NEws
IWRS In the media
Warm weather waking up wildlife early in Okanagan
Mar 05. 2024 / by: Georgina Whitehouse / InfoTel
Photo: IWRS
Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society is bracing itself… Interior Wildlife, the Okanagan’s first multi-species wildlife rehabilitation centre, has already experienced an early start for wildlife intake this year due to unseasonably warm temperatures.
“This means hibernating wildlife wakes up earlier, confused by the non-availability of plants and insects to feed on this early. Some came into care already,” executive director Eva Hartmann said in a press release…
Overall, the organization’s patient intake has increased by a third with close to 1,000 public inquiries about wildlife at risk in 2023 alone.
It will be holding an annual fundraiser Wild About Spring on May 17. This year, the money raised will go towards purchasing a portable X-ray machine.
Click here for full article: InfoTel News
Snake found in Okanagan home not sleepy…
Feb 08. 2024 / by: Jacqueline Gelineau / Kelowna Capital News
Photo: IWRS
The juvenile Great Basin Gopher Snake was found active and indoors during the winter and must be kept at the rehabilitation centre until the weather warms up, said Eva Hartmann…
Wild snakes in the Okanagan are supposed to find a cozy place to brumate during the chilly weather. Brumation is a state of inactivity, similar to hibernation….Hartmann said that the wildlife rehabilitation society had to obtain special permission in order to care for the snake since it is considered a threatened species in B.C.
Click here for full article: Kelowna Cap News
Trumpeter swan with dislocated shoulder rescued from Okanagan Lake
Dec 08. 2023 / 10:54 am / by: Jon Manchester / Castanet Vernon
Photo: IWRS
The trumpeter swan, a protected species, was found earlier this week, tangled in a piece of metal fencing on the shore of Okanagan Lake in Vernon.
It was taken to the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society in Summerland, where it is still not out of the woods, with a “guarded” prognosis.
The swan’s veterinary exam found a dislocated right shoulder. It was bandaged up to see if the tendons would heal adequately for its flight muscles to work properly.
Click here for full article: Castanet Vernon
Injured bat recovering at Summerland rehab facility
Aug 02. 2023 / 8:00 am / by: Shannon Ainslie / InfoTel
Photo: IWRS
Things are looking up for a silver-haired bat that has been recovering at a wildlife facility in Okanagan since it was brought in with a broken forearm this summer.
The bat was injured when the tree it was living in was cut down and a biologist brought to a vet before it was transferred to the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society in Summerland mid-August.
“It is looking good as far as healing goes,” said society owner Eva Hartmann. “He doesn’t have a bat cast anymore, we want it to be able to stretch that wing and start rebuilding muscles in the shoulder.”
Click here for full article: InfoTel News
Volunteer-run rehab centre returns beavers to the wild
Aug 15. 2023 / by: Jamie Long/ BC Wildlife Federation
Photo submitted: Jamie Long, BCWF
The B.C. Wildlife Federation (BCWF) …visited the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society (IWRS) in Summerland in July to view the society’s new Beaver Hotel, a facility dedicated to rehabilitating beavers and other small mammals.
The IWRS has answered over 800 email inquiries this year, ranging from curious individuals to those with legitimate wildlife concerns, Eva said. Of those, IWRS has admitted and cared for 65 patients so far this year – six of which have been beavers.
The BCWF provides financial support for the care of beaver patients and site-enhancement projects at the IWRS center…
Beaver-based restoration is a cost-effective way to enhance wetlands and fish habitats, while helping store water on the landscape and reducing the severity of future droughts, floods, and fires.
Click here for full article: BCWF Wildlife Blog
4 injured beavers captured, rehabilitated in B.C. wetlands conservation project
July 4. 2023 / 12:49 pm / by: Emily Marsten/ Vancouver City News
Photo: IWRS
Four injured beavers were captured as part of a conservation project to help restore B.C.’s wetlands, and have now been rehabilitated…
Eva Hartmann, president and co-founder of the IWRS, says the four rodents were captured individually as part of the project…The conservation project is run by Tom Willms, a professor and biologist at the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (NVIT), and is supported by the Nooaitch First Nation.
…the reason to restore the wetlands is for fire, drought and flood resilience of that area. So they put beavers back in there…
Click here for full article on Vancouver City News
Trumpeter swan released back into the wild
June 3. 2023 / 8:30 am / by: Shannon Ainsle / InfoTel
Photo: IWRS
An injured trumpeter swan that was found on the road in the Apex Mountain resort area almost two weeks ago has recovered and been returned to the wild by the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society….
The swan was a juvenile suffering from a two-inch laceration wound. After ten days of care at the rehab society, the bird was released by society volunteers onto a bay in a local lake known to be used by other swans…
Hartmann in collaboration with knowledgeable societies that track bird activity planned the release of the bird carefully to give it the best chance of surviving and finding a mate, a task more complicated than some might think.
Click here for full article on Info Tel
Lethargic beaver with large abscess rescued in Kelowna, BC
Apr. 5. 2023 / 10:21 pm / by: Jules Knox / GlobalNews
The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society says a member of the public contacted them by email after spotting the beaver at Rotary Marsh Park in downtown Kelowna.
Members of the non-profit organization gently captured the beaver with a large cage trap, then took it to the vet, where it was examined in the afternoon…
The vet said they plan on inspecting the abscess, then treat it with long-acting antibiotics before releasing it back into the wild.
“We hope there’s a good resolution to it,” said the vet. “And then get them out where they’re not being handled. They don’t want to be handled; it’s stressful to them. The sooner they’re out, the better.”
Click here for full article on Global News
Okanagan’s 1st wildlife film festival will be in Lake Country next month
Mar. 10. 2023 / 7:00 pm / by: Emily Alexander / KelownaNow
Photo: Graphic Design by Jill McMahon
A non-profit organization based in the Okanagan Valley is hosting its third annual spring fundraiser. This year’s event will be an in-person wildlife-themed film festival at the Creekside Theatre in Lake Country on April 7…
“Our film lineup includes a documentary about mule-deer research, human-wolf coexistence and the wildlife rehabilitation centre in Calgary caring for urban wild casualties” (says Eva Hartmann).
The ‘Wild About Spring Film Festival’ will showcase two short films and a full length feature film called Part of the Pack by Mike McKinlay and Isabelle Groc…
Click here for full article at PentictonNow
Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society expecting a busy baby season
Mar. 2. 2023 / 12:00 pm / by: Emily Alexander / KelownaNow
In their first season, which was only six months of 2022, Interior Wildlife admitted over 70 animals and answered over 600 public inquiries about potential wildlife in need of human care or veterinary assessment.
Interior Wildlife has no interest in interfering with natural cycles of wildlife, including predator-prey relationships, but if an accident occurs and an injured wild animal is in human care, they will help. “Be that expert advice, coordinating veterinary assessment or professional wildlife care by licensed facilities we work with,” Hartmann explains.
Now that the society has renewed their permits, Hartmann says they are “getting ready” for baby season, which begins in early spring.
Click here for full article at KelownaNow
Okanagan wildlife facility puts $15,000 grant to good use
Sept. 22. 2022 / 6:30 pm / by: Gary Barnes / Summerland Review
Photo submitted by: Eva Hartmann
The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society (IWRS) has received a $15,000 gift from the Central Okanagan Foundation. The Summerland-based wildlife care facility will use the funds to build a heated wildlife nursery.
The IWRS has completed its first season under its permits to rehabilitate and release native wildlife in the Okanagan. The care facility is funded privately.
“To provide a service that is not financially supported by the government, but expected by the public, can be a challenging task to undertake,” said Eva Hartman, co-founder, and president.
Click here for full article in the Summerland Review
New Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre opens in B.C.
June 6 2022 / 4:08 pm / Global News Morning BC
Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society in Summerland now open
June 5, 2022 / 12:00 pm / by: Cindy White / Castanet
Photo submitted by: Eva Hartmann
The enclosures are ready, now they just need the patients.
The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society has received the go-ahead from federal and provincial governments to open the doors of its new facility in Summerland.
“We have built species-specific housing with various therapy pools for waterfowl, native turtles and other species living around the shores of our lakes and streams. We can proudly say that we have passed our facility inspection conducted by government officials including BC wildlife veterinarian Caeley Thacker,” reports president and founder Eva Hartmann, who’s a registered veterinary technician herself.
Click here for full article on Castanet Penticton
Comedy Show For Wildlife
May 9, 2022 / 4:00 am / by: Brayden Ursel / Castanet
Photo: Graphic Design by Jill McMahon
A wildlife care centre under construction in Summerland is hoping to get a final fundraising push later this month with a comedy show.
DunnEnzies Restaurant Lower Mission is hosting “Wild About Spring Comedy Show & Auction“ on May 27, 2022 in support of the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society.
“We’re raising $15,000 in order to build an indoor wildlife nursery at our Summerland facility. A kick-off fundraiser to open our doors to wild animal patients this spring!“ said president and co-founder Eva Hartmann.
Click here for full article on Castanet
Land donated for new wildlife rehab centre in Summerland
27 August 2021 / 7pm / by: Dan Walton / Penticton News
Photo: D.Walton/INFOnews.ca
A generous family in Summerland is sharing a portion of their farm to help save animals. They’re allowing the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society to the build its rehabilitation centre on their property.
“We are planning to occupy this unused parcel to build temporary structures and enclosures for various species of wild animals needing care,” Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society co-founder Jonathan Laumer said in a press release. “It comprises of a small creek with a greenbelt, is partly wooded with willows, poplars and pine trees, and has a little old barn on it, providing great natural habitat and giving it some country charm.”
