Protecting Central Oregon’s Wildlife

Hello! My name is Cooper Andersen ’27, and I am a Biology major with Chemistry and Art minors. This summer, I have the amazing opportunity to intern at Think Wild, a wildlife rehabilitation hospital in Bend, Oregon. Growing up in Bend, I spend a lot of time outside with a passion for protecting the wildlife and natural resources that are so abundant in Central Oregon. So, this internship is an exciting opportunity to expand and strengthen that understanding while also exploring my interest in medicine in my hometown.

On a typical day, my tasks range from feeding animals to assisting with intake exams, administering ongoing care, and more. Because Think Wild’s goal is to rehabilitate the animals so they can be released back into the wild, we take preventative measures to ensure they do not become habituated to humans. For example, we wear ghillie suits and face masks so the animals cannot see us, and we never talk to the animals during feedings, so there is no positive association between food and people.

We accept many different local species for intakes, including native raptors, songbirds, mammals, and reptiles. Before admission, the finder calls our hotline, where we evaluate the situation and determine the appropriate level of action. Being a hospital intern, I assist with intake exams on a multitude of animals, ranging from bald eagles to deer mice. Through these intake exams and continued care, Think Wild has provided me the opportunity to dive into my interest in medicine, as I learned to give subcutaneous and intramuscular injections, calculate proper dosages, administer both ophthalmic and oral medications, do physical therapy on raptors such as a ferruginous hawk and red-tailed hawks, and much more.

After the initial intake exam, we create a plan for the animal based on multiple factors, including its natural history, extent of injuries, and age. This plan is formed with the collaboration of the veterinary technicians, wildlife rehabilitation director, and head vet, as well as extensive protocols. Next, we set up the animals' enclosure based on their natural history and provide enrichment to keep them engaged and active. For instance, for a pair of Lewis’s woodpeckers that were orphaned, we drilled holes in hanging logs to mimic how they would forage for food in the wild; and for an orphaned marmot, we created a den within a rock pile and branches, as well as dirt piles, to recreate his natural habitat.

Because enrichment is a very important aspect of the care we provide, my internship project was to create a more interactive habitat for our raccoon and squirrel patients. While the goal of the project was to imitate challenges and habitat structures they may find in the wild, I also wanted it to be fun for them. Recognizing that both species are such avid climbers, I constructed multiple hanging ladders and swings. There were some health and safety considerations I also needed to accommodate. For example, since raccoon enclosures require extensive sanitization, their ladder is made of metal, so it can be sanitized by flame. For the squirrels, I used wood to mimic the tree branches they would find in the wild.