No new intakes, no releases…yet. The red shoulder is getting quite vocal about his desire to be gone, eyeing the door every time I walk in to feed him and staring at me urgently. I foresee a release for him by week’s end; he’s ready!

The red tail isn’t looking as promising. After that one very low flight, he’s remained mostly stationary on one perch or another, glaring at me and refusing to eat. The angle of that wing indicates our “long shot” didn’t pan out, either, so his future is likely short, sadly. I’d always rather give the bird that long shot than call it too soon, though; as all my vets are fond of saying, you can always euthanize later but once it’s done, you can’t take it back.

And there may be a barred owl en route this evening; LWR was texted about it late Saturday evening. The texter balked at driving two hours to get the bird to LWR and asked what he could do himself, then, several hours later, said he’d try to get it to LWR this evening.

Folks, by terms of our permits, all rehabbers can do is explain how to secure wildlife and keep it safe until you can get it to us; we cannot give care advice. It’s illegal for non-licensed individuals—and dangerous, when you don’t have the proper safety gear—and could cost us our permits. I’d rather have the public mad at me than lose my permits, y’all, so pardon me if your huffing and puffing doesn’t faze me.

Also, please remember we’re not state or federal employees; we don’t get paid to rehab (aside from a few folks who work at larger centers).  Your wildlife is ONE of many we get calls about. We cannot drive all over the state picking up whatever you have and still properly maintain the wildlife currently under our care AND hold down our paying jobs, as well.

Lemme give you an example: If I get 5 calls in one day (not unusual during raptor baby season)—from Macon, Forsyth, Eatonton, Douglas, and Statesboro, to randomly pick a few towns north and south of LWR—how can I reasonably be expected to drive to all these locations—each at least an hour away—in one day, feed and medicate the birds in my care, and perform the duties of my paying job? Yet each of these callers would have ONE trip to make, not five. THIS is why I and other rehabbers ask callers to bring the wildlife to us. Logistically, it makes more sense.

Anyway…off the soapbox, and we’ll see if the barred actually makes it to LWR this evening…

LWR had two more releases just this morning, as the MIKI and the mature red tail were deemed good to go. I love releases!

The MIKI took off strong and sure; he’s been increasingly restless the past week as his migratory instincts kicked in. By day’s end he should be joining the migrating flocks of MIKIs as they move south toward the Gulf Coast and onward to South America.

The red tail, despite a “sloppy” release (and a blurry video; the morning sun hit the lens just “wrong” to create some serious flare and screw up focus), quickly regained his bearings. I saw where he landed, walked toward him for a post-release photo, and could’ve kicked myself for not having the camera ready to video. He saw me coming, hopped to a higher branch, and then soared right over my head as he went deeper into the woods. It was gorgeous!

Their releases freed the flights, so the red shoulder recovering from near-starvation went into the mini-pen.

And the red tail recovering from a wing fracture went into the main flight. Recall from his late July intake, his humerus was broken and  vets Jim and Peggy Hobby and I agreed it was a “long-shot” fracture, meaning it might not heal for flight, so it was delightful to see him fly, albeit very low to the ground, across the length of the flight. His head and neck feathers look a bit scruffy because he’s been very antsy, banging his head against the top of his box, as he awaited his turn in a flight.

Both these birds will be guests at LWR for at least the remainder of September; the red shoulder needs to gain more weight, and the red tail must prove that he can fly well.

Normally, rehabbers aim at keeping their charges as long as needed to ensure their chances of survival are high. Sometimes that means overwintering one or more rehabs—keeping them through the winter to release the following spring. LWR has done this on numerous occasions. However, there are times we rehabbers HAVE to work against a tight migration deadline. Such is the case currently, with the MIKI.

MIKIs overwinter in South America. We’re approaching the deadline for migration. And LWR has a MIKI that needs to be on his way SOON—like within the next two weeks. He’s been moved to the mini-pen for flight conditioning, in hopes that we can get him ready for his journey ASAP.  He was NOT a happy camper at the move… Y’all make sure your volume isn’t blaring; he’s loud!

Y’all pray this feisty little fellow fully figures out what his wings are for soon, so he can join all the other MIKIs headed to South America for the winter.

The older male red tail is in the main flight and should be good to go within the week. He’s eating and flying well. As you can see, he’s also going through a molt. I’ve always found it neat how they molt symmetrically on their wings, losing the same feathers on each side simultaneously. Birds are amazing!

 The younger red tail is increasingly antsy as his wing heals, and he should be ready to move into the main flight once it’s vacant. He hates the camera; can you tell?

The starvation-thin red shoulder decided free food was a good deal and started eating with gusto, so once he’s got some weight back on him, he’ll be good to go into whichever flight is currently empty, but he’s got a couple of weeks before that happens.

Y’all enjoy your Labor Day tomorrow!

During LWR’s short break from updates we had two gorgeous releases, both red tails, and a couple of new intakes, as well.

Beginning with the releases, the gorgeous female red tail was released after she finally showed me she could indeed fly, and fly well. Y’all, I don’t mind admitting this was one gal I kinda hated to release. She was so breathtakingly gorgeous I could’ve just sat and stared at her all day. But she needed to be free to live her life as God intended,  so…Just look at her, though—what a work of art!

Shortly after her release, one of the three males was ready to go. He’d been antsy from day one, waiting for his very minor ulna fracture to heal, so he was delighted to “get shed” of me. He didