Reptiles

HELP for REPTILES

When do reptiles need help?

Reptiles including Western Painted Turtles, snakes and native lizards may need help, if you see:

  • Obvious wounds or bleeding
  • Cracked shell
  • Improperly positioned limbs
  • Accidentally dug up or uncovered during the winter or when temperatures are below 10 C
  • Bit by a pet
  • Swallowed fish hook 
  • Snake stuck on glue trap or entangled in garden netting

How to be kind to our native wild snakes

We have 7 species of snakes in the Okanagan. They can get injured by unsupervised dogs, entangled in garden nets or woken up from their hibernaculum/nest.  Please email us before touching an injured snake (remember to include a picture of it for species identification).
We can certainly house and treat native snakes, but capture needs to be done responsibly and lots of snake species are protected in our valley. Notify us as soon as possible via email before you do anything. More info on our valley’s snakes and how to live with them safely and respectfully at: Okanagan Similkameen Stewardship (www.osstewardship.ca/snakes)
reptile questions? email us: info@interiorwildlife.ca

We rehabilitate reptiles of the okanagan

Turtles

Our native western painted turtles often get injured by unsupervised dogs, hit by cars or swallow fish hooks by accident. If you have found an injured painted turtle, please email us and remember to include a picture of it's underside for species identification. We can certainly house and treat injured painted turtles. You may collect it and place it in a box lined with a towel if the turtle is obviously injured. Then notify us as soon as possible via email.

Note: "Red-eared Sliders" (are an invasive, they have a yellow plastron/belly). We do not care for invasive turtles. Native "Painted Turtles" have vibrant red colour on their plastron/belly.

Snakes

We have 7 species of snakes in the Okanagan. They can get injured by unsupervised dogs, entangled in garden nets or woken up from their hibernaculum/nest. If you have found an injured native snake,
please email us before touching a snake
(remember to include a picture of it for species identification).
We can certainly house and treat native snakes, but capture needs to be done responsibly and lots of snake species are protected in our valley. Notify us as soon as possible via email before you do anything. More info on our valley's snakes and how to live with them safely and respectfully at: Okanagan Similkameen Stewardship (www.osstewardship.ca/snakes)

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!

Via e-transfer

E-transfer us directly and 100% of your donation goes to us: donate@interiorwildlife.ca

Via PayPal

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Via Canada Helps

Click on the icon below to get re-directed to our charity account with CanadaHelps.org

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Via Snail Mail

Send a cheque to our office:
PO Box 988 V0H1Z0, Summerland, BC, Canada

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WE ARE HUMBLED AND GRATEFUL TO BE ABLE TO PROMOTE CO-EXISTENCE WITH WILDLIFE ON
UNCEEDED SYILX OKANAGAN NATION TERRITORY