Salary
Average Salary: $20,000
Expected Lifetime Earnings: $834,960
There are so many intangible benefits to being a wildlife rescuer. You get emotional satisfaction, time spent outdoors, and cool stories to tell your friends.
Which is all to say that wildlife rescuers don't make a lot of cash. The average salary is $20,000 (source).
That's less than a janitor (source). Yeah.
Of course, most animal rescuers will say they're not in it for the money. They're in the job because they care about animals and they want to do work that makes a real difference. There are lots of people who do the job for no money at all, and many shelters accept volunteer workers, though they still need to be certified.
As for those rescuing animals to pay the bills, this is usually a salaried, not wage-based, position. After all, you're not punching in nine-to-five when you're on nature's capricious clock.
With time and experience, you can expect to earn a bit more than the average $20,000. There are different certifications that enable you to work with different groups of animals (like migratory birds), and getting additional certifications can increase your pay. The upper end of the salary spectrum is about $31,000 (source).
It's way more than $20,000, but you still won't be buying many Ferraris. If you're the best darn wildlife rescuer there is, you could end up managing a shelter, though, in which case you can expect an additional pay bump.
If you really want to work in the field but don't like the prospect of dining entirely on ramen, there are a few closely related positions where you can earn a few dollars more. For example, if you're working at the shelter as a vet tech, the median salary is $30,500 (source).
Long story short, if you're looking to make money, consider something else. Finance, maybe?