Hope for at-risk wildlife

To the editors and Telegraph readers,

This letter is for everyone who, like us, felt so badly for the hungry bears that were having such a hard time this summer. We had an experience with a very small bear that frequented our yard in the county. It was through our efforts to help this motherless waif that we discovered two great wildlife rehab programs in our area. Both are run voluntarily and rely on donations to care for the lucky animals that make it into their centers. They take in injured and orphaned wildlife of all varieties and care for them until they are strong enough to be released back into the wild. One place is the Montelores Wildlife Rehab in Dolores. Its address is: 14273 C.R. 27, Dolores, CO 81232.

The other is the Frisco Creek Wildlife Rehab in Del Norte. This is where the Division of Wildlife takes the orphaned cubs from Durango and is where our lucky little malnourished bear is spending the winter, with more than 40 other small bears, before returning to the forest next spring. Its address is: P.O. Box 488, Del Norte, CO 81132

If you would like to help out the underprivileged wildlife in a meaningful way, please keep these worthy places in mind during the season of giving.

Sincerely,
– Robin Fritch and Stephen Saltsman,
Durango,
via e-mail