Animals don’t ask for much, but they deserve better, and we're here to do what others won’t: train civilians to rescue, rehabilitate, and release Australian native animals back into the wild.

If knowledge is power, then it’s our mission to share and create a legion of trained wildlife carers in the North East of Victoria and beyond.

We are committed to more than just a hero moment for ourselves; we believe in providing real care that gives every creature a fighting chance. The more people we can train, the greater the impact we can have. So are you ready to join the Wildside?

We’re not running a petting zoo, and this isn’t all about selfies with cute baby animals. We rescue, rehabilitate and release wildlife throughout the Benalla & Strathbogie districts.

But more than that, we’re here to train a new generation and network of wildlife carers who want to get stuck in, learn the ropes, spread the word and help us get injured and orphaned animals back where they belong: in the wild.

If you’re ready for some mud, mess and proper hands-on experience, you’re in the right place. Scroll down page for more detail on how to volunteer and get involved.

The hardest part about getting involved in wildlife rescue work is knowing where to start, and what to do. Wildside Wildlife Shelter to the rescue - spreading the word through:

• Wildlife Rescue Workshops as part of our Weekend Wellness
  Reboot Retreats: How Wildlife Rescue works in Victoria and how to get involved
  

• Wildlife Education Workshops for schools and landcare groups - contact us to arrange.

• Hands on training and experience in partnership with Little Farm of Calm’s 7-Day Feel Good, Do Good retreats featuring daily work and training at the shelter.

• Coming Soon: Youtube channel and short instructional videos for public on what to do when encountering injured wildlife in order to give them the best chance of survival.

While we will never declare ourselves experts, we have years of real world experience to share on how to assess, treat, handle and release native animals safely.

This includes a network of species specialists, successful release strategies and practical skills in raising macropods from pinkie through to release. We seek to freely share our knowledge with others in the name of better outcomes for the animals in our care. If you have any questions, or would like to volunteer on a regular basis at the shelter then please get in touch.

There is no point raising wildlife if you don’t have a safe and appropriate release site. It’s the missing piece of the puzzle for so many carers, and can mean the difference between a long healthy life and a short, unhealthy one for the animals we put our heart and soul into caring for..

Wildside Wildlife maintains and privately funds a 230-acre release site backing onto state forest and plantations, suitable for several species of local wildlife raised in care. Our goal is to support other shelters and carers from the NE regions in safely and successfully releasing animals raised in care. Contact us for more details via forms below.