Meet Anna Reams of Wildlife Care of Southern California

Today we’d like to introduce you to Anna Reams.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Anna. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I started rehabilitating wild animals back in the 90’s and to be honest just fell into it, I have 2 beautiful kids and 3 grand kids and wasn’t what you would call a soccer mom but I was a PTA mom. My daughter found an injured duck and in looking for help quickly learned that there was no help for injured wild animals other than euthanasia. I had no idea something like this even existed, so I volunteered for 2 years with a local wildlife group who mainly rehabilitated birds and unbeknownst to me at the time, I literally walked into my future. Once I started volunteering with these animals the scope of the problem, lack of help and resources that these animals had was something I couldn’t just walk away from. I attended every seminar and training that was available in many different states and learned from other rehabilitator’s and rehabilitated all species but as time went on I started to specialize in a few species. My passions in life have always been animals, medicine and behavior and this profession literally encompasses all three.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Interesting question…In my opinion no road worth traveling is ever smooth, especially if you want change. Rehabilitation when I started was a relatively new field, the handful of people whom I learned from rehabilitated mostly birds and were definitely trail blazers because at the time wild animals were being put down in the shelters because no one knew what to do with them, even babies. We were one of the first organizations in the area to rehabilitate larger mammals and specifically coyotes, so today we are still blazing trails as we try to change public perspective on these amazing animals and how to co-exist with them, in addition to writing new protocol on how to handle emerging diseases within populations. These I would consider the good struggles the ones that keep me going, aware and engaged with the feeling that I am making a difference. Then there are the struggles that are a part of the process of allowing us to do what we do, Federal, State and City permitting in addition to zoning locations of where these activities will be conducted etc. and the constant daily struggle of funding, we have no paid administration so we do all of our own fund raising and are only able to help these animals because of the generous donations from the public. We couldn’t do our work without them.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Wildlife Care of Southern California – what should we know?
Wildlife Care Southern California founded in 1994 by a group of individuals who saw a desperate need for the care of our native wildlife. WCSC rehabilitates all native wildlife with the exception of Bear, Deer and Mountain lion. We are a non-profit volunteer organization holding permits with the State Department of Fish and Wildlife, US Fish and Wildlife, United States Dept. of Agriculture and the City of Simi valley. Our volunteers specialize in one or more specie including but are not limited to: Hummingbirds, Songbirds, Corvids, Raccoons, Coyotes, Bobcats, Badgers, Opossums, Pigeons and Doves. We operate as a team of dedicated and highly trained individuals. Our mission is to rescue, rehabilitate and release, as well as educating the public on how to co–exist with the constantly changing environment as it relates to the behaviors of urban wildlife. I am proud of the fact that this organization and all of its members operate as a team with very little ego, we are continually learning from each other, the public and especially the wild animals who come into our care. What sets us apart is we spend a lot of time on the phone with people educating and advising them on their specific situation and how it should be handled including giving them an understanding of why it is happening. Every call we get is an opportunity to educate people which ultimately helps the animals. We are also currently working in the field in certain locations involving the coyotes with mange, while we are there we are engaged with the community and educating them on coyote behaviors.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Shout outs for us would be all of our volunteers who are everyday people with lives and jobs who have slowed down enough to become aware of the situation and taken the next step to become involved. And our donors… we would not be able to help these animals if weren’t for them.

Contact Info:

• Address: Wildlife Care of Southern California P.O box 941476 Simi Valley Ca 93065
• Website: www.wildlifecareofsocal.org
• Phone: 805-428-7105
• Email: [email protected]
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wildlifecareofSoCal/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/wildlife-care-of-so-cal-simi-valley

Image Credit:
Anna Marie Reams, Jonsie Reynolds Ross

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.