Aside from South Okanagan Rehabilitation Centre for Owls in Oliver, which only rescues injured raptors, the closest licensed wildlife rehab centre to the Okanagan is the B.C. Wildlife Park in Kamloops.
Click here for full article in Penticton News (InfoTel)
Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society fundraising for first home
13 May 2021 / 12:48pm / by: Kirk Penton / Castanet
Photo submitted by: Eva Hartmann
The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society is getting ready to build its first home to help injured and orphaned animals.
To do that, it is conducting its first fundraiser.
The Wild About Spring online auction kicked off on May 1 and will continue until Monday, May 24. The silent auction’s target is $150,000 for the organization’s first centre.
“We have been simply amazed and delighted at the response from local businesses and individuals up and down the Okanagan Valley,” IWRS founder and president Eva Hartmann said in a press release. “It is thanks to our donors who have so generously given so many truly special and unique items in support of our fundraising target. Thank you sincerely to all our new friends and supporters for your generosity.” ….
Click here for the full article at Castanet News
Bid on amazing items that raise funds for the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society
05 May 2021 / 02:40pm / KelownaNow
The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society (IWRS) is thrilled to announce the launch of their first fundraiser, the Wild About Spring online auction!
The silent auction, which began on May 1st, runs until May 24th, so be an early bird! ….
Hartmann explains: “All funds raised from our ‘Wild About Spring’ auction will go directly towards constructing our first-ever building, the admission center which will be erected at the wildlife rehabilitation facility to-be. This center will be the triage point for all injured or orphaned wildlife that come into our care, an essential part of the rehabilitation process.”
Be a champion for your local wildlife and start bidding today on your favourite items! Your support will make a positive difference in the lives of our local wildlife who we share this beautiful and abundant wilderness backyard with.
Click here for the full article at: auctions.kelownanow.com
Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society calls on local businesses for help establishing local wildlife rehab centre
08 April 2021 / 09:23pm / by: Amandalina Letterio / Castanet
Photo submitted by: Eva Hartmann
The Okanagan’s Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society working to establish a wildlife rehabilitation centre in Kelowna – and it is looking for local businesses who want to be involved….
Funds will go towards the admission centre that will be erected as the planned facility’s first building. Due to Kelowna’s rapid growth, it is seeing a significant increase in human-caused wildlife injuries and displacement.
“We know that most wild patients are admitted at rehabilitation facilities as a direct result of human activities: hit-by-car, window collisions, power line burns, attacks from domestic
pets and toxins,” the Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society explains….
IWRS is joining forces with other privately funded BC rehabilitation centres to care for wildlife and educate community members about coexistence.
The location of the new space has yet to be announced.
Click here for the full article at Castanet News
Wildlife society fundraising to bring rehab centre to Kelowna
18 March 2021 / 12:30pm / Black Press Media / Kelowna Capital News
Photo: Black Media Press
….Eva Hartmann, president of IWRS, first became aware of the need through her work as a registered veterinary technician in Kelowna.
The majority of wildlife injuries are caused by a conflict with humans, such as vehicle collisions and attacks from domestic pets. According to Hartmann, these incidents are becoming more common as the population in Kelowna grows and development encroaches on natural environments.
Currently, there isn’t a wildlife rescue centre nearby. The closest alternatives are SORCO in Penticton, which is limited to raptors only, and the B.C. Wildlife Park in Kamloops, located two hours away.
“That’s too far away to help any injured or orphaned animals in our valley,” said Hartmann.
“Typically, they would have to be euthanized at an emergency veterinary clinic. I just think that we need to fill the gap.” ….
Click here for the full article at Kelowna Capital News
CBC radio interview regarding our land search (listen in at the 52:40 minute mark!)
25 November 2020 / Aired on Radio West / Host: Dominika Lirette
To listen in click on the CBC logo below:
Castanet News (December 2, 2020)
Land for wildlife centre? Group looking for land to build wildlife rehabilitation centre in Okanagan
Kelowna Capital News (November 28, 2020)
Okanagan group look for property to house wildlife rehab centre
Global NEWS (November 25, 2020)
Okanagan woman bringing first wildlife rehabilitation centre to the valley
How to Donate
IWRS is 100% volunteer-run. We are funded solely by private donations and sponsorships. As as registered charity, we can provide tax receipts for your donation!
Donate online
E-transfer us directly: donate@interiorwildlife.ca
or by credit card via Paypal
Mail a cheque
Office address: PO Box 988 V0H1Z0, Summerland, BC, Canada
Via Canada Helps
Click above or below to get re-directed to our charity account with CanadaHelps.org
Other ways
Click on the picture above
to see our wish lists
