What Wild Ontario does

Wild Ontario is an environmental and science education program housed within the College of Biological Science at the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. Formally relaunched under its current name in 2010 after the closure of the university's Wild Bird Clinic, the program operates a Bird Ambassador Program consisting of 12 permanently injured, non-releasable birds of prey (owls, hawks, falcons, and a turkey vulture) sourced through referral partnerships with six Ontario wildlife rehabilitation centres. Its underlying "technology" is the husbandry, training, and safe handling of these live raptors, supported by decades of staff and volunteer experience in animal training and science communication.

The program delivers two principal product surfaces. On-Campus Programs serve University of Guelph students through an intensive volunteer program (with course credit via BIOL*2650), participation in undergraduate courses (ZOO*2090, ZOO*4920, BIOL*3660), campus events, and workshops. Community Outreach Programs deliver in-person and virtual presentations to schools (K-12 and post-secondary), community groups (libraries, museums, clubs, community centres), camps and youth organizations, parks and conservation areas, and nature festivals and events across Ontario. Operations are run by two full-time staff (Program Director Jenn Bock and Education Coordinator Sally Cheung) with a volunteer base of approximately 40+ trained handlers.

Wild Ontario does not charge for any of its programs or services. Revenue mechanics are entirely donation-based: charitable receipts are issued for all gifts, and donations fund bird care, volunteer experiences, education programs, construction projects, paid internships, veterinary expenses, and educational materials. The program is administratively embedded within the University of Guelph, not a separately incorporated entity, and has no external investors, shareholders, or private equity backing. Distribution is direct and field-based (the team travels to schools and community venues across Ontario), supplemented by top-of-funnel awareness through Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, the wildontario.ca website, and email inquiry channels.

Name

Wild Ontario

Legal name

Wild Ontario

Website

https://wildontario.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Wild Ontario is an environmental and science education program at the University of Guelph's College of Biological Science that uses 12 live, non-releasable birds of prey to deliver free in-person and virtual outreach to schools, community groups, camps, parks, and festivals across Ontario.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Education Services

NAICS

Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (71219), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Interpretation & Ranger-Led Education Programs (Visitor Education) (THAAAOAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Educational Adventure Programs (Outdoor Education, Skill Development) (THAAAAAO), Education & Community Programs (Junior Ranger, Citizen Science, School Programs) (THAAAGAK)

Keywords

• Wildlife education programs
• Environmental science outreach
• Raptor education ambassadors
• School community outreach
• University experiential learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Guelph

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations: Wild Ontario accepts donations from the public to support bird care, volunteer experiences, education programs, construction projects, paid internships, veterinary expenses, and educational materials. Charitable receipts are issued for all donations.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Wild Ontario is an environmental and science education program that delivers in-person educational experiences using 12 non-releasable birds of prey as live ambassadors. Programs are split between on-campus offerings at the University of Guelph (undergraduate courses, an intensive student volunteer handler program, and campus events) and off-campus community outreach across Ontario to schools, community groups, camps, parks, and festivals.

Product overview

Wild Ontario is a single environmental and science education program (not a platform architecture) operated by the College of Biological Science at the University of Guelph. The organization provides educational experiences through multiple interconnected programs: On-Campus Programs (undergraduate courses, volunteer handler program, campus events) and Community Outreach Programs (school programs, community groups, camps & youth, parks, festivals & events). All programs utilize the organization's Bird Ambassador Program, which houses permanently injured birds-of-prey as educational tools. The volunteer program provides experiential learning for students while supporting the delivery of community and campus programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• School Programs Educational programs for all grade levels from kindergarten to post-secondary, using close encounters with live birds of prey to teach science and complement curriculum. Virtual options are available.

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core, minor and historical.

