Wildlife Hospital
What We Do
The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine’s Wildlife Hospital cares for injured animals brought to us for care and treatment. Our goal is to treat and rehabilitate these animals so that they can be released back into the wild. We receive approximately 1,200 wildlife cases each year with an approximate release rate is 40 percent.
Why We Do It
Progress and expansion into previously undisturbed areas have placed increased external pressures on wild animal populations, and the number of injured wildlife cases will continue to rise as land within the south is developed. With board-certified specialists available in many areas of veterinary medicine, clinicians in our Wildlife Hospital are uniquely positioned to deliver the utmost care for wild animals. It also provides our students with hands-on experience in the practice of veterinary medicine.
How You Can Help
Our program relies on private donations. Your gifts will help cover the cost of food, housing, and veterinary procedures and treatments. Costs vary greatly with species and type of injury, ranging from $50 for basic care to more than $3,000 for orthopedic surgery.
Injured Wildlife
We provide care for injured wildlife native to Louisiana. Wildlife cases can be brought to the LSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital’s Small Animal Clinic during regular business hours (8 a.m.-5 p.m.). We can also accept wildlife cases between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m., but no later than 10 p.m. On weekends, we can accept cases prior to 10 p.m.
Keep safety in mind when transporting a wild animal (both your safety and the animal’s). Call animal control if necessary. You can call your local veterinarian or our Wildlife Hospital for advice on the animal before interacting with it.
Our Mission
Our mission is to carry out conservation medicine by providing veterinary care for injured wildlife, conduct conservation research, and educate the public about wildlife conservation in the state of Louisiana.
Our three primary focal areas are
- Conservation: We provide veterinary care for injured native wildlife from Louisiana and surrounding states. The ultimate goal of our conservation medicine efforts are to rehabilitate and release animals back to the wild so they can contribute to the wild populations.
- Research: We carry out research projects at the state, national, and international level with a focus on wildlife preservation and conservation.
- Education: We provide veterinary students with educational opportunities in the field of wildlife medicine. The skills learned by these students while working with wildlife species are directly applicable to captive exotic species and are part of their training for becoming skilled veterinarians. In addition we carry out educational presentations aimed at the general public in the state of Louisiana. This presentations carry the message of wildlife conservation and provide an avenue for children and adults to become aware of the issues that affect our native wildlife species.