California Wildlife Center takes responsibility for the protection of native wildlife through rehabilitation, education, and conservation. It is dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of native California species, who otherwise would be left to suffer from the effects of human encroachment, habitat destruction and environmental damage.
Our core work is the rescue and rehabilitation of sick, injured and orphaned native wildlife, supported by state-of-the-art animal care and rehabilitation facilities, a cadre of professionally-trained staff, dedicated volunteers and an engaged community.
Our Values
California Wildlife Center is committed to creating a healthy sustainable planet that values all life. To accomplish this, CWC is engaged in inspiring members of the community to:
Define and adopt best practices for the environment, including habitat protection
Ensure imperiled wildlife have access to appropriate medical and rehabilitative services
Create guardians and ambassadors for wildlife through education
What we do
As the Los Angeles area’s premier wildlife medical treatment and rehabilitation facility, California Wildlife Center strives to ensure that each patient receives optimal care, allowing them to return to their wild state. Since 1998, CWC has greatly expanded our capacity to treat more than 60,000 total animal patients, many whose injuries were caused by the impacts of their urbanized environments. CWC is one of only a few wildlife rehabilitation centers in the area, and the only facility in Los Angeles County permitted to rehabilitate mule deer fawns, coyote pups, crows and ravens, and hatchling and fledgling songbirds. We are also the only wildlife center in California that cares for both land and marine animals. CWC treats more than 170 unique animal species.
Our goal at CWC is to keep native fauna wild by rehabilitating animals as quickly as possible and releasing them back into their native territory. We also strive to educate the public in peaceful co-existence with wildlife to reduce human/animal conflict.
California Wildlife Center accepts animals 365 days a year, at no cost, directly from the public, through our relationships with regional animal care centers, and from local veterinarians.
Along with treating wildlife, CWC fields 35,000 calls annually from members of the public. Staff and volunteers guide people who have found an animal in need of help as well as answer general questions about native fauna. CWC also provides educational outreach to schools and community groups to share ways to peacefully coexist with wildlife.
Dedicated to the future of veterinary medicine and wildlife rehabilitation, CWC provides a variety of professional training programs, including wildlife and marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation internships and externships in wildlife medicine for veterinary students. In 2022, these programs provided over 12,000 hours of hands-on experience to young adults interested in wildlife rehabilitation and medicine.
California Wildlife Center participates in 15 research programs with nationally-recognized organizations relevant to the long-term health and sustainability of local wildlife populations. CWC actively submits numerous animal carcasses for evaluation, diagnosis, and monitoring of possible infectious agents within the wild animal population. Though an animal may be too ill or injured to survive rehabilitation, they may act as sentinels to new and emerging diseases in the environment.
Why What We Do Matters
When people learn about the hardships animals face each day, they are more willing to take a proactive approach toward protecting the natural environment and the habitats of our wild neighbors. At CWC, we educate communities, and in doing so, we are challenging homeowners, teachers, students and businesses to continue learning about our environment and enriching the lands in which we live and play.
Many people call us for advice on how to live with wildlife. You will find helpful tips for coexisting with and respecting wild animals in our Coexisting with Wildlife section.
OUR HISTORY
Since 1998, CWC volunteers have been outstanding in their field!
In a quiet oak grove in the Santa Monica Mountains – on land generously provided by California State Parks – sick, injured and orphaned native wildlife receive quality medical care and rehabilitation, with the intent of releasing them back into the wild.
Founded in 1998, CWC was initially an organization of dedicated volunteers working from home. At this same time, Aaron Frank was making a transition from having successful law practice in Atlanta to a becoming a wildlife rehabilitator and environmental champion. Soon after getting his hands dirty at the 1997 oil spill at Point Reyes National Seashore, he took the opportunity to help California Wildlife Center transform itself into a fully functioning wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center.
The organization was granted use of an old ranger station in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu. This remains the primary facility and provides administrative space and a base of operation for staff. The building was transformed into a hospital, and since then additional renovations have expanded patient capacity and improved care. In 2005, volunteers converted the original carport into an Intensive Care Unit and a kitchen for meal prep. CWC restructured the first floor of the main building into an Orphan Care Unit that provides a space for nurturing hundreds of baby birds, squirrels, and opossums each year. In 2007, CWC added a surgery trailer to treat fractures, lacerations, gunshots, and entanglement wounds. In 2013 at the request of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, CWC constructed a three-pen marine mammal rehabilitation center to treat emaciated California sea Lion and elephant Seal pups. Additionally, staff and volunteers have added 52 outdoor enclosures to further increase capacity and provide all patients the opportunity of a full recovery before their release into the wild.
California Wildlife Center continues its critical role for the wildlife of Los Angeles and Southern Ventura Counties by serving animals in need across 6,000 square miles of mountains, beaches, urban, and suburban regions occupied by more than 10.4 million people.
What we do
In a quiet oak grove in the Santa Monica Mountains – on land generously provided by California State Parks – sick, injured and orphaned native wildlife receive quality medical care and rehabilitation, with the intent of releasing them back into the wild.