the summer, said executive director Beki Hunt.

"In the winter months, we're quite a bit quieter. But the intake of babies in spring and summer is just off the charts," she said. 

The centre already has some baby squirrels on site, but toward the end of the month they expect to see lots more baby skunks and hares. 

For those who think they may have spotted an injured or orphaned animal, Hunt recommends observing a bit before intervening. 

"If you don't see any noticeable injuries, wounds, it's likely just exhibiting its natural baby behaviour," she said. 

"People kind of misunderstand that wildlife behaviour as, 'Oh my goodness, the baby is not moving, it's frozen, it must be injured or it must be orphaned,' when actually it was just waiting for mom to return." 

Hares will leave their babies for a few hours at a time, which is normal behaviour, Hunt said. Fawns also exhibit similar behaviour. 

"We get a lot of babies that have been taken from the wild, when, in fact, they were just chilling out and hanging out and just waiting for their mom to come back — which is really unfortunate because babies always have a better chance in the wild with their mom." 

She said another misconception is that baby birds cannot be touched by human hands. 

She said if you see a baby bird at its nestling stage (no feathers) out of the nest, look up and see if you can put it back in. 

"If you're able to safely get that nestling back into its nest, it will have the best chance of survival," she said. 

"If you do see a nestling on the sidewalk, its nest will generally be somewhere right above your head because they obviously can't fly."

If you see other birds that have feathers out of their nest, they are living on the ground with their parents and likely don't need intervention. 

Hunt said if you do see an animal that is visibly injured, contact Calgary Wildlife right away, and for after hours injured wildlife, call Alberta Fish and Wildlife.

She said people who are unsure can also call the centre's hotline to get more information before intervening.