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CB Animals and Pets Review of Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care
Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care

Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care review: If you love animals, don't trust them to this organization! 3

Author of the review
7:22 am EDT
Resolved
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

We love animals & have wildlife living throughout our property. We found a baby squirrel that had fallen out of its nest. Concerned that it may be injured, I went on the internet for help. I spoke to Sharon at [protected]. She referred us to Glenn at [protected] a female volunteer with 'Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care' which is run by Cathy Case in Thousand Oaks at [protected]. Glenn told me to bring the squirrel to her home at 5526 Mason Ave, Woodland Hills, which we did. She had me fill out an intake form, never giving me a copy of what I'd signed. It asked for a donation-something she'd failed to mention on the phone. She told us she would personally be taking care of the squirrel. We made it very clear we wanted it back after she nursed it back to health, so that it could remain on our property with its squirrel family. I even offered to allow her to release her other squirrels on our property after she complained how overworked she was & how she had nowhere to release them after she nursed them back to health.

A few wks. later I phoned her to find out how our squirrel was doing. She told me she had given it to another care center, yet refused to provide me any information as to its whereabouts, claiming she couldn't remember- yet remembered that I'd put on the form 2 wks. prior that I could not afford a donation. She denied promising to return our squirrel to us. She was loud & abusive. Hmm.. I'll bet she wouldn't have had 'selective memory loss' if I'd paid her a 'donation!'

I contacted her supervisor Cathy Case, who only condoned her behavior & refused to tell me the whereabouts of our squirrel.

These co-conspirators lied to us and stole our squirrel. We don't know if it's dead or alive. We have filed a complaint against Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care & these individuals with their governing agency, The Department of fish and game. If you love animals, DO NOT trust them with these 'FOXES IN SHEEPS CLOTHING!' They can not be trusted!

Resolved

The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

3 comments
S
S
sonia
Woodland Hills, US
Feb 04, 2009 2:47 pm EST

Duane, thank you for your response to the complaint, we understand that in your field of focus, days get longer, spaces get more crowded, and funding often is inadequate to offer the resources you need to do your jobs better. And many of us understand you are doing the best you can and we do not want you to stop working as hard as you do. You cannot satisfy everyone and we know it, as long as you keep providing the help you do, a difference will be made in the life of wildlife. Jackie, I do understand how upsetting this situation must have been for you. But please don't give up, mistakes happen; please carry on rescuing needy creatures. This world needs people like you, who first of all care about such issues, secondly people who act to address these issues and lastly, people who don't give up. So please, don't stop helping, because we don't want you to stop making a difference.

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Duane Bentzen
,
Nov 24, 2008 9:35 am EST

This posting is in response to a [redacted] filed by Cheri in Los Angeles regarding the Shadow Oaks Wildlife Center in Ventura County and the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County, California.

There are a number of organizations in the Los Angeles area who perform wild animal rescue and rehabilitation. The Shadow Oaks Wildlife Center is one of these. I have worked with both Cathy Case and Glenn Ellis, the founders and operators of Shadow Oaks, for a number of years.

As well as squirrels mentioned in the filed report, Shadow Oaks (a 5013(c) corporation) works with a variety of wild animals rescued in Ventura County and the north-west area of Los Angeles county. They receive hundreds of animals every year; mostly small animals, squirrels, possums, and raccoons, The staff, all volunteers, work very diligently to care for the animals they receive.

They operate under a state license, granted by the department of fish and game. The organization follows strict rules regarding the animals taken in. The animals received are all either injured or orphaned, most are very young animals who respond extremely well to the care received at the wildlife center, and are released back into the wild after it has been made sure they are able to survive on their own.

The staff keeps accurate records, I file a number of intake and care forms with them. With the volume of animals received and the network of caregivers involved, it is not surprising that occasionally information about a particular animal is either misplaced or passed on to another volunteer where it is not returned to the original receiver of one of the animals.

I will say that as a database programmer (and animal lover!) that the organization is working diligently to improve the recording system used to track the animals and the care that is given. I have been assisting them by creating both a web site and a computer database to track the animals taken in.

I will also say that with hundreds of squirrels, possums and other animals, it is a daunting task. How exactly do you tell one baby squirrel from another as they become larger, more wild and are eventually released back into their environment? I've cared for batches of squirrels, usually five at a time, and we do our best to keep them identified. We use non-toxic tempera paint most of the time so the animals are color coded, but it is not easy and sometimes we confuse one animal with another.

In our defense, we weigh and feed the animals daily (three times a day with the smallest), clean cages and keep records of their growth and any necessary veterinary care (yes, we have veterinarians we work with.) With small squirrels who fall from nests, lose their homes from tree trimming in the spring and fall, and who are often caught by domestic animals, we put a great deal of energy into the process.

I know it must be frustrating for someone who has found a small animal and turned the animal over to someone else's care to later find out they cannot have the animal back or that the animal has not survived. For the filer of the complaint, I can only say that you might wish to add your name to the list of those of us who care for these wild animals. The municipalities where the animals are rescued certainly have no resources to protect these animals, and the task falls to those of us who are willing to put the energy and work into the process of rescue and rehabilitation.

I suggest any reader of the complaint filed investigate our organization further. I am not surprised at all that someone would file a complaint, we're certainly not perfect. It is frustrating for all of us to know that we are not performing to expectations. We continue to do this work as it is very satisfying and fun, but also sometimes exasperating.

Please know we constantly strive to do our best with the animals we receive, and truly apologize for the frustrations that the public experiences. You're welcome to contact us for further information and yes, if you are concerned about animals, contribute to our cause.

You're welcome to contact Cathy Case, who founded Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care at [protected]. We are all highly trained and experienced wildlife rehabilitators who care for orphaned and injured small mammals from the West Valley to Southern Ventura Co. We are always working to educate the public how to coexist with native wildlife.

Thanks for reading my reply to this complaint!

- Duane Bentzen, Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care Volunteer

D
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Duane Bentzen
,
Nov 24, 2008 9:33 am EST

This posting is in response to a complaint filed by Jackie Green in Los Angeles regarding the Shadow Oaks Wildlife Center in Ventura County and the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County, California.

There are a number of organizations in the Los Angeles area who perform wild animal rescue and rehabilitation. The Shadow Oaks Wildlife Center is one of these. I have worked with both Cathy Case and Glenn Ellis, the founders and operators of Shadow Oaks, for a number of years.

As well as squirrels mentioned in the filed report, Shadow Oaks (a 5013(c) corporation) works with a variety of wild animals rescued in Ventura County and the north-west area of Los Angeles county. They receive hundreds of animals every year; mostly small animals, squirrels, possums, and raccoons, The staff, all volunteers, work very diligently to care for the animals they receive.

They operate under a state license, granted by the department of fish and game. The organization follows strict rules regarding the animals taken in. The animals received are all either injured or orphaned, most are very young animals who respond extremely well to the care received at the wildlife center, and are released back into the wild after it has been made sure they are able to survive on their own.

The staff keeps accurate records, I file a number of intake and care forms with them. With the volume of animals received and the network of caregivers involved, it is not surprising that occasionally information about a particular animal is either misplaced or passed on to another volunteer where it is not returned to the original receiver of one of the animals.

I will say that as a database programmer (and animal lover!) that the organization is working diligently to improve the recording system used to track the animals and the care that is given. I have been assisting them by creating both a web site and a computer database to track the animals taken in.

I will also say that with hundreds of squirrels, possums and other animals, it is a daunting task. How exactly do you tell one baby squirrel from another as they become larger, more wild and are eventually released back into their environment? I've cared for batches of squirrels, usually five at a time, and we do our best to keep them identified. We use non-toxic tempera paint most of the time so the animals are color coded, but it is not easy and sometimes we confuse one animal with another.

In our defense, we weigh and feed the animals daily (three times a day with the smallest), clean cages and keep records of their growth and any necessary veterinary care (yes, we have veterinarians we work with.) With small squirrels who fall from nests, lose their homes from tree trimming in the spring and fall, and who are often caught by domestic animals, we put a great deal of energy into the process.

I know it must be frustrating for someone who has found a small animal and turned the animal over to someone else's care to later find out they cannot have the animal back or that the animal has not survived. For the filer of the complaint, I can only say that you might wish to add your name to the list of those of us who care for these wild animals. The municipalities where the animals are rescued certainly have no resources to protect these animals, and the task falls to those of us who are willing to put the energy and work into the process of rescue and rehabilitation.

I suggest any reader of the complaint filed investigate our organization further. I am not surprised at all that someone would file a complaint, we're certainly not perfect. It is frustrating for all of us to know that we are not performing to expectations. We continue to do this work as it is very satisfying and fun, but also sometimes exasperating.

Please know we constantly strive to do our best with the animals we receive, and truly apologize for the frustrations that the public experiences. You're welcome to contact us for further information and yes, if you are concerned about animals, contribute to our cause.

You're welcome to contact Cathy Case, who founded Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care at [protected]. We are all highly trained and experienced wildlife rehabilitators who care for orphaned and injured small mammals from the West Valley to Southern Ventura Co. We are always working to educate the public how to coexist with native wildlife.

Thanks for reading my reply to this complaint!

- Duane Bentzen, Shadow Oaks Wildlife Care Volunteer