At NMWC, we love our volunteers! They make it possible for us to protect and conserve New Mexico’s wildlife!
Volunteering is a wonderful opportunity to observe and learn about native species while making a meaningful contribution to wildlife conservation and education in our state. New Mexico Wildlife Center highly values its volunteers and relies on an extensive network to achieve its goals.
If you are interested in volunteering at NMWC, please fill out an application. You may email it to us at volunteer@newmexicowildlifecenter.org or mail it to New Mexico Wildlife Center, 19 Wheat St, Espanola, NM 87532, Attn: Volunteer Program.
Our next orientation is on Sunday, March 22 2026, from 1:00-3:00 pm here at NMWC.
This training will be specifically for our baby season team who will provide care for wildlife in the hospital, with weekly, four-hour shifts through August.
Reserve your spot by March 18th by emailing volunteer@newmexicowildlifecenter.org.
Questions? Call 505-753-9505, x101.
(Note that we can only accept volunteers 18 years and older.)
Scroll down to read about various forms of volunteerism here at NMWC.
Types of Volunteers
Ambassador Animal & Education Volunteers
Our Education Volunteers help to care for the 30+ Ambassador Animals that call NMWC home. From cleaning enclosures, to diet preparation, and helping to monitor the well-being of our animals, our volunteers are a huge part of our team. Our Education volunteers also assist with Education programs and events, helping to spread our mission to the public.
Docents
NMWC is open to the public Tuesdays-Sundays from 9-4. Docents welcome our visitors, greet them at the door, and start them on their visit. Docents may also provide guided tours onsite, assist with education programs, or represent NMWC’s mission at tabling events. Our Docents are enthusiastic volunteers, eager to help promote NMWC’s mission.
Wildlife Hospital Volunteers
Each year, we admit 800-1000 injured, sick, and orphaned wild animals into our Wildlife Hospital. Our Wildlife Hospital volunteers help to make sure our patients receive the best care by preparing diets, cleaning enclosures, feeding patients, performing necessary maintenance on our facilities, and helping with medical care.
Transporters
Sometimes, individuals who rescue an injured or orphaned wild animal are not able to bring it to our location. With just a small team of full-time staff members at NMWC, we rely on the public to bring the animals to us. Luckily, we have a great team of trained wildlife transporters, statewide in New Mexico, who volunteer to pick up and drive these animals to our facility so we can take them into our hospital for rehabilitation.
Grounds & Facilities Volunteers
NMWC is always growing with new enclosures being built every year, repairs needed on older enclosures, and maintenance projects that never end. Construction/maintenance volunteers are always welcome and very appreciated!
Release Site Volunteers
Our Wildlife Rehabilitators work hard to ensure each wild animal that leaves our hospital is released in an area with suitable habitat and resources to ensure the best chance possible at survival.
If you have acreage in New Mexico, consider allowing the New Mexico Wildlife Center to use it as a place to release wildlife! We are looking for 5+ acres with water access in all areas of the state with emphasis in the Taos area. If you become a release site for us, we will always call before bringing any patients to your property.
Please fill out a NMWC Release Site Application and email it to hospital@newmexicowildlifecenter.org.
