Beth McMaster of Middlesex Township holds an American Kestrel, a falcon member of the raptor family, that she has been rehabilitating at her Wildbird Recovery Songbird Rehabilitation Center. McMaster is a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. She said she gets between 300 and 400 birds a year — sometimes as many as 500. Many are victims of cat attacks and harmful human interaction.

MIDDLESEX TWP — Songbird cages line the walls in Beth McMaster's house. Blue jays, robins, orioles — even an American kestrel — are among the species chattering, singing and squawking in a cozy converted room in her home.

Outside, several screened aviaries are equipped with perches and greenery to house more birds as temperatures rise.

Despite the fancy enclosures, McMaster works with a single goal: to help the birds fly free.

A licensed wildlife rehabilitator, McMaster is trained to help injured songbirds re-enter their native habitats.

With resources like time, space and funds lacking, McMaster and other rehabilitators are often faced with more injured animals than they can accommodate.

"I get 300 to 400 birds a year — sometimes up to 500," said McMaster, who is licensed for passerines, or non-raptors like songbirds and waterfowl at her Wildbird Recovery Songbird Rehabilitation Center.

Maryjane Angelo in nearby Venango County is licensed for passerines as well as raptors and mammals. Angelo said her facility, Skye's Spirit Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center, receives more than 700 creatures each year.

With the busy season approaching, both rehabilitators seek to raise awareness about protecting wildlife in the environment.

The most important information about wildlife is understanding how human actions can be harmful.In addition to state and federal laws that prohibit handling wildlife, rehabbers say the stress of human contact can compromise recovery.But more critical advice is to avoid feeding animals that appear injured.Many people are told by pet stores, for instance, that generic seed mixes are suitable for wild songbirds, McMaster said. While these mixes can be used in bird feeders to supplement diets of healthy birds that forage in nature, injured birds lose access to such staples."A baby songbird's diet is very, very specific," said McMaster, citing different combinations of meal worms, bugs, seeds, vegetables and berries often unavailable in retail stores."Wildlife needs speciated foods to grow properly and these things cannot be bought on a store shelf," Angelo also said, adding that some injuries such as head trauma can be worsened by feeding.In some cases, the results of feeding wildlife can lead to the need for euthanasia, since an imbalanced diet has compromised recovery. Although some results include poor feathering, McMaster said improperly fed birds also contract metabolic bone disease. "Babies are simply too weak, underdeveloped, and/or deformed to be released," she noted. For baby birds, consequences begin to manifest after two days, she added.

Although human intervention can harm wild animals, domestic cats also injure birds and rodents."Eastern cottontails and squirrels are the most common mammals," said Angelo of "patients" she treats each year. "A good 80 percent come in attacked by cats, which cause each to be on antibiotics for the Pasteurella bacteria that cats carry in their mouths and on their claws.""That's a big issue with me,' agreed McMaster, whose bird specialty puts her in constant touch with cat-induced trauma."They're a non-native predator. They kill 4 to 5 million birds a day," she said.Since cats harm so many birds, McMaster cited the American Bird Conservancy's suggestion to keep all domestic cats indoors. "We ask if you're not willing to do this, please keep them in from at least April until the end of September because most of the baby animals are born during that time. Most of our "cat-caught" patients are during baby season, and at my center 98 precent are fledgling birds.""Birds do not survive cat attacks on their own," she also said, adding the damage often appears deceptively minimal.Angelo said in addition to the cat-induced injuries to smaller passerines, her center commonly receives raptors like red tail hawks, barn owls and great horned owls.Many of the owls have been hit by cars while hunting, she said.

McMaster and Angelo, sole practitioners in their respective counties, are among the state's 50 licensed wildlife rehabilitators.To become licensed, candidates must be sponsored by a veterinarian and existing rehabilitator before undergoing the required interviews and testing.McMaster said obtaining permits required by the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can take up to six months.Injured animals are sometimes delivered to McMaster and Angelo by wildlife conservation officers who monitor their work, but most often the animals are delivered by citizens.Upon receiving the animals, rehabilitators consult with a veterinarian if needed.The veterinarians perform surgery when necessary and otherwise advise on administering antibiotics and other care."Each are provided with specialized formulas and foods that will aid in their quick recovery," said Angelo, who leans toward holistic methods at her facility."Once healed, they are returned to the wild as close as possible to where they were found unless that area has been deemed unsafe," she said. "There is no average stay, they are here as long as it is necessary."Both McMaster and Angelo cite release rates of about 75 percent.For baby birds, McMaster said the stay ranges between four and six weeks. For older birds, the stay depends on reasons for admission.McMaster's home landscape is also slowly transforming to include ponds and indigenous plants to accommodate birds during "soft release."This approach provides habitats and forage close to the release site, allowing birds to reassimilate to the wild without the need for immediate travel.Functioning as a nonprofit, McMaster receives some donations from those who bring in wildlife for treatment — but that money barely pays for feed, which runs about $150 per month in the summer."My husband and I just pay for what needs to be done," she said of the ongoing building projects necessary for housing hundreds of birds."We have had a difficult time raising the needed funds to keep the center open," Angelo agreed. "We have used our own money from my husband's work and now I have returned to work ... to make sure we have enough money to keep open," she said.Although rehab costs vary according to animal and injury, an average cottontail or squirrel runs about $30, barring long-term antibiotics it is around $30 per cottontail or squirrel. A fawn might cost $500 or more to rehabilitate.Although some veterinarians donate time toward rehabilitation, others charge full price for their services, McMaster said."Birds of prey are the most costly in feed alone, as each requires whole animals that we purchase frozen. It generally costs about $3 a day to feed a raptor, and that doesn't include (medical) costs," Angelo said."This is an unpaid position, I receive no salary. The money raised goes to care for the wildlife. My payment is being able to watch them go free for that second chance."McMaster said she feels fortunate many of those who drop off injured animals also contribute to her rehab operation. "Probably half leave some type of donation. Some remember us later on," she said."I feel lucky that my life is touched by all these animals — that I can experience how unique and incredible they are."They have just as much right to this planet as we do, and anything I can do to help them, I will."

Beth McMaster checks on birds she is rehabilitating in her aviary-like building in Middlesex Township. Contray to popular belief, touch a baby bird will not deter a mother from having contact with that bird.

An oriole being rehabbed by Beth McMaster sits on a branch in one of her Middlesex Township enclosures. McMaster urges cat owners to keep their pets inside between the months of April and September because most baby birds are born during that time.

Beth McMaster works in the room where she keeps rehabilitating birds. McMaster takes in some 300 to 400 injured birds each year. She says cat attacks and human interaction can cause many of the injuries.