• College of Biological Science (University of Guelph)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020In 2020, Wild Ontario found a new administrative home in the University of Guelph's College of Biological Science. This partnership provides academic affiliation, administrative support, and shared focus on teaching biology, ecology, and conservation.
• Toronto Wildlife CentrecoreOthersToronto Wildlife Centre provides wildlife rehabilitation services and refers non-releasable birds to Wild Ontario's education program. Birds like Sibley (Red-tailed Hawk) and Raiju (American Kestrel) were admitted to Toronto Wildlife Centre before being transferred to Wild Ontario.
• Owl FoundationcoreOthersOwl Foundation provides long-term wildlife rehabilitation. Mowat (Barred Owl) was treated at Owl Foundation before joining Wild Ontario. Freyja (Red-tailed Hawk) was also transferred from Owl Foundation's rehabilitation program.
• Shades of Hope Wildlife RefugecoreOthersShades of Hope Wildlife Refuge provides wildlife rehabilitation and refers non-releasable birds to Wild Ontario. Birds including Newton (Eastern Screech-Owl), Atwood (Northern Saw-whet Owl), and Moose (Broad-winged Hawk) were treated at Shades of Hope before joining the education program.
• Salthaven Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education CentrecoreOthersSalthaven Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Centre rescued Grimsby (Turkey Vulture) and transferred the non-releasable bird to Wild Ontario for the education program.
• Open Sky Raptor FoundationminorOthersOpen Sky Raptor Foundation rehabilitated Indiana (Red-tailed Hawk) before her transfer. The organization was the initial point of care when Indiana was found with wire wrapped around her legs.
• Wild Bird Care CentreminorOthersWild Bird Care Centre treated Ellesmere (Gyrfalcon) after she was hit by a car, providing initial rehabilitation before her transfer to Wild Ontario.
• Ontario Veterinary CollegehistoricalStrategic or Co-development PartnerWild Ontario originated from the OVC Wild Bird Clinic at the University of Guelph's Ontario Veterinary College in the early 1980s. This historical connection established the foundation for the program.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Raptor Education Foundation (REX): Colorado-based raptor education and rehabilitation organization running school and community bird presentation programs; comparable scale and live-animal education delivery approach.
• Pacific Northwest Raptors: British Columbia-based raptor education program offering mobile bird-of-prey presentations for schools, events, and festivals; similar business model to Wild Ontario's community outreach programs but serves a different Canadian region.
• Owl Foundation: Ontario-based raptor rehabilitation organization that already supplies non-releasable birds to Wild Ontario; while primarily a rehab facility rather than educator, it shares the raptor care and Ontario geography niche.

Direct peers

• Hawk Creek Wildlife Center: New York-based wildlife center offering raptor education programs with live birds, school and community outreach, and on-site demonstrations; directly comparable educational programming and bird ambassador model.
• World Bird Sanctuary: A Missouri-based raptor education and conservation organization that houses permanently injured birds of prey as educational ambassadors and delivers school and community outreach programs—nearly identical operational model to Wild Ontario, but at larger U.S. scale.
• Canadian Raptor Conservancy: Canadian raptor education and conservation organization that flies education birds at schools, fairs, and events; shares Wild Ontario's home market and runs a comparable programming model.
• Carolina Raptor Center: North Carolina raptor center offering live raptor education programs to schools, camps, and community groups; houses non-releasable birds of prey as ambassadors and runs hospital-to-education intake pipelines similar to Wild Ontario's rehabilitation referral network.
• Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS): Operates raptor education programming at a university-adjacent scale using non-releasable birds; conducts school visits and community outreach comparable to Wild Ontario's community channel.

Regional players

• Birds of Prey Centre, Fort Whyte Alive (Winnipeg): Manitoba-based raptor education and conservation program delivering presentations with rescued birds of prey; comparable programming model serving a different Canadian province than Wild Ontario.

Broad incumbents

• Toronto Zoo - Wildlife Education: Major accredited zoological institution offering school and community wildlife education programming across Ontario including live raptor presentations; vastly larger scale but overlapping mission and audience.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/WildOntario
• Instagraminstagram.com/wild_ontario
• TikToktiktok.com/@wild_ontario
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wild-ontario

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wild Ontario