About the Center
Founded to serve those animals most overlooked by society.
Officially incorporated in 2003, Carolina Waterfowl Rescue (CWR) is a nationally-recognized 501(C)(3) wildlife rescue and animal sanctuary, specializing in avian, reptile, and farm animal species. Started out of a garage with the promise of helping one family of orphaned ducklings, CWR’s operations have expanded to provide urgent medical treatment, professional rehabilitation, and habitat-simulating sanctuary to all of North Carolina and South Carolina’s native wildlife.
CWR admitted over 7,000 animal patients in 2023, a staggering figure that is only possible because of the nearly 500 volunteers who donate their time to CWR annually and the invaluable public support from donors. CWR exists for the animals and only exists because of you.
WHO WE HELP
CWR has over two decades of experience in avian medicine and offers our services to the public free of charge in all instances. We operate two robust programs onsite, our Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic and our Domestic Animal Housing Program, each filling highly under-served sectors within animal rescue.
Wildlife
Our Wildlife Clinic can be subdivided into Adult Wildlife and Wildlife Offspring. Adult wildlife who have experienced human-wildlife conflict and require medical intervention are hospitalized and rehabbed at CWR with the ultimate goal of a timely return to the wild. While we admit adults year-round, our program for offspring is seasonal and follows the hatching season of native songbird species. This sees the successful raise and release of hundreds of injured, orphaned, and in-distress baby birds every summer.
Domestic
CWR’s domestic housing encompasses our Adoption Program and Resident Animal Program. Domestic animals like ducks, geese, and chickens rarely find medical help or second homes in the ways that more popular pets do, like dogs and cats. At CWR, domestic fowl, farm, and exotic animals that have been surrendered to our care are available for adoption. They have sanctuary and safety with us on 15 acres of land until they find permanent placement in the community. A number of animals receive permanent sanctuary status and live with us lifelong, most commonly if they are survivors of severe injuries or have been entrusted to us after an owner passes. We also assist local law enforcement in seizure cases.
Our Mission
To provide a facility for the rescue, treatment, and release or rehoming of sick, injured, and orphaned native wildlife, other waterfowl, and dumped or surrendered farm animals.
To educate the public about and to promote understanding of the local wildlife and their habitats, as well as ethical treatment and care of farm animals.
To increase awareness of and appreciation for the value of wildlife and the environment, and to protect these natural resources
To promote the highest standards in all activities of the rehabilitator profession
To promote networking, communication, and cooperation among rehabilitators, wildlife organizations, farm sanctuaries, and facilities on local, statewide, and national levels.
Carolina Waterfowl Rescue continues to make an impact with your help.
Our Vision
The animals that society condemns are the ones we celebrate.
CWR takes in birds, reptiles, and farm animals from all over the Carolinas and beyond. We have seen the gaps that exist, specifically when it comes to wildlife rehabilitation and pet care, and we aim to fill those gaps. As one of the leading waterfowl and songbird rehabilitation centers on the East Coast for the last 20 years, CWR is uniquely positioned to achieve broader understanding and more equitable healthcare for the animals so often overlooked within the medical and pet care margins of society. We call to action those who are unaware of the plight of the animals we serve. With patience and perseverance, we have been able to challenge the long-held perceptions and stigmas around birds, reptiles, and farm animals. Whether in our own backyard or across the country, we are ready to tackle animal welfare one animal and one person at a time.
Our founder, Jennifer Gordon, found her purpose in life at a very young age, and it was to be an advocate for animals.
Our History
After getting married and starting a family, CWR founder Jennifer Gordon moved to North Carolina from California. In a new state, she did not have any extended family or friends nearby. That’s when Jennifer decided to start volunteering.
Around the time she made the decision to start volunteering, Jennifer noticed domestic ducks continuously being dumped in her neighborhood pond. They were usually white ducks. People never noticed they would come and go due to being killed, but she did. She just wasn’t quite sure what to do about it. Then a rouen duck was dumped and eventually made a nest. Jennifer counted the days for the babies to be born. She went to the pond on the day they were supposed to hatch, hoping to have babies to see, only to find mama gone, and a half-eaten wing laying over the eggs. The duck had stood her ground to protect her babies, and Jennifer believed her last, dying breath was to place her wing down to protect them and keep them warm.
Her first duck rescue was about to take place. She didn’t know anything about hatching ducks and assumed there was some place that could help. Coming from CA where they already had no kill shelters and farm sanctuaries, she was disappointed to find that in her current area, ducks were just meat to most people. After searching nonstop, Jennifer found a mentor and friend who helped her with the babies. She also found a new path in life that day as a wildlife rehabilitator.
She had no idea what it was but was so excited to find people who took care of animals. Jennifer learned from every place within a two-hour drive from her home. She could not get enough. Jennifer wanted to learn more and joined a group for wildlife rehabbers. She started by taking in squirrels, rabbits, etc. and really enjoyed it, but when bird calls came in and were ignored, she realized she needed to do more.
Jennifer knew she needed to focus on the animals that were the neediest, neglected, and just unwanted. CWR was born. It wasn’t a nonprofit yet, but through her network of rehabbers Jennifer took in ducks and geese here and there. The rescue was originally run from her home. At one point, her husband said, “I counted 40 ducks in our garage; this can’t go on here.” He was right. A larger facility was needed.
Jennifer did not originally set out to have employees, volunteers, 15 acres, and rescue thousands and thousands of animals each year. It just evolved over time to the point CWR is today. Jennifer took a lot of classes on nonprofit management, and as we grow, she finds she has to step up the game at each level. It has been a never-ending growing and learning experience.
CWR is grassroots and sometimes unconventional compared to other places. Our director, Jennifer Gordon, has always guided the rescue with strong ethics based on the feeling that things aren’t always right in the world, and something should be done about it.
FAQs
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Our rescue center is open 365 days a year. We are open for intakes from 8 AM to 8 PM daily in the spring/summer and 8 AM to 6 PM daily in the fall/winter. Our hotline is manned during those same hours. A staff rehabber is on call after-hours for wildlife emergencies.
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Due to state permits and the presence of animals undergoing active rehabilitation, we are not open to the public for tours at this time.
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CWR operates on a 15-acre property. Our building complex is comprised of a front desk reception, a produce kitchen, a treatment clinic, a radiograph suite, a hospital and barn for patient housing, a songbird department, and several outdoor aviaries.
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A majority of our animal patients are brought to us by compassionate callers or by the CWR transport volunteers who work hand-in-hand with callers and our hotline volunteers to facilitate timely transport. We also work closely with animal control, law enforcement officials, and other rescues to assist with seizure cases and rescue-to-rescue placement.
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CWR is a nonprofit organization that receives no funding support from any local, state, or government agency. The rescue relies on kind-hearted people like you to help cover costs. As an example, CWR's Songbird Nursery program requires 100,000 mealworms a week at a cost of $10,000/month through the summer. Many of the birds we help are on the decline but vital to our ecosystem.
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CWR admits an average of around 7,000 animals annually. A majority are sick, injured, or orphaned avian species from all over the Carolinas. Our top 3 admitted species are the Carolina wren, Canada goose, and mallard.
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The goal of all wildlife rehabilitation is a release back into the wild with the promise of thriving after recuperation. Most wildlife patients are released upon successful completion of rehabilitation. Few are deemed non-releasable based on evaluation by our staff veterinarian.
Not all patients are able to be saved, but CWR makes every effort for each patient. Our team makes informed decisions for every animal individually in terms of their path to recovery.
Domestic patients are medically cleared and then entered into our adoption program to find forever homes in the community.
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CWR's annual budget is $750,000. Those funds are raised entirely by generous donors, supporters, patrons, and community members.
Our life-saving work would not be possible without the dedication of CWR's nearly 500 volunteers.