The Wildlife Center of Virginia admitted 112 new patients in October, and has admitted 2,570 patients in 2011 so far. Notable October admissions include patient #11-2528, a Silver-haired Bat found on the ground outside an apartment building in Staunton.  Radiographs revealed a fracture of its left clavicle. The bat is recovering and will spend the winter with a permitted wildlife rehabilitator as it continues to heal.

An unusual occurrence this month was the admission of three Striped Skunks over the course of four days. One of them was rescued after it was spotted crossing the road with a glass bottle stuck on its head! The skunk was released the same day, but not before it sprayed Diagnostic Intern Katie White. Watch the video here.

During October, the Center also successfully released 65 patients back to the wild – some of whom had been at the Center since July. Among those released were 36 Eastern Gray Squirrels (including the last of the hurricane squirrels); three infant House Mice; three Mallards; and two Red-tailed Hawks, including patient #11-1876, who starred on the Wildlife Center’s Critter Cam.

A surprise or two came from our Critter Cam viewer statistics, which revealed that cam viewers are tuning in from all 50 states and 21 foreign countries – including two viewers in Gambia! Virginia takes first prize for viewers in the United States, with Pennsylvania, Florida, New York, Ohio, and North Carolina rounding out the top five. The top five countries (outside the U.S.) are Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Colombia, and Australia.

The Wildlife Center of Virginia’s 2011 patient numbers continue to run significantly higher than 2010. Your donation will help support the more than 2,600 patients that will be admitted this year… and assist in the Center’s mission to teach the world to care for and care about wildlife and the environment!