Veterinary Services
at Gordon Wildlife
Veterinary medical care for the wildlife and rehabilitators of New York State.
One of the biggest challenges facing wildlife rehabilitators is gaining access to professional licensed veterinary care when needed.
Having been founded by a veterinarian and rehabilitator team, Gordon Wildlife is in a unique position to offer both veterinary care and rehabilitation services to the animals in our keep.
Whenever possible we also provide free or at-cost veterinary assistance, including examinations under anesthesia, medications, vaccinations, euthanasia and consultations to other wildlife rehabilitators in need of help.
Very few veterinarians in the entire state of New York will treat wildlife, and even fewer will treat raccoons. Even the Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Hospital at Cornell will not work with raccoons.
To date, Gordon Wildlife has assisted wildlife and rehabilitators in Albany, Broome, Cayuga, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Dutchess, Erie, Genesee, Greene, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Nassau, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Orange, Oswego, Otsego, Putnam, Rensselear, Saint Lawrence, Saratoga, Schoharie, Seneca, Steuben, Sullivan and Tompkins counties, with the majority falling within the boundaries of Central New York.
In February of 2022 we acquired use of a 14’ x 70’ singlewide trailer half a mile from our central campus which we are currently outfitting to become an in-house wildlife medical facility.
Extensive renovations have already been completed on this structure, including:
The installation of disinfectable hospital flooring throughout the building
On-site equipment including an anesthesia machine
Stainless steel exam tables and surgery table
Hospital grade stainless steel quarantine caging
Refrigerator and freezer for medical storage
ICU oxygen caging
Incubator
Animal bathing tub
Dedicated washer and dryer for animal bedding
We have had occasional off-hours access to the x-ray facilities at the Upstate Veterinary Surgical Center in Canastota, but this is not a sustainable solution. A room at this new building has been designated for dedicated use as an x-ray station and we are in the process of raising the funds to purchase this much-needed diagnostic tool.
If you are in need of veterinary advice or services contact us and we will try to help however we can. We are currently operating in a limited, entirely volunteer capacity in the off-hours. We are working to expand this facility into a much needed, full-time RVS-friendly clinic space for wildlife and rehabilitators around the state within the next 4 years. We are self-funded (out of pocket) aside from donations.
There is a severe shortage of veterinarians to provide medical support for wildlife rehabilitators in Central New York.
Join us in creating a clinic space which will become a part of the solution.
Renovations are underway. But we’re not done yet.
A fundraising campaign for the purchase and installation of a digital x-ray unit is more than halfway to its goal, thanks to a public GoFundMe and the generous support of the Central New York Community Foundation, the Community Foundation of South Central New York, the Joseph Robert Foundation and Upstate Shredding’s CNY Tuesday Grants.