Heart of The Wild Rescue

08/31/2026

🦊 This is what it’s all about… returning them to the wild. 🌲❤️

From the moment an animal comes into our care, release is always the ultimate goal.

Release day is incredibly bittersweet. After caring for them for months, watching them heal and grow stronger, you can’t help but worry about what their future will hold.

But this is why we do what we do. ❤️

They were never ours to keep. They belong to the wild.

Run wild. Stay safe. And please… stay far away from people. 🦊🌲

08/30/2026

❤️ A Heartfelt Thank You ❤️

We want to take a moment to say THANK YOU to all of our amazing followers and supporters who have purchased items from our rescue wish list. 🦊🐾

Every single item — big or small — helps us tremendously. And we wanted to show you that your gifts really do get put to good use! ❤️

The toy you see one of our foxes happily playing with and the tunnel you see two of them racing through were both purchased from our wish list by our wonderful supporters. 🦊🥰

Your generosity helps us provide not only the everyday necessities, but also enrichment that keeps the animals in our care active, stimulated, and comfortable while they recover.

From all of us at Heart of the Wild Wildlife Rescue, THANK YOU! ❤️

Every purchase makes a difference for the animals in our care today — and those who will need us in the future.

And as you can see… the foxes thank you too! 🦊❤️🐾

08/29/2026

🦊❤️ Hope & Squeaker — Just Being Foxes Again

Just a few short weeks ago, Hope and Squeaker were two little Lake Placid foxes suffering from extreme mange. Their bodies were exhausted, their skin was painful, and they desperately needed help.

And now… look at them. 🥹

Playing on the swing, enjoying each other’s company, healing, growing stronger, and most importantly — just being foxes again. 🦊🦊

These are the moments that make all the hard work worth it. Mange can look absolutely devastating, but mange is treatable, and these two are living proof of what proper treatment, good nutrition, time, and a safe place to recover can do.

They still have a little more healing to do before they’re ready to return to the wild, but seeing them happy, playful, and feeling good again is pretty incredible. ❤️

08/28/2026

🦊 PLEASE, LAKE PLACID RESIDENTS — KEEP WATCH FOR FOXES WITH MANGE 🦊

I received a heartbreaking call this morning from a Lake Placid homeowner who found a young fox dead in her yard. The little fox had been suffering from mange.

Mange is an absolutely horrible way for an animal to die. It can cause relentless itching, severe skin infections, weakness and eventually leave a fox unable to survive — especially as the weather gets colder.

Please, if you live in the Lake Placid area and see a fox that appears to be suffering, come forward and let us know. Even if you aren’t sure how severe it is, please reach out.

We have already helped numerous foxes from the Lake Placid area this summer, and we know there are likely still others out there that need us.

Time is becoming increasingly important. As we move toward fall and colder weather, trapping these foxes and getting them into care becomes much more difficult. A fox suffering from mange simply doesn’t have the healthy coat or body condition it needs to withstand Adirondack winter temperatures.

Please don’t assume someone else has already reported the fox. A call, message, photo, or even information about where and when you saw it could help us save a life.

Mange is treatable, and we have watched foxes that arrived in heartbreaking condition make incredible recoveries and eventually return to the wild.

Please keep your eyes open, Lake Placid. 🧡🦊

Thank you to everyone who has already reached out, helped us trap, transported animals, allowed us onto their property, donated, or simply kept watch. It truly takes a community to help these animals.

Heart of the Wild Wildlife Rescue

08/28/2026

🦊 Grayson Update! ❤️

Look at that back left leg!! 🥹❤️ Grayson is standing on it beautifully, and we couldn’t be happier with how well she is healing after surgery to repair her fractured femur.

It has been a long month for this little girl — lots of crate rest, patience, and of course… that cone! 😂

But we’re almost to the next big milestone! Just FOUR more days and Grayson gets to graduate to a bigger enclosure! 🎉🦊

She’ll still have to keep her cone on for a few more weeks until the pin is removed, but we have a feeling she is going to be VERY happy to finally have a little more room to move around.

