Blue Ridge Wildlife Institute

The hubby and I were in West Virginia for his business this last weekend, and we decided to stop and visit his cousin Nina on our way home. Nina Fischesser runs the Blue Ridge Wildlife Institute at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina.

Nina visits us in Florida every year, and is one of the people I have to thank for having great photos at our wedding. Whenever we see her, she has great stories of the animals she is caring for. She has quite a few permanent animal ambassadors at the Institute that we have “known” for years, and it was wonderful to finally meet some of them. The Blue Ridge Wildlife Institute is involved with wildlife rehabilitation, education and scientific research. Nina’s animal ambassadors are some of the few that cannot be rehabilitated for one reason or another, and instead of being released into the wild where they would not survive, they have the delightful job of being teachers to those interested in wildlife rehabilitation.

Some of the wildlife we were able to spend time with during our visit included Scruffy, an opossum; a precious little bobcat who will be released in the spring when he gets a little bigger; various birds, crows and squirrels, including flying squirrels.

The most fascinating and delightful were the owls. Barry is a barred owl, and he has found a permanent home at the Institute. Nod and Hamlet, who are absolutely precious and funny. Nina regularly takes them to presentations, and Nod is a little ham, while Hamlet tries to stay inconspicuous!

The little guy that stole my heart is a screech owl who had come to the Institute the day before with a head injury and an injury to his left eye. That reminded me of Roger, my husband, who is missing his left eye, so I asked Nina if we could call him Reetroo (as he was too new to have a name), which was Nina’s father’s nickname for Roger….I think it’s going to stick!

Nina always has many owls, and her most well-known is Sasquatch, a great horned owl who has been with her for many years. Sasquatch was found as a nestling with one of her wings torn off. She has been a constant companion to Nina, driving to and from the Institute every day with her. She is very friendly and likes to talk. I went out for another walk around the Institute after dinner and was able to get Sas on video talking to me!