The GROW Wildlife Hospital of Georgia is a project to build the first dedicated wildlife veterinary teaching hospital and clinical research center in the state. When completed, the veterinary hospital will be staffed by wildlife specialist veterinarians, residents, and interns from the University of Georgia (UGA) College of Veterinary Medicine.  Through this partnership, the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine will use this hospital to train veterinary students on a zoological specialist tracking seeking careers at zoos, aquariums, and wildlife facilities.  Southern Regional Health System will donate expired medical equipment and supplies. Architects are designing this 11,000 square feet, four wing facility as a state-of-the-art, environmental attraction seeking platinum level certification from The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). The LEED Green Building Rating System was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and provides a suite of standards for environmentally sustainable construction. This unique environmental education facility will be located adjacent to Cochran Mill Nature Center, a 20-year-old environmental campus in beautiful Chattahoochee Hills, GA.

The wildlife hospital will specialize in the treatment of all species of native wildlife including mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians that have been injured due to urban expansion and man’s encroachment into their natural habitat. Unlike domestic animals, zoological animals, and exotic pets which have the opportunity for professional veterinary care when they are sick or injured because their owners pay the necessary veterinary fees, native wildlife animals have no owners to pay for professional veterinary care. Currently, licensed individual wildlife rehabilitators and non-profit wildlife rehabilitation centers saddle the costs for their care. Many of these rehabilitators have the expertise to care for the animals but lack access to specialized veterinary care from experienced wildlife veterinarians. The GROW Wildlife Hospital of Georgia will help fill this need by offering diagnostic, therapeutic, and surgical support. With GROW Wildlife and licensed wildlife rehabilitators working together, releasable patients can receive the highest degree of care. The GROW Wildlife Hospital of Georgia will ensure that native wildlife animals enjoy the same specialized level of care when sick or injured that are offered for domestic, zoological, and exotic pet species.

Georgia needs this wildlife hospital! According to a recent study by Smart Growth America, 46 percent of all known population occurrences of imperiled species are within the boundaries of metropolitan areas. Georgia has several counties listed in the top 35 fastest growing metropolitan areas in the United States where rapid consumption of land threatens the survival of native species. Nuisance wildlife trapper and wildlife rehabilitator permit records from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources provide valuable insight to the severe rate of destruction of wildlife species in Atlanta metropolitan areas caused by human impact issues. According to these records alone, thousands of native wildlife animals are injured, trapped, and destroyed annually.