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Park City Hummingbird Hospital takes in and recovers local wildlife
Rehab, on the wild side
Summer/Fall 2024
Written By: Steve Phillips
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Images: Gillian Hunter and courtesy
There’s a new hospital in town and it’s for the birds — literally.
When newcomer Jody Giddings opened a wildlife rehabilitation center specializing in sick and injured birds in Park City last year, she named it Park City Hummingbird Hospital. The veteran wildlife rehabilitator planned on working primarily with hummingbirds and bats, two species with which she has worked extensively. “I thought the name was catchy since everybody loves hummingbirds,” she explains.
Jody, a former kindergarten teacher and scuba diving instructor, grew up on a “mini farm” in Connecticut where she developed an intense love for animals, specifically wild animals. As an adult, she started volunteering at a wildlife rehabilitation hospital and was soon working long hours to become a certified wildlife rehabilitator. In 2018, the Giddings family moved to rural Maine, where she opened and operated Sunday River Wildlife for four years.
Jody says her family had visited Park City many times and loved the town. They made the move west in 2022. Jody, who is an avid skier, golfer and hiker, planned to step away from her wildlife work and spend more time on the area’s slopes, fairways and trails. But soon after moving to Park City, she saw that there was a real need for a wildlife rehabilitation center.
“I just couldn’t help myself and decided to open one,” she chuckles. Last summer and early fall, the fledgling Park City Hummingbird Hospital took in and recovered almost 200 hummingbirds, most of which were injured from impacts with windows. Several bats came in as well.
This summer, Jody expects to see not only hummingbirds and bats, but other small birds and mammals, in addition to owls and hawks. That said, she says hummingbirds will remain a top priority.
“Hummingbirds are so fascinating to work with. I love the fact that people can watch them at feeders and they’re very curious about people. They’re probably the only bird that will come as close to you as you want to get to them.”
As a nonprofit, Jody says fundraising is key to the success of Park City Hummingbird Hospital. They rely on the generosity of donors to fund rescues and to care for orphaned and injured wildlife. “We’re applying for grants, but right now we’re funding most of the rehab center out of our own pocket.”
The center is currently located in an office building in the Sun Peak neighborhood, but Jody hopes to move it into a larger, freestanding building as soon as possible, noting that, “It might be elsewhere in the county where we can have everything we need onsite, including outdoor cages. We also want to have an education or nature center where people can watch our operations through a window so they can actually experience what we’re doing,” she says. “The most important thing is going to be just letting people know we’re here and we’re doing everything we can.”
To report an injured animal, call the team at (801) 228-0831.