One step closer to getting this beautiful girl back where she belongs — in the wild. 🌲❤️

Keep going, Grayson! 🐾

08/27/2026

08/27/2026

🦊 The Life of a Wildlife Rehabilitator ❤️

People often see the happy endings—the releases back to the wild—but not the hours, miles, and cost it takes to get there.

In just the last month, we made 12 trips to Lake Placid (about 81 miles each way) to help foxes in need. At one point, we had 20 foxes in our care at once 🦊—each one needing daily feeding, medication, cleaning, and constant attention.

The driving is only a small part. Every day includes feeding, medical care, cleaning enclosures, laundry, and round-the-clock monitoring. Foxes also require specialized (and expensive) enclosures, plus ongoing vet care, supplies, and food.

Like many rehabilitators, we do most of this out of pocket while working full-time jobs. There are no days off when animals depend on you.

It’s exhausting, expensive, and often heartbreaking. We fight for every animal, and sometimes—despite everything—we still lose them. Those losses stay with us, but so do the ones who make it.

But we love what we do. ❤️

Seeing an animal recover and return to the wild makes every mile, every sacrifice, and every heartbreak worth it.

That’s why every contribution matters. Whether it’s a donation or something from our wish list, it truly helps us continue saying YES when the next call comes in. 🦊❤️

Thank you for supporting Heart of the Wild Wildlife Rescue—we couldn’t do this without you.

08/26/2026

🦊💛 WISH LIST WEDNESDAY! 💛🦊

It’s Wish List Wednesday here at Heart of the Wild Wildlife Rescue!

Behind every cute little face you see are a LOT of supplies — food, bedding, cleaning supplies, enrichment items and all the everyday necessities that help us keep these animals comfortable while they heal, grow and prepare for their return to the wild. 🐾

With so many foxes coming through our doors this season, we are going through supplies faster than ever. Our Amazon Wish List is filled with items we use right here at the rescue, and even the smallest purchase makes a difference.

If you’d like to help our wild patients, please consider taking a peek at our Wish List. ❤️

And to everyone who has already sent something our way — THANK YOU. Every package that arrives means something we need is taken care of, and that allows us to keep saying YES when wildlife needs us.

🛒 Amazon Wish List
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2BE8JWCIK4B09?ref_=wl_share
🦊 Rescue • Rehabilitate • Release

08/26/2026

🦊 MANGE OR RABIES? YOU CAN’T ALWAYS TELL BY LOOKING.

A fox out during the day or one with a severe case of mange does not automatically have rabies.

But a rabid fox may not look sick at all.

This gray fox appeared healthy, but her abnormal behavior — repeatedly biting and attacking her food bowl — was a warning sign. Rabies affects the nervous system and can cause aggression, disorientation, staggering, difficulty swallowing, drooling, paralysis and seizures.

The red fox with severe mange looked much worse, but she did not have rabies. She was treated, recovered and released back into the wild. ❤️🦊

Mange is treatable. Rabies is fatal.

Never approach or handle a fox acting strangely. Keep people and pets away and contact a wildlife rehabilitator .
Please share this post to spread awareness.

HeartOfTheWildWildlifeRescue

08/25/2026

🦊❤️ Grayson Update!

Just look at this sweet girl! 🥹 Our little Grayson continues to do so well in her recovery.

She has just ONE more week in this small space for strict rest, and then she gets a big upgrade! 🎉 She’ll graduate to a larger space for two weeks, where she’ll be able to have a little more room while that leg continues to heal.

After that, it’s back to the surgeon for another X-ray and, if everything looks as good as we hope, removal of the pin in her leg! 🙏❤️

It has been a long road for this little gray fox since her surgery, but she has handled everything like a champ. Every week gets her one step closer to the day we’re all waiting for — her return to the wild. 🌲🦊

For now, Grayson… just one more week, little girl! ❤️🐾