FAUNA RESCUE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA INC.
About Fauna Rescue of South Australia Inc. |
| Every
year, caring people of South Australia rescue thousands
of animals, birds and reptiles. The RSPCA cannot handle
such large demands for wildlife and therefore several
rescue groups have developed to meet this need. Fauna Rescue of South Australia Inc. is the largest of these groups. The Organisation. began in 1988 by a small group of about 10 people and now has a membership of about 400 people. Not all members play an active role, however their support is vital to the interests and financial operations of the group. Our members are spread far and wide across Adelaide and country areas. When people find native wildlife and look for help, they seek assistance through many sources. Some of these are the RSPCA, Animal Welfare League, Adelaide Zoo, telephone book listing, vets, councils, pet shops, friends and more. These calls are then referred to Fauna Rescue. Fauna Rescue has a 24 hour service on 8289 0896 and incoming calls are redirected to various phone co-ordinators who ascertain the problem, give advice and if necessary refer the caller to the nearest member for help. On a yearly basis Fauna Rescue receives around 3,000 calls for help from the public regarding wildlife. Of these calls some need advice only, but with many others the wildlife has to be taken into the care of Fauna Rescue members. Each year we rescue around 2,000 animals/birds & reptiles. Our organisation is based on a co-ordinator system where a group of people specialise in a particular species. For example, some co-ordinators concentrate their energies on possums, kangaroos, or bats while others care for magpies or waterbirds and so on. The co-ordinator looks for the nearest person available to give the initial assistance and depending on the situation, any rescue can then be passed on to the appropriate member for follow up care. Our policy is to Rescue, Rehabilitate and Release, we believe in the succesful method of soft releasing wildlife. The future welfare of the bird or animal must be considered and in certain instances euthanasia or long term care are options. Although we attempt to release as close as possible to the rescue scene, new appropriate release sites are always welcomed. We have regular monthly training meetings to share our knowledge and experiences. There are a wide range of free training notes for members that give specific details of the finer points in caring for rescued wildlife. Our service is a voluntary, home based organization. Members bear the cost for all expenses incurred for the wildlife in their care out of their own pockets. Fundraising is undertaken to help members meet some of these expenses and for costs involved with the running of the organisation. We receive no government funding. We are greatly indebted to many of the veterinary clinics that provide a cost only service to fauna requiring vet treatment. Many of our members have reached a level of experience where a good deal of procedural care can be done at home. An elected committee that meets monthly determines policies and guidance for a wide range of issues which constantly challenges the group. We have sound credibility and give the very best service to the public that we possibly can. We give educational and wildlife awareness talks to clubs and schools, donations from which helps us with the running costs of the organisation. Over the last 12 months there has been a huge increase in the amount of rescued wildlife coming in to Fauna Rescue. Due to this we need to raise more funds to cope with our spiralling costs of caring for wildlife. Some of these costs include veterinary care, first aid equipment (medication, heat pads etc), specialised dietary requirements, possum nesting boxes, kangaroo compounds, aviaries, cages and day to day running expenses.. We already spend many hours a week fundraising but are falling short of monies needed. We are in dire need of sponsors, both major and minor, to come to the aid of Fauna Rescue so we can continue this invaluable voluntary service to the South Australian public. Corporate sponsors are offered advertising space in our bi-monthly newsletter and acknowledgement on our web site www.faunarescue.org.au. We are a registered charity and personal donations over $2.00 are tax deductable. If you feel you can help and would like more information please don’t hesitate to contact us and we can provide you with a presentation folder containing further information about our group. Donations can be sent to:
|
