What is Canine Distemper Virus (CDV)? Canine Distemper Virus is a highly contagious and often fatal virus that can affect the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and nervous systems of animals. These locations make sense when considering these are all systems that contain rapidly-dividing cells, which the virus loves to replicate in. You may have also heard of […]
Every day, the Wildlife Medical Clinic receives numerous calls from concerned community members about animals that appear sick or injured outside. Many of those people attempt to capture the injured wildlife, so they can be seen and treated at the Wildlife Medical Clinic. However, did you know that there are certain species you should use […]
Observation and Diagnostic Tools When a good Samaritan brings in a Great horned owl that cannot fly or a lethargic Eastern box turtle with no apparent physical injuries to the Wildlife Medical Clinic, how do we determine what is going on with these patients? That’s where the problem-solving aspect of our work comes into play. […]
Arrival and Initial Concerns On August 31, 2025, the Wildlife Medical Clinic received an adult Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) that had been found grounded and unable to fly. Upon intake, the owl was in thin body condition and demonstrated ocular abnormalities–most notably, aqueous flare in both eyes. This clinical sign indicates there is inflammation […]
Bats of Illinois Illinois is home to a confirmed 13 different bat species who are all insectivores. Despite their feared reputation for carrying diseases such as rabies and feeding on blood, these bats are crucial ecologically and economically as they provide natural pest control, reducing insect pests for crops and saving farmers billions in pesticide […]
Why is it so important to keep our domestic animals inside and on a leash? While pets love to have outside time and their pet owners love it too, it is important to be aware of your pet’s activities and supervise their time outdoors. They may come across wildlife that will not be as keen […]
Bats – Those that get a bad rap are under attack Bats are agile winged mammals that use echolocation to navigate at night as well as to hunt for prey. Bats usually live in caves in large colonies and vary in size and diet depending on the species. In recent years, bats have been under […]
Intake and Treatment Plan Earlier this year the Wildlife Medical Clinic received an Eastern Screech Owl, from one of our close partners the Illinois Raptor Center. Unfortunately, this little fella’ had an issue unlike most of our raptor patients. While you may be thinking, “Wow, I’m sure that owl would look super cute with an […]
At the Wildlife Medical Clinic, we receive many phone calls from caring members of the community asking if they should be feeding healthy and/or injured wildlife. We truly appreciate when citizens care enough about our native wildlife to reach out and ask these commonly asked questions. The short answer is no, you should not feed […]
HPAI and Public Health Highly pathogenic avian influenza, commonly referred to as HPAI, has become a common topic in conversation today. This may be attributed to the virus being detected in animals other than poultry or wild birds, including various mammalian predators and dairy cows, as well as several large avian mortality events attributable to […]