Volunteer Overview

St. Francis is always looking for dedicated and motivated individuals interested in volunteering with us. We have a variety of opportunities to choose from, including one-time jobs and projects, rescue volunteers to pick up injured wildlife, animal transport volunteers, animal care positions, foster parents for our orphaned squirrels, and volunteer for our public events.

We require that animal care volunteers be at least 18 years of age; however, we also have some projects that families can participate in from home!

We are open seven days a week, including holidays, from 8:30 am to 5 pm. During the summer, we have extended hours to accommodate our infant birds and mammals who need to be fed throughout the day and into the evening.

One-time jobs/projects

We have many projects that can be completed as a one-time job or project, including pressure washing outside cages, hospital building maintenance, outdoor beautification, or building new outdoor cages.

St. Francis has several projects that can be completed at home. This is a great way for children to get involved with helping wildlife. Projects include building nest boxes for baby animals, gathering acorns or pecans, or building a small outdoor squirrel cage.

Flexible hours

You can transport animals from veterinary clinics in Tallahassee to our facility, or transport animals from the rescue location when people are unable to bring them to us. Cleaning kennels, floors and doing laundry is an easy way to become loved by all members of the staff!

You can help us with our fundraising efforts, through grant research and writing, volunteering at our public events, or finding items we need.

Animal Care

If you’re looking for a “hands-on” experience, this is the job for you. You would be helping with the everyday care of the animals: cleaning cages, preparing food, nursing baby squirrels, doing laundry, hand-feeding baby birds, and washing dishes. We ask for a commitment to one shift of four hours per week minimum. You must be at least 18 years old, have all vaccinations current, your own health insurance and no immune-compromised diseases.

Foster Parents

During our summer months, we rescue hundreds of orphaned squirrels that need to be feed throughout the day and sometimes at night. When you are experienced in animal care, you could care for some of these babies at your home.

Education Program Assistant

This position is open only to volunteers who are experienced animal care volunteers. Our education director houses several raptor species on her property and needs assistance with cleaning cages and caring for them. Volunteers who become experienced handling the raptors are needed at our many public events and some of our outreach educational programs. For more information on this position, please contact our education director Sandy Beck at stfranciswildlife@comcast.net or 850-528-0823.

Human-wildlife confrontations increase in the spring and summer when animals, focused on caring for their young, are more visible.

Dive-bombing birds can be a frightening experience, and a raptor with inch-long talons can be intimidating, but it's usually just a bluff to scare off intruders.

What can we do to when hawks, owls or mockingbirds are concerned about our close proximity to their babies?

Accommodate the birds by making the nest area off-limits for a while is the neighborly thing to do.

If that isn't possible, carry an umbrella or wear a hat with eyes on the back of your head. No kidding. Birds are discouraged from striking when they are being watched. Download and print this large pair of eyes, and tape it to the back of your hat.

Remember, like us, these birds are just doing their best to protect their young, and your inconvenience is only a temporary one. Rather than getting your feathers ruffled, feel fortunate that you live in a place where you can awaken to a symphony of birdsongs, and you can observe nesting behavior right outside your front door. Just don't forget to wear your hat.

All native wild birds have legal protection. It is unlawful to kill, harass or possess a wild bird or its nest.

Raccoons and foxes are mostly nocturnal. However, it is quite common, especially in urban areas, for a healthy animal to venture out during the day if it is hungry or its den has been destroyed. Frequently, mother raccoons and foxes that are nursing babies will be forced to search for food night and day.

Another reason why these animals may come near your neighborhood is cat food. When people leave cat food outdoors they are attracting other animals, not only cats.

The old assumption that if they are seen out in the day time they are rabid, it's not true.

Distemper is a very common disease in raccoons and foxes. Distemper symptoms closely resemble rabies symptoms. Both are related to the nervous system and may include paralysis, self-mutilation, circling, and lack of fear of humans. Distemper cannot be transmitted to humans.

Care should be taken when a raccoon or fox looks sick or acts strangely, but overreaction against all raccoons and foxes is unwarranted. Never attempt to catch these animals; they may bite in self defense, which will guarantee their death for rabies testing.