Four ways to help wildlife after wildfires

Wildfire impacts at the Swanson Lakes Wildlife Area in Lincoln County.

Each wildfire season, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) sees an outpouring of generosity from communities and businesses coming together to offer a helping hand to neighbors in need.

We also know that Washingtonians care deeply for wildlife.

If you’re interested in helping wildlife affected by wildfires, consider helping in one of these four ways.

1. Get involved with organizations doing restoration work in your area. Conservation and restoration stewardship efforts need support from folks like you to be successful. As a state natural resource agency, WDFW works with many local, regional, and national non-profit organizations that are doing great work to improve wildlife habitat. Please consider volunteering or donating to these causes to address impacts to wildlife habitat on our lands and elsewhere. Visit the WDFW website for more information about how you can get involved.
2. Don’t feed wildlife. We appreciate that people want to help wildlife by providing food to animals that may be impacted by wildfire. Unfortunately, feeding wildlife can cause more harm than good, especially with new wildlife diseases being found in Washington. The greatest drawbacks to feeding wildlife are the potential harms to their health and safety. Concentrating wildlife at a feeding site can make them more vulnerable to disease, predation, and poaching. If feeding areas draw animals across well-traveled roads, they are more likely to present a safety hazard and be hit by cars. As of May 2025, it is illegal to feed deer, elk, or moose in Washington due to the high potential for feeding sites to promote disease spread. Instead of feeding them, you can support wildlife by promoting year-round wildlife habitat near your home, property, or community.
3. Contact a permitted wildlife rehabilitator. If you find burned or injured wildlife, you should contact a permitted wildlife rehabilitator. Never attempt to treat or care for wildlife yourself. It is illegal for anyone without a permit to hold or attempt to care for wildlife, and attempting to care for wildlife without the appropriate skills and experience can make the situation worse. Permitted wildlife rehabilitators are experts who are able to assess whether wildlife need help and what the best path forward is for the wellbeing of the animal. Most of their efforts run off the contributions of volunteers and supporters. Reach out to a wildlife rehabilitator near you to see how you can help.
4. Contact WDFW. If you have questions or concerns about a specific wildlife-related issue, we can help get you the information and assistance you need. You can also find useful information on our living with wildlife webpages. Submit reports of sick, injured, or dead wildlife through our online reporting forms. Stay up to date on wildfire impacts to WDFW lands on our Washington wildfire information webpage.

Wildfire impacts at the Swanson Lakes Wildlife Area in Lincoln County.