The PAWS wildlife centers are looking for volunteers to help transport animals between the PAWS Lynnwood Wildlife Center and PAWS Olympic Wildlife Center in McCleary (near Olympia). Bad drivers need not apply!

Both the Lynnwood and McCleary facilities care for a wide variety of species, but each facility has special resources that make it better suited for some species rather than the other. “Some species, such as cottontail rabbits and killdeer (a shore bird) are very sensitive and don’t take well to being in captivity,” said PAWS Olympic Wildlife Center Volunteer Coordinator Sandy Kernast. “Therefore we will be transporting them to McCleary, where the environment is a little quieter than Lynnwood.”

The PAWS Lynnwood Wildlife Center is better suited to care for aquatic wildlife such as harbor seals and seabirds, as well as coyotes, bears, raccoons and other urban wildlife.

Transport team volunteers may work longer shifts than regular wildlife center volunteers. “It can be an all-day commitment,” said Kernast. “It’s 100 miles from center to center, so if everything goes well, people can be back home in about five or six hours after they leave. But if traffic is bad, the day can run longer.”

Volunteers can either live in the Seattle/Lynnwood area or the Olympia/McCleary area. The day typically will involve driving to one of the centers, picking up animals, driving to the other center, dropping off animals and picking up other animals, and returning to the first center.

Drivers must provide proof of insurance and have a clean driving record. The driving may involve personal vehicles.

Kernast said that PAWS is looking for volunteers to be on call, because PAWS cannot guarantee if animals will need transportation on a particular day. “Mostly we need people to call us and get on our list.”

For more information contact Sandy Kernast at PAWS Olympic Wildlife Center (360) 495-3337.