Salvatore Wildlife Rescue

01/08/2026

It is time for paperwork now that Epiphany is in the rear-view, officially closing out the holiday season here at SWR.

This starts with my annual report and permit renewal and then will segue into various to-dos for the 501c3 as we continue to make progress packing up all the holiday decor.

By the numbers:
-110 animals helped
-18 different species represented
-73%! of intakes were one of the eight rodent species admitted, from squirrels to mice and beyond
-14% were other mammals
-13% were reptiles and amphibians

So thrilled to see an uptick in the animals helped in 2025 compared to the year before (94), especially given the plumbing emergency whose damage closed us for a few months. I couldn't do this without you and, thanks to your generous support, I was able to build another outdoor cage as well as accept far more of the high cost-of-treatment seriously injured animals than was previously possible.

Thank you so very much! 🎉

01/02/2026

Well this is a first- in a couple ways!

Not only is this flying squirrel the first 2026 admit of the year, but her known history is something new too! The Leominster finders first saw her in their house on Boxing Day, but were unable to contain her initially...until they found her sleeping inside of a box of cereal in their kitchen cabinets on Tuesday!

She is a transfer from Tufts so I don't have the nitty gritty small details of the story (perhaps she chewed through the box so they suspected she was there ahead of time etc) , but I can't help but picture that as a good ol' fashioned jump scare. There the finders are, still sleepy, brewing their coffee and grabbing a box of cereal so they can have breakfast only for a flying squirrel to be in that box! I'm around flyers all the time, but let me tell you that I would have had an absolute heart attack had that been me 😂

She has been put into the adult cage in an introduction crate so they can all get used to each other before they have physical contact. With her being added the plan will be to double the size of the cage so they can have a bit more space in which to zoom around, but for logistics and general sanity reasons that's a task for daytime when all the flyers are snoozing.

01/01/2026

Whether you saw midnight or were tucked up in bed at the time, we're wishing you a Happy New Year!

From our flood to medical crises to more, 2025 is not a year my family is sad to see in the rearview. May 2026 be a little kinder to all of us! 🤞

12/28/2025

This Barred Owl was a Tufts Wildlife Clinic patient who was ready to go home so I stepped in to help them with the release. Such a joy and a privilege to be able to assist with the final step of this bird's journey back to the wild!

🦉 Happy Sunday everyone! 🦉

12/25/2025

Not a creature was stirring (except for our favorite nocturnal buddies)

12/21/2025

A new flying squirrel has joined the overwintering adult cage!

This little one comes as a transfer from another rehabber, having been discovered in the finder's basement. He's in his own crate within the adult cage so they can all acclimate to each other without risking any scuffles. Once they get used to each other his crate will be opened and he will have a monitored introduction to the others.

He is the 8th flyer in our overwintering cages and, as the 22nd flying squirrel admit, has the distinction of pushing flyer headcount ahead of grey squirrels for the year! 🎉

12/15/2025

Unfortunately yesterday's cat-caught friend succumbed to her injuries a little before 8pm, but this older kiddo arrived today in her place.

Happily this little one, who is VERY speedy but looks male, is healthy. However he was living indoors and, although white-footed mice are an incredibly cold hardy species, that means he is not acclimated to the weather so would not survive just being put outside without a transition period.

Now since mice occur in the high volumes that they do, rehabbers don't always have space to say yes to these healthy winter admits, but I did have space at the moment for this one. My tactic for these guys, when balmier mild-for-winter weather is in the forecast, is to start acclimating them to sequentially colder weather so that they can be released (with nest box/bedding/ongoing food assistance). When the weather is not slated to improve, then they stay in care and just do their little mousey thing- this is something you can easily replicate if you live trap a mouse during winter, but can't find placement for it. They have specific, but not overly complicated, needs when healthy so feel free to reach out if you are having trouble finding placement and need tips setting up a temporary winter refuge for it!

[Since this often comes up on posts like these if you fall into the "the only good mouse is a dead mouse" opinion I acknowledge that you feel that way, but that's not my thing here and isn't relevant to the above where I am talking about advice for folks who don't. If that's how you feel I encourage you to pursue the humanest options for dispatch available- starting with exclusion- and to avoid poison and glue.]

12/14/2025

See those squinty eyes and puffed up fur? Those are blazing neon signs that a critter is in pain, so if you encounter them are really useful to remember because you'll know the animal absolutely needs intervention.

I always say that winter is small rodent season around here because of the combination of cold snowy weather encouraging them indoors and large numbers of local antique New England farmhouses with also increasingly indoors pets. Even the most responsible and wildlife-conscious pet owners, who are actively trying to find and close all the rodenty gaps in their 300 year old home, find themselves dealing with the aftermath of pet-rodent encounters. It's unfortunate, but is just something that increases in frequency at this time of year even with folks who are actively working to try to prevent it.

This morning this kiddo, who looks to be female, had exactly that sort of run-in with a cat. The homeowner is many months in to rodent exclusion work in an attempt to prevent exactly this from happening and has indoor-only cats so is doing everything possible on her end, but this mouse was one of the unlucky ones.

She's in pain and is circling which, in this circumstance, almost certainly means she sustained a head injury. She's had meds and is being given some time to de-stress while those take effect, so we'll see how things go as she gets less uncomfortable. Keep your fingers crossed for her!

12/10/2025

🎄 Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree 🎄

12/08/2025

12/08/2025

This kiddo comes to us from the finder's attic, where he was caught earlier today. Here in MA, Southern Flying Squirrels cannot be ousted from anywhere indoors at this time of year without fatal consequences because doing so separates them from the warmth of their colony as well as the group's winter food cache. So, much like an amphibian, when found indoors during winter they fall into the "needs rehab until spring" category of critters.

Fun fact: this is my 21st flyer intake for the year, which ties flying squirrel admits with that of grey squirrels. If any more come in in the next three weeks they'll officially pull ahead as the second-most common intake here at SWR!

12/06/2025

In our house the holiday season really kicks off today, St. Nicholas Day. We start the morning with a big holiday breakfast (accompanied by snowfall this year!) and if it isn't a school day we spend it watching Christmas movies, often accompanied by crafts and baking. We then cap the day with a holiday meal and a slightly higher effort dessert, anything from creme brulee to a croquembouche. Tonight we're having an old classic!

I'm heading into the kitchen to make the ganache for that dessert (a Boston Cream Pie!), but before I do wanted to wish you and yours a lovely day if you, too, spend December 6th in holiday mode.

🎅 Happy St Nicholas Day! 🎅