Found an injured raptor?

Loudoun Valley Raptor Center cares for sick, injured, and orphaned birds of prey 365 days per year.

Our phone lines are available from 8a-6p, every day!

We check our voicemails often. Please leave us a message if you’re unable to reach us and we’ll return your call as soon as possible.

Call or text us at 571-695-0050

Loudoun Valley Raptor Center is permitted and has facilities to rehabilitate raptors ONLY. For inquiries or concerns about other wildlife please refer to Virginia DWR Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitators.

If you find an injured raptor, take the following steps to ensure your safety and the safety of the bird:

Take a photo.

Note the location.

Call for help: 571-695-0050

Do not offer any food or water to an injured raptor.

Raptors have very specific dietary needs and even the best meat available or their normal diet may be inappropriate for a raptor in certain conditions. Often injured raptors are suffering from dehydration and/or emaciation, so food or water may kill it.

Do not touch the bird unless instructed to do so by a professional.

The less contact it has with people, the more likely it will be to survive. Stress is deadly for these birds.

Remember, even a seriously injured or seemingly incapacitated raptor can be potentially dangerous.

Even if you are trying to help the bird, it will be frightened and may perceive you as a threat. Raptors can be quite unpredictable. Be particularly wary of the beak and talons.

• Do not keep a raptor any longer than is necessary to get it to a veterinary professional, raptor rehabilitator, or state/federal wildlife representative.
• Handle the raptor only if absolutely necessary! The less contact it has with people, the more likely it will be to survive. Stress is deadly for these birds.
• If you must handle a raptor, wear long, heavy gloves and use a blanket or towel to cover the bird. Gently fold the raptor’s wings against its body into a normal, relaxed position.
• Place the raptor in a cardboard box with small ventilation holes cut near the floor of the box. The box should be slightly larger than the bird. Less room to move around means less chance of the raptor causing itself injury. However, on the flip side, if a container is too small, a bird can sustain extensive wing and feather damage.
• Cover the bottom of the cardboard box with a clean towel or sheet, DO NOT line with hay or straw because this can expose the raptor to fungi that may lead to deadly lung infections.
• NEVER use a wire cage, transport raptors in the open bed of a truck, or leave the raptor in a place where temperatures could reach extremes.
• Provide the raptor with a dark, quiet, and warm environment. DO NOT keep the raptor any longer than absolutely necessary and always keep it away from pets and children.
• NOTE: When transporting a raptor to a treatment facility, please continue to provide it a quiet environment (please ‐ no radio, singing, talking, etc.)
• Remember, even a seriously injured or seemingly incapacitated raptor can be potentially dangerous. Even if you are trying to help the bird, it will be frightened and may perceive you as a threat. Raptors can be quite unpredictable. Be particularly cautious of the beak and talons.

It is a violation of state and federal law for members of the public to hold most species of wild birds in captivity. Improper diet or medical care can do permanent damage in a very short period of time. “Good Samaritans” are permitted to rescue birds in distress, but must transfer them immediately to a properly permitted rehabilitator. Rehabilitation permits are not a mere legal formality – they are issued to people who have completed extensive (2 years, minimum) hands-on training, demonstrated knowledge regarding proper nutrition, husbandry, injury, parasites, disease, etc. and who have appropriate housing facilities.