Ohio Wildlife Center asking for help after freezer breaks

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The Ohio Wildlife Center is now asking for help after its main freezer broke.

The freezer carried a variety of food for distinct species of animals they take care of. The staff said they've had to change how they take care of their animals since the incident, but with the help of the community, they can rebuild on what they have lost.

Manager David Donahue knows this is a tough challenge, the center already takes in 9,000 orphaned, hurt or sick animals for rehabilitation, along with 60 animals that live on campus.

"Our freezer, fully stocked with all the proteins essential for all the animals here on our campus,” Donahue said. “Then, with the malfunction, we thought that the thermometer was not reading properly, and our temperatures were actually over 40 degrees inside."

All the food needed for every animal, from a bald eagle to a fox, was deemed unusable. Those unique proteins come at a high cost.

"It's over $60,000 in costs each year just to support the proteins, but also formulas and everything else we keep inside of our deep freezers to help support those animals," Donahue said.

The Ohio Wildlife Center is not state funded; they can do their work solely based on volunteer work and donations. The Columbus Zoo and Ohio State University have been an immense help since the incident, and members of the community have raised 6,000 so far. The staff has had to care for the animals a little differently in recent days but are working towards getting back on track.

"We've also been able to create other ways to support us during this time, so we've had other people step in just for that while we're waiting for things to arrive, to make sure we have the things we need,” Donahue said. “Every day we’re doing something different
to support the community to make life easier."

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