A program to save injured wildlife in the village and eventually return the animals to their natural habitat could become a reality this spring, trustees said.
Village Board members agreed last week to study a plan linking the village with Willowbrook Wildlife Haven, a rehabilitation and education center affiliated with the Du Page County Forest Preserve District. The center, supported by volunteers on 43 acres near Glen Ellyn, has accepted injured or orphaned animals at no cost for three decades and released many back into the environment.
If established, the program could be staffed by volunteers, said Karen Shabel, a member of the Westmont Environmental Improvement Commission and the plan’s primary backer.
“If the village were willing to train people and pay for gas, I’m sure there are people who would volunteer to transport the animals to Willowbrook (haven) and, thereby, save a number of injured animals,” Shabel said. “That way there’s no other cost involved and the animals are taken care of.”
Police often handle calls about injured and orphaned animals with a gun, officials said.
But other towns long have used the wildlife center as a dropoff for injured animals. Downers Grove takes healthy animals and releases them into the wild and takes sick or injured animals to the wildlife haven. Bolingbrook’s Police Department has a similar program, officials said.
Though favoring the idea, trustees questioned whether the program would be legal. Aware that the Illinois Department of Conservation frowns on people taking in injured animals, Mayor Frank Bellerive said he wanted the staff to study state laws closely before the board makes a decision.
Although the volunteer program is attractive financially, it might be safer to train public works staff members to transport injured animals to the Willowbrook haven, because they have access to more equipment needed for animal trapping, police officials said.
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There is one officer and two community service officers trained to deal with injured, sick or trapped animals, said Police Chief Richard Metzger.