Watch: The wildlife sanctuary rescuing animals in Costa Rica

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Watch: The wildlife sanctuary rescuing animals in Costa Rica  Rescate Wildlife Rescue Centre is a non-profit foundation dedicated to rescuing and conserving biodiversity in La Garita, Costa Rica.  In partnership with Media City  READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2025/08/10/watch-the-wildlife-sanctuary-rescuing-animals-in-costa-rica  Spark your senses, wake your wonder. Euronews Culture seeks to show creativity in action and inspire our audience to explore the world through the five senses. Start your journey through the best of Europe's arts, gastronomy, traditions and high-end craftsmanship.

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00:00The sanctuary is a really beautiful place.

00:04There's iguanas and there's peacocks and there's toucans.

00:07You can hear all the birds, you can see all the animals.

00:10But by far, the most rewarding part is being able to release the animals.

00:14Once you get involved with the project, it pulls at your heart.

00:17You see the work that's being done and the positive changes.

00:21Those little things are what keep us going and keep us having hope for the future,

00:25that we can see that things are actually changing.

00:28My name is Amy Venech and I have been working at Rescate Wildlife for a little over four years.

00:42Rescate Wildlife is the largest wildlife rescue center in Central America.

00:47We receive over 3,000 wild animals a year.

00:50Our main goal is to always rehabilitate and release them.

00:54In the sanctuary, we have about 125 different species of animals.

00:58We have about 700 animals that are permanent residents.

01:01And then in our hospital and rehabilitation center,

01:04there's anywhere between 100 to even 400 animals at a time that are in process of rehabilitation.

01:10Over the last 35 years, we've released over 25,000 animals back into the wild.

01:14So there's lots of animals that have passed through our door.

01:17The main reason why animals are brought here is very broad.

01:21We receive animals from the public.

01:23So people that have had them as pets, people that have found certain animals,

01:27even animals that are hit by cars.

01:29I wouldn't say the majority are mistreated, but there are definitely cases that come in that are mistreatment.

01:34Those cases are the ones that really belong to your heartstrings.

01:37Those cases can be completely infuriating.

01:39But we're actually happy that they're here now, so that now they get the care that they need in order to live a better life.

01:49The rescue and rehabilitation process varies a lot depending on the animal.

01:54If an animal has come in that has had very little contact with humans,

01:58they have a very good chance of returning back into the forest where they belong.

02:02If an animal has come in through the pet train, there could be the behavioral issues,

02:08there could be nutrition issues.

02:10If it's not a candidate for release, then it will come into our Lifetime Care Sanctuary.

02:15I'm a veterinarian here in the Wildlife Rescue Center.

02:19We work with all animals that ingress, mammals, reptiles, animals.

02:24But my main role is with the animals.

02:27The animals are one of the animals that we most receive per year.

02:34So we charge us to review the animal, do a physical exam,

02:38take tests to do diagnostics, radiography, ultrasound.

02:42Also, right now that we're in the fishing season,

02:47I charge me well to do the diets,

02:49review the temperatures, and be very above the fish.

02:56So I had always been interested in wildlife ever since I was a child.

02:59And eventually, I had become a volunteer here.

03:03And it kind of developed into a larger role.

03:07The volunteer programs, they're basically like internships.

03:10We have a vet internship program that is very intense.

03:13And then we also have another, which we call our wildlife internship.

03:17Everyone who works here loves what they're doing.

03:20It's something that we're all passionate about.

03:22I've always dreamed of discovering exotic animals.

03:26I'm really surprised by the animals that there are here.

03:32It's really incredible.

03:33There's all the observation of snakes,

03:35the preparation of the enrichment for the big animals,

03:39the small animals, the small animals,

03:41the small animals, the little dinner for the macos.

03:44It's very diverse.

03:46And I'm really surprised.

03:48This internship really helped me discover a lot about myself.

03:51My experience here, I find it every day.

03:54And frankly, I learn it every day.

03:57The mimics, the docs, how to have habits.

04:00It's really a great experience.

04:02The exotic vet trade is still high on the list,

04:07and it's still a huge problem for us.

04:09The center tries to address certain issues.

04:11A lot of it is through education.

04:13We receive thousands of kids per year that come in through school groups.

04:16Education is very, very important.

04:19I love to do education because you can see the change in people

04:24and their communities and families.

04:27It's very important to educate new generation's kids

04:30because they are the ones that are going to, in the future, make decisions.

04:35What I say, we're planting the seed.

04:37We're just planting the seed to have better consciousness

04:39about how to treat animals and what to do in certain cases.

04:43Education is one of our key pillars.

04:45If we're not able to educate, the things are not going to change.

04:48And this is something that we can see within Costa Rica,

04:51which is actually really amazing.

04:52The generations down below are no longer having birds in their home

04:55or wild animals in their home.

04:57Mentality has definitely changed within Costa Rica.

05:04The majority of our funds come through the sanctuary.

05:07Donations are also a big part.

05:10And we've also just launched an adoption program

05:13where people can symbolically adopt.

05:16And this is a great way that people can also contribute

05:19in order to keep everything going.

05:21Everybody making a difference is like the cherry on top.

05:24Sometimes we have to step back and look at the whole picture,

05:27just physically see change.

05:29What I learned while working here is that every animal

05:32and every individual is different.

05:35I learned to meet them, to know their personalities.

05:38This place is amazing.

05:39There's no place in the world that I've been that compares to this.

05:44So the animals within our sanctuary, they can't be released into the wild,

05:49but we can see that this is a positive impact.

05:52And you can't feel anything else but happy.

05:55And we're all happy.

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