My Experience with the Waynesboro Wildlife Center in Waynesboro, VA

I don't know if the Waynesboro Wildlife Center has changed their ways from when I was there the summer of 1999. But my experience there still haunts me.

Where I used to live, when I called out kitty, kitty, kitty, the cats came running to eat. And the opossums did too. It was rather funny that the little gang of opossums did this. But then one day, I noticed one of them was dragging one of its legs. I managed to coax her into a dog crate and then I called around to some veterinarians.

Every veterinarian I called offered to put her to sleep for me. But that wasn't what I was looking for. But no one could treat her because she was considered wildlife. Finally, a veterinarian put me in touch with a transporter to the Wildlife Center. I didn't know we even had a Wildlife Center until I spoke with this person. She told me that she drives the animals some of the way and then someone else takes them the rest of the journey. I told her that I wanted to contact the place myself.

I called the Waynesboro Wildlife Center right away. The lady I spoke with told me how they have these great animal rehab places for opossums and that if she couldn't be returned to the wild that she would live her life out in a great place.

Liking what I had heard, I got some directions, called into work, and drove up there the following day. Since they had me go the incredibly long way, it took almost two and a half hours to get there. I had some car trouble and a cop had to drive me and the opossum to the Wildlife Center. When I arrived, they took the opossum and didn't say anything further. While I waited for my father to pick me up, I watched them give a feral cat an abortion.

Going down a hall, I saw the gas mask on my opossum. They were putting her down and didn't even say anything to me. Considering I went to so much trouble to take her there, the happy opossums dreams that they had told me, and the fact that I was still there - they could have told me. She wasn't a pet in the real sense of the word, but I had been feeding her. And we bonded on our drive there. And I didn't even get to tell her bye. I had promised her that she would be okay. Those people turned me into a liar.

They tried to tell me that she was too old to be helped. But I do not believe that. I still feel very much lied to by that place.

About two years ago, I received something in the mail from the Waynesboro Wildlife Center. I called them and asked for some type of manager. The man they put me on with, I told him my sad opossum story.

He went quiet for a moment after I finished as if he didn't know how to reply. Then he asked me why I let so many years go by before I said anything. I told him that I complained while I was there and that any further discussion was pointless since she was dead. And then I emphasized to him that I expect never to receive anything from them ever again asking for donations considering I wasted money going up there and they did nothing that couldn't have been did locally.

It's been over eight years since this happened. And I don't want to scare anyone away from taking animals there or donating money. I'm sure they help most animals. But the happy opossum rehab place that I was told about over the phone couldn't have been more different from what really happened (her being euthanized). In light of this, I do think that some inquiries need to be made into if they are really doing all they can to help all of the animals.