Two years ago Leah Stallings had to practically become the mother of a 10-day old beaver. The baby animal had to be close to a body at all times before she was full grown. Stallings named it Remmy, but everyone spells it differently. Her daughter spells it R-e-m-i.

Stallings would watch television with Remmy laying on her stomach and feed her milkshakes. She made friends with the dog and became part of the family. Then one day Remmy was ready to go back to the wild. She knew the difference between the people who raised her and other humans. She would only let certain people in the cage or else she would get terrified and try to bite people, which was good. The last thing Stallings wants is a wild animal approaching people it doesn’t know and getting hurt.

Remmy was released into the wild a few weeks ago. At first she played in the water, but then she got up onto the bank for a final goodbye.  She gave Stallings a nose bump, the same way that wild beavers greet each other in the wild. She did normal “hi mommy” behavior and swam away once and for all. It was a perfect thank you.

Leah Stallings is the director of the Aark Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center located in Chalfont, PA.  They take in injured and orphaned animals to heal, raise, and ultimately release back into the wild. The Aark is a non profit organization staffed by professionals and trained volunteers. Service is available 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

The Aark treats about 1,000 animals a year and takes care of everything indigenous to Pennsylvania. It has been around for 50 years and has been incorporated since 1979. It costs about $20,000 a month the run the place. When Stallings isn’t directly handling the animals she’s in the office raising money to keep the center running. The center runs on donations. Stallings said that if people didn’t give their time in volunteer work, there is no way they could keep their doors open.

Stallings’ mother first opened the Aark. Stallings grew up spending time with the animals, but moved away for her “real job” until her mother retired. She took over the Aark and now her 13-year-old daughter helps out there too.

“It’s probably one of the most rewarding jobs you can have. You see little miracles happen every day,” said Stallings.

When our car pulled into the Aark parking lot the first thing I saw were a lot of buildings, horses directly in front of the parking spots, and some chickens wandering around. I walked past a mossy bench and into the animal drop off center. The sound of a dog barking and birds chirping immediately hit my ears. A volunteer behind the counter told me that the director was in the back releasing bunnies and would meet me in a minute.

The walls were covered in pictures of animals, including multiple depictions of Noah’s Ark. They had a clock that had pictures of different bird species instead of the hours. A white board on the office door was covered it notes, including “Fox babies” sprawled onto it with black marker. There were cages of various kinds everywhere. Some wood, some clear plastic, some looked like cat carriers. Everyone behind the counter was busy at work.

While Stallings introduced herself she was handling a Canadian goose hatchling. He was fluffy with light yellow feathers, in some sections they had black tips and in some they didn’t. The spots matched his black beak and legs. Stallings put the goose into a neon pink container labeled by species. She covered it with a white cloth with holes in it for nap time.

A few days ago the little goose was unable to stand or hold his head up. His head was bloody. Stallings thinks something picked him up and he got left behind. But after some fluids and water therapy for his legs he looked much better.

Ducklings and geese have to get oiled before they swim. They run in and out of their mom’s feathers to borrow body oil. This baby goose has no mother, so Stallings has to keep an eye on him during water therapy to make sure he doesn’t sink.

Baby birds have to be fed every hour. Baby mice need to be fed every two hours. Taking care of wild animals takes a lot of work and dedication.

To society some animals are not as desirable as others. Baby mice, for example, are not usually seen as cute or worthwhile, but as pests. According to Stallings some other institutions say they will take in an animal but euthanize it behind the scenes. She believes that if a person goes out of their way to rescue an animal and bring it in, everyone else should do their best too.

“Studies show that people who stop to help an animal are twice as likely to help a human. We don’t refuse animals… If I promise to take care of an animal, I will do it,” Stallings continued. “Everyone matters whether it’s a mouse, starling, or eagle I will do my best to save it.”

Sometimes the animals are beyond saving. “There is a certain amount of heartache involved because certainly you can’t save them all,” Stallings said. She has to maintain a certain level of professional detachment so she doesn’t waste days crying when she could be handling the next thing. “You have moments where you put your heart in soul into. Sometimes it works out. Sometimes it doesn’t.”

One of our conversations was interrupted by a phone call. Stallings advised someone over the phone on how to catch a baby fox. The nest had been disturbed by a lawn mower and the mom was not going to come back. The person on the phone also asked about what to do with a wild rabbit they were taking care of. “Wild rabbits don’t handle captivity well, him sitting there like a perfect angel means he’s terrified and probably shaking. They usually die like that. Bring the rabbit here. Tell your kids if they love the rabbit, that’s what the rabbit needs,” she told the caller.

I noticed that the door under the “Wildlife Welcome” sign had a sign on it.  “Warning. Wildlife babies isolation. Keep away.” That’s where they keep the rabies species.

DeVere Kohler is a volunteer who is certified to work with animals with rabies. She volunteers on Saturdays and this is her fourth season at the Aark. To work with RVS, rabies vector species, she had to get a series of three shots and undergo training. The species most likely to have rabies in Pennsylvania are skunks, foxes, coyotes, bats, groundhogs, and raccoons.

Kohler has never been bitten by a potential rabies carrier, only by squirrels. “If we are bitten it’s a sad tale, the animal has to be tested and euthanized. The ultimate goal is to come here every day and never get bitten,” she said.

Kohler became a volunteer after attending a beaver dam fundraiser held by the Aark. She followed them on Facebook, and saw that they need volunteers. On her first day she had to feed dead animals to birds or prey; everything that dies at the center is recycled for food and sometimes they get euthanized animals from other places. She wondered what she got herself into. The job can be gross and stinky.

Regardless, Kohler grew to love it, “You never know what’s gonna come through the front door. There is very typical about working here. Everyone enjoys it, everyone works together. I learn something every Saturday,” she said.

Another volunteer, Amy Maychewka, was feeding formula to a squirrel. Her job is a little bit of everything. She worked over the winter session where there is less activity, but more unusual animals. The most unusual animal she’s ever worked with is a woodcock since she had never seen one before. “It didn’t make it but it was amazing, actually they’re all amazing in their own ways,” she said. Her favorite animals to work with are the owls.

Maychewka told a story about a flying squirrel that they didn’t know was pregnant. She said, “The flying squirrels are amazing but very hard to see. One came in and she gave birth here, we didn’t even know she was pregnant we just thought she was fat.” The job is full of surprises. It takes a lot of patience and hard work.

My visit closed after Stalling’s daughter, Emily, took me to see the fawns. They were smaller than I could have ever imagined. The smaller deer was about a few weeks old, the bigger one was a few months old. Emily fed them with bottles. She fed the older one first; it ate fast and after it finished its food it tried to snatch the younger fawn’s bottle. It didn’t succeed so it tried to eat Emily’s hair instead. The smaller fawn could barely stand and ate slowly.

Emily spouted off factoids about deer while she held the bottle for the fawns. “Two to three fawns are born at a time. The mom hides them in plain sight in tall fields. Females will give birth to babies in separate fields, after one is out she will move to another field so if a predator finds one they won’t get them all,” she said.

After the deer finished their meals, Emily noticed that the younger one was shaking. It had been suffering from diarrhea and it was too cold out. She thought the two deer should be separated anyway since the older one was picking on the small one. The 13-year-old held the spotted fawn in her arms and carried it, along with the bottles, inside. One day she might take over the Aark after her mother.