Superior Wildlife Rehab & Education Center

11/05/2026

It’s time for a break.

I am currently away on vacation and will return on November 17. Please be advised that I will not be monitoring or responding to voicemail messages, text messages, or social media messages during my absence. All messages will be addressed as soon as possible upon my return.

If you are contacting me about a wildlife emergency during my absence, I recommend contacting U.P Wildlife Rehabilitation - Keweenaw Group (for help with mammals/raptors), Keweenaw Wild Bird Rescue (migratory birds) or your county’s Michigan Department of Natural Resources office for assistance.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. I look forward to connecting with you when I return. Have a wonderful day!

11/03/2026

Update: New heatmap shows suspected EHD reports by township.

We have heard from hunters who are concerned about deer losses in their hunting areas and want more information about where Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) is occurring. In response, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has developed a new map of townships where suspected EHD deer have been reported. The map will be updated regularly at the webpage linked in the comments.

The map shows reported EHD activity within every 36 square-mile Township-Range block in Michigan and counties where EHD has been confirmed. It is intended to improve transparency and help hunters understand where reports are coming from and where laboratory testing is still needed to confirm EHD.

Please note that EHD reporting is voluntary, and not every report can be confirmed through laboratory testing. To confirm EHD through laboratory testing, the DNR must collect a sample within 16 hours of a deer’s death. The map should be viewed as an indication of reported activity, not a precise count of deer deaths or complete assessment of where EHD is occurring.

We hope this information is helpful, and thank you to all who have reported deer through our Eyes In The Field tool. Both the reporting tool and the EHD heatmap pages are linked in the comments.

10/30/2026

10/28/2026

🎉🗓️ INTRODUCING SWREC’S FIRST-EVER 2027 CALENDAR! 🗓️🎉

We’re so excited to share a little piece of SWREC with you! 💚 Our very first calendar features photographs of our wild patients admitted to the SWREC Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic, with a new animal featured each month! 🦌🐿️🦊

But it’s more than just a calendar!

🌿 Wildlife facts that coordinate with each month’s featured animal.

🎉 Regular holidays to keep you organized throughout the year.

🦊 Special wildlife and conservation days highlighting conservation, local wildlife populations, and wildlife rehabilitation!

🎄 WHERE CAN YOU GET ONE?
Our 2027 calendars will be available for purchase at the TV6 Christmas Craft Show at the Superior Dome in Marquette, December 4–6, 2026! Stop by, say hello, and pick one up for yourself or as a unique holiday gift! 🎁

💚 Every calendar purchased helps support the rehabilitation of sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Your support also brings us one step closer to our biggest goal yet — building the U.P.’s first dedicated wildlife rehabilitation facility, where we can expand our capacity to care for the wildlife that needs us most. 🦌🌲🐿️

We can’t wait to share these special patients with you all year long!

🐾 One calendar. Twelve months of wildlife. Countless reasons to care. ❤️

10/22/2026

💙 We love that you care about wildlife—and we love them too!

At North Heart Vet – Gwinn Sawyer, we are not licensed wildlife rehabilitators. We work with, and under the guidance of, our valued and experienced licensed rehabbers to provide veterinary assistance when needed and requested.

**If you find injured wildlife, please contact a licensed rehabber first and follow their instructions. They will contact us if our assistance is needed.**

Bringing wildlife directly to our clinic without that coordination can delay the animal's care. Rehabbers then have to arrange transportation from our clinic to their facility. Multiple calls, changing plans, and driving animals between locations can create confusion, increase their stress, and take valuable time away from getting them the help they need.

Please DO NOT feed any wild animal that you have picked up unless directed to do so by a licensed rehabber. Many well intentioned finders can actually cause harm or even death by feeding injured wildlife.

Please be prepared to help arrange transportation to the accepting rehabber. Our vet team works six days a week and provides overnight on-call care; we cannot transport wildlife on your behalf.

🦌 Injured deer calls should go to the Michigan DNR. We do not accept or treat deer.

We know it’s difficult to see an animal in distress, and we appreciate your compassion. The best first step is to contact a licensed rehabber and let them coordinate the care. Thank you for helping us help wildlife. 💙

Find a licensed Michigan wildlife rehabilitator:
https://www2.dnr.state.mi.us/dlr/rehabilitator.aspx

10/14/2026

Why Being at the Table Matters:
Representing SWREC at the Michigan Natural Resources Commission Meeting

Today, I’ll be attending the Michigan Natural Resources Commission meeting at Northern Michigan University in Marquette as a representative of Superior Wildlife Rehab & Education Center (SWREC).

For me, this meeting is about more than attending a public meeting. It’s about being present for conversations that directly affect the wildlife we work so hard to protect, particularly Michigan’s white-tailed deer population.

Today’s agenda includes discussions on scientific deer management, deer disease, baiting regulations, and the potential transmission of chronic wasting disease (CWD) and bovine tuberculosis. These are important issues that affect deer health, population management, and the future of our wildlife here in the Upper Peninsula.

As the only licensed wildlife rehabilitator in the U.P. currently admitting white-tailed fawns, I believe it is especially important that I have a seat at the table.

Every spring and summer, I see firsthand the vulnerability of orphaned and injured fawns and the challenges involved in giving them a second chance. Wildlife rehabilitation provides a perspective that is important to include in broader conversations about wildlife management. We see individual animals up close, but we also recognize that their survival is connected to the health of the larger population and the habitats they depend on.

Representing SWREC means advocating not only for the animals in our care, but also for responsible wildlife management, science-based decision-making, and a future where the next generation of white-tailed deer can thrive in Michigan.

Our work doesn’t end when an animal is released. It also means staying informed, showing up, listening, and making sure the realities of wildlife rehabilitation in the Upper Peninsula are not overlooked.

I’m proud to represent SWREC and the wildlife that cannot speak for themselves. 🦌💚

10/07/2026

No, this is not AI. This is an incredibly rare sight! This is a melanistic gray fox and it’s the only example we’re currently aware of in the Midwest. It was originally observed in 2019, but was more recently shared with the DNR to help with gray fox research.

Melanism is a genetic condition that results in increased dark pigmentation, giving animals a much darker coloration than is typical for their species. Black squirrels are probably one of the most common example of melanism you’ll encounter here in Michigan. In fact, those black squirrels are actually melanistic eastern gray squirrels!

If you've seen a black fox before, it was likely a melanistic red fox! Red foxes are more likely to have varying levels of melanism than gray foxes.