Family Strengths Network offers family field trip to wildlife center

Family Strengths Network invited local families to the New Mexico Wildlife Center in Española for a one-hour guided tour and a special ambassador-animal encounter. The outing was set for Wednesday, June 24, at 10 a.m. at 19 Wheat Street, and families were asked to bring water, snacks, hats, sunscreen and, if they wanted, a picnic lunch to share afterward.

Family Strengths Network has served area families since 1989 through its Family Resource Center and other programs, with a mission of improving family life through education, support groups and activities for parents, teens and children.

At the wildlife center, the visit was designed to give children a direct look at animals and the work that goes into caring for them. The center’s education programs feature live animal ambassadors and cover natural history, human impacts and each animal’s story. Families who stayed for lunch were encouraged to bring their own meals and spend additional time together after the tour.

The New Mexico Wildlife Center was founded in 1986 by local veterinarian Dr. Kathleen Ramsay and grew from a bird rehabilitation center into a facility that treats wildlife from across New Mexico. Its wildlife hospital admits between 800 and 1,000 wild animals each year, and its education programs reach more than 7,000 people annually. Its hospital is federally and state licensed and staffed by experienced, certified wildlife rehabilitators and a wildlife veterinarian.

The center is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Animal encounter programs are held Tuesday through Sunday at 11:30 a.m. Admission is listed at $7 for adults, $5 for children ages 4 to 17 and free for children 3 and under. The center also is marking its 40th anniversary with a public event on July 18, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with storytelling, guided tours and ambassador-animal encounters.