This local wildlife rehabilitator turned her Hilton Head Island home into a sanctuary for non-releasable animals 

Where the wild things are

Story by Bailey Gilliam + Photography by Katie Bradham

When we think of pets, dogs and cats are typically the first to come to mind. Maybe fish, the occasional bird or rabbit, or even a turtle. But have you ever considered having a raccoon? Or a squirrel? For seasoned wildlife rehabilitator Tiffany VanBlaricum, these animals are part of her everyday reality. Her passion for wildlife and domestic animal rescue has led her to care for foster-failure cats, non-releasable raccoons and a variety of other wild animals that cannot return to the wild due to physical or neurological disabilities. Tiffany’s Hilton Head Island home has become a sanctuary for these special animals, offering them a safe place to thrive. LOCAL Life visited her to learn more about her lifesaving work.

[LOCAL Life] What’s a typical day like for you? [Tiffany VanBlaricum] I start every day with uncovering the birds, making sure they have clean water and food, cleaning up the baby raccoons, checking water and food, checking all caged animals’ water bottles, cleaning the bunny enclosures, checking their water and food, cleaning the ferret cage and checking their food and water, scooping litter boxes, giving big raccoons downstairs clean water and food, sweeping the living room and laundry room, and then I make my coffee. 

[LL] Wow, how long does that usually take? [TV] About an hour and a half. Then I do more or less the same things in the evenings too. 

[LL] How many animals are in your care? [TV] Thirty-six. I have seven cats, five raccoons, five gray squirrels, one fox squirrel, five flying squirrels, six deer mice, two zebra finches, one green cheek conure bird, one domestic rabbit, one cottontail rabbit and two ferrets. 

[LL] How many animals have you rehabilitated? [TV] Hundreds. And I have found numerous homes for foster kittens.

[LL] When did you start wildlife rehabilitation? [TV] I started around 1998, but it took me a while to really get going with it (meeting the right people to help teach and mentor me.) I actually just did it on my own at first, but when I got into things I wasn’t sure about, I started reaching out for help and advice. It was very primitive when I started. I didn’t have the resources available that I have now. Dixie Stevenson and Misty Ogden were my greatest teachers and mentors. Over time, the rehabber community grew more and more. It’s much more prominent today than it was 25 years ago.

[LL] What was your first animal? [TV] A raccoon. My first three were raccoons. The first one I got was from my local veterinarian, Dr. Parker. He had gotten a whole litter of raccoons and needed a home for one more. Apparently, something happened to the mom, and the babies were orphaned, when someone found them and brought them to the vet. Back in the day, before there was a strong rehabilitation community, people brought everything to the vet. The next two raccoons I got, however, came from the shelter. 

[LL] Were you able to release those raccoons? [TV] Not the first three. I didn’t even know anyone in the rehab world then, so I had no resources to release. I raised Princess Nala, Princess Sweet Pea and Boo Bear Boo Bera Bear. I found out through my vet that they had to be spayed and neutered to be kept, and he helped me keep them healthy. After they passed away, I vowed only to keep non-releasable animals. Their memorial plaque hangs in my breezeway.

[LL] What kind of resources do you need to release wildlife? [TV] You need someone with land and release cages to be able to release them properly. You can’t just throw them back outside into the wild without provision. So we have people with land and release cages set up so we can soft-release them back into the wild. 

[LL] What would you consider to be your most significant success? [TV] Any of my animals with maggot infestations that I could get completely cleaned up and healthy enough to return to the wild. My most recent raccoon, Baby Finn, is a huge success too. He was covered entirely in fly eggs – thank God they hadn’t all hatched yet. I only found one dead maggot in his left ear. He was covered in ticks, fleas and mites and had internal worms. He is still recovering from all of the parasites he had. 

[LL] What advice would you give someone who wants to get into wildlife rehabilitation? [TV] Only do it if you have a selfless passion for helping animals. There is no money made with this. Don’t rely on donations. You will spend way more money than is ever donated. The animals’ care and needs come before yours.

[LL] What do you wish people knew about wildlife rehabilitation? [TV] More education about wildlife is a must. The biggest issue is that people have ingrained in their minds that all wildlife is diseased or rabid, and now it’s tough for us to get the compassion for them to help when we need it. We don’t believe that anything should suffer, no matter what it is, and it’s really hard to make people understand that not everything is diseased or rabid and that it’s compassionate to help something that’s suffering. Unfortunately, that mindset of thinking you’re going to be at risk or you’re going to get sick from something makes people not want to get out of their comfort zone and do what they need to do to help the animals.

A whole lotta mouths to feed

Here’s a roundup of Tiffany’s pets and their ages:

Cats:

• Sylvester, 9 years
• Munkin, 8 years
• Joey, 7 years
• Chloe, 7 years
• Zoie, 7 years
• Xena, 7 years
• Molly, 3 years

Raccoons: 

• Princess Sweet Pea, 5 years
• Prince Meeko, 4 years
• Wolverine, 1 year
• Forest Gimp, 1 year
• Baby Finn, 4 months

Gray squirrels:

• Rose, 5 years
• Chrissy, 2 years
• Mr. Buttons, 1 year
• Bogie, 1 year
• Dandelion, 1 year

Fox squirrel:

• Sherman Wolfgang Fox, 7 years

Flying squirrels:

• Larry, 2 years
• Moe, 2 years
• Curly, 2 years
• Rocky, 1 year
• Rockett, 1 year

Deer mice:

• Minions 1-6, 3 years

Zebra finches:

• Bo Heckle, 2 years
• J. Jeckle, 2 years

Green cheek conure:

• Pedro, 2 years

Domestic rabbit:

• Bugsy, 2 years

Cottontail rabbit:

• Valerie, 4 years 

Ferrets: 

• Little Bear, 6 years
• Ivy Mae, 6 years