As a “founding family” board member of Ohio Wildlife Center, Susan Burton reflects often on the decades of progress the organization has seen since her late husband took in injured waterfowl in his Clintonville garage in the early 80’s. She first learned of Dr. Donald Burton’s work with wildlife by seeing a newspaper article about his rescue of a goose from Antrim Lake in Columbus.
In 1985, she met him as a client at his veterinary practice and they began dating a year later. Their second date was working on raptor caging for Ohio Wildlife Center. “From that point on, life was never dull,” she said.
Their courtship was far from typical and dates were often spent rescuing and treating wildlife into the early morning hours. “It helped being a nurse and being able to assist him in surgery,” she said. Through the years the pace was always hectic, she noted, as Dr. Burton ran his private veterinary practice, treated wildlife and trained young veterinarians. Slowly he built a network of supporters and volunteers who cared about wildlife as much as he did.
“It truly was a labor of love,” she said, “I expected that level of involvement and commitment to wildlife rehabilitation and education from the beginning.”
“We were fortunate to do everything together, side by side for 28 years,” she added. “It was a true blessing to be with him and see him champion this wonderful and beneficial community service that was so near and dear to his heart,” she added.
As Ohio Wildlife Center grew and expanded in the 80’s and 90’s, information on surgical techniques and medical management of injured and diseased wildlife was still somewhat limited, she noted. “He was an extremely gifted surgeon and he often devised and pioneered new procedures and treatment plans for wildlife,” she said. “It was common to see him operating into the evening, surgically placing a pin in a frog or reconstructing a bat’s wing.”
He always made sure he was available to teach and mentor students from Ohio State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, Burton noted, and every Thursday night was “vet night.” Each week he would work with students devising treatment plans, making rounds, and performing surgery. “He truly wanted to inspire the students to have a passion for wildlife rehabilitation, education and co-existing with wildlife,” she said.
His passion for wildlife also found him traveling around the U.S. presenting workshops, seminars and lectures. “He pioneered many medical techniques and was intent on building the knowledge base for treating wildlife,” she said. “He lectured widely on many topics from wildlife diseases to rehabilitation.” 
“Don always wanted the Wildlife Center to be independent and ‘free-standing’ so many of our family vacations were spent visiting other wildlife centers, refuges and national parks,” Burton noted. He would photograph educational centers, study the lay-out and speak with those who were leading similar organizations and learn from them, she said.
When the Cook Road property that is now the Education Center was purchased in the late 90’s, things really took off, she noted. Up to that point the Wildlife Center had been totally housed in the basement of Dr. Burton’s veterinary practice on Billingsley Road, where the Wildlife Hospital is still located.
“With the addition of the Cook Road site there was an opportunity for onsite reconditioning cages, educational programming, a place to house Animal Ambassadors and office space,” Burton said.
“It’s amazing to see the Center’s progress with our great board and our great staff,” she said. “Moving forward was Don’s dream and he would be so pleased to see what’s taking place today.”
“It’s been absolutely amazing to see the growth from those early years in the 80’s when a handful of concerned citizens brought injured wildlife to him for care,” she said. “Don kept those names and numbers and called them together for a meeting that really started Ohio Wildlife Center.”
Serving on the board and as this year’s honorary chair of Ohio Wildlife Center’s Annual Fund Challenge is one way not just to honor her husband’s legacy, but to actively keep building the network of friends and champions for wildlife he started, Burton said. “Thirty plus years ago Don was already concerned about the growth of Central Ohio and the hazards wildlife would face as they lost habitats,” she said. “We are certainly realizing some of the outcomes he expected, which makes the Center that much more valuable to the community.”
Burton said she and her two daughters were especially touched when Ohio Wildlife Center named its new Bald Eagle Animal Ambassador Burton, in memory of the man so dedicated to creating a center where people of all ages could learn more about native wildlife and conservation issues. He was, she added, especially devoted to working with raptors and he had an encyclopedic knowledge of all birds.
Eagles were particularly symbolic for the family, never more so than when they cared for Dr. Burton during his terminal battle with ALS disease in 2014. “In May of 2014 a friend formed a team of his supporters to be in the ALS walk in Columbus,” Burton said. “He chose ‘On Wings of Eagles’ as the team name.”
Later in 2014, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium dedicated their American Bald Eagle habitat to Dr. Burton. “On one of his last days at Kobacher House hospice, a neighbor told us a Bald Eagle was perched in a tree in our backyard,” Burton said. The family continues an annual trip to Hawk Mountain in Eastern Pennsylvania to see raptors during the fall migration, a trip that Dr. Burton loved, she added. “He began that in 1977 and we continue that to this day.”
“It was always a privilege to have animals released at our home and yard and see the success stories,” Burton said. She is hopeful that those who were there at the beginning will continue to inspire new advocates in the mission to carry Dr. Burton’s work forward. “We started as a family and I still feel it’s a large family of caring people who make Ohio Wildlife Center so special.”
