Wet Mountain Wildlife Center: Meet the couple keeping Colorado's wildlife wild

Wet Mountain Wildlife Rehabilitation Center Saves Colorado Wildlife

Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the country’s most popular and most visited parks. The park’s black bears, however, had no idea there was pandemic during the summer of 2020 sending more people into their habitat. They also didn’t know that a drought the previous fall wreaked havoc on their normally abundant summertime foods, acorns and wild berries. For one female bear, this had catastrophic consequences. She and her two cubs were starving. The mother bear, in a desperate attempt to feed her family began entering park campsites to scavenge food humans had brought. The campers who ignored bear-safe food storage protocols were easy pickings. Eventually campers using the park’s bear-proof boxes found themselves harassed by the now aggressive mother bear. Park rangers attempted to scare the bears off with loud noises and thrown rocks, but it didn’t work. Rangers made the heart wrenching decision to euthanize the mother bear to protect human life and took the cubs to a rehabilitation center in hopes they could have a fresh start. They were sent to Wet Mountain Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.

“We have always loved wildlife.” - Cecelia ‘Cec’ Sanders

A group of orphaned bear cubs at Wet Mountain in 2017. Photo by Bill Vogrin/Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

Tucked into the foothills west of Pueblo, Wet Mountain Rehabilitation Center is one of only three rehab facilities in Colorado that work with large predatory mammals. On a secluded property near the town of Florence sick and injured animals can recover and orphans learn to live on their own. Cecelia and Tom Sanders created the center decades ago using their own money and free time. The couple began rehabbing small creatures such as squirrels and raccoons before taking their first large mammals from the State of Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW), orphaned Pronghorn and Mule Deer fawns. Cec says they received no formal training when they started in the 1970s.

“At that time (wildlife) rehab was a ‘we trust you’ kind of business, but eventually we had to be licensed by the DOW,” she says. “We built our facility around the animals that were brought to us.” Cec and Tom have spent almost 40 years dedicated to this endeavor. Retired schoolteachers, they began rehabilitating wild animals while living in Pueblo where they taught. After earning their license at the state’s request in 1984 they began taking in large animals.

When they lived in Pueblo, they had a huge corner lot with a tall cedar fence so they built another enclosure inside the yard that was private. Neighbors didn’t know it was there. They rehabbed the Pronghorn and Mule Deer with both successfully released. Next they were given a bear cub and an injured mountain lion. Cec says their neighbors had no idea a mountain lion was in their backyard. The mountain lion was released into the wild after she healed and the bear cub went to another facility.

Working with the mountain lion helped The Sanders make a crucial decision. If they wanted to continue, they needed a more private location, but still close to their schools in Pueblo. They moved near Florence in 1986.

“From then on things just happened.”

Bear cubs getting stronger so they can be released into the wild. Photo by Bill Vogrin/Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

Once they relocated Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) officers began delivering all kinds of animals from birds to elk to bears. Over the years the couple gravitated toward the larger animals because there are so few facilities to help them, while there are several places that handle small mammals or specialize in birds. They operate Wet Mountain as a non-profit and accept donations, but they don’t publicize their work, have no social media or website, and pay for most supplies out-of-pocket. In 2017, the couple rehabbed 12 bears in one season, one of the largest groups they have ever had causing a strain on their finances.

Late Spring freezes along the Front Range that year resulted in fewer summer acorns that bears use to fatten up before winter hibernation. A lack of their natural food source caused many bears to venture into cities getting into trouble by foraging in trash cans and garages. Bears in urban areas are dangerous. They can get hit by cars, shot by homeowners, or euthanized by the state if they threaten humans and pets. Often these conflicts leave orphaned cubs behind. The Sanders care for orphaned cubs until they are old enough to be placed in artificial dens by the CPW usually in early January. Cec says most cubs who stay with them can find their own dens once they leave the facility.

However, it costs a lot of money to feed 1that many growing bear cubs. At one point the couple considered selling their house. To help them out Colorado Parks and Wildlife highlighted their work in the department’s September 2017 newsletter. Shortly after Walmart and Big D’s Superfood in Canon City donated tons of produce. Monetary donations also poured in. Cec says each donation they received contained a thank you note for their work with bears, which left her overjoyed. The summer of 2020 was just as busy with 12 bear cubs and two bobcats.

The couple divides the animals in their care between them so there are animals that only Tom handles and animals that only Cec handles. The Sanders do all the animal care themselves to keep human contact to a minimum, so there are no volunteers or staff, however, Tom says that friends and neighbors will make food runs and other errands to help. Cec cares for the youngest animals by hand and even though she is allergic to raccoons, she will bottle feed raccoon kits when necessary. One of Cec’s favorite rehabs was an orphaned badger. The badger had an eye infection that required twice daily eye drops, which the creature was not thrilled to receive. Once healthy, she moved him outside to a larger enclosure. By August, Cec says the badger tunneled out of his enclosure and returned to the wild himself, but not before trying to play with Cec the day before. She believes the badger was trying to say thank you before he left.

One method Cec uses with orphaned mammals is giving them one of several real fur coats she has collected over the years. She uses them to comfort young ones and they often bond with the coat until old enough to be on their own.

Something Cec would like to let the public know is that when encountering young wildlife, especially deer, while the animal may look alone, often it is not.

“People assume that a fawn without the mother is an orphan and needs to be rescued,” she states. “Many of the fawns we get should never have been picked up. The mother hides the fawn from predators, but stays nearby and contacts them by using low pitched vocal calls.” Cec says that deer imprint easily so they limit human contact except for feeding or medical attention. They also have two “volunDEER” that live with them permanently who socialize and comfort newly arrived fawns.

“Rehab is in our blood. I can’t imagine not doing it.”

With the couple now in their 70s, their job is getting more difficult, but Cec insists they have no plans to retire from wildlife rehab anytime soon. To support those who support wildlife, consider sending them a monetary donation or perhaps that real fur coat handed down from grandma you and your conscience don’t know what to do with. Their address is below. Don’t forget a thank you note.

Wet Mountain Wildlife Rehab Center, 743 Crestview Dr., Florence, CO 81226

All photos courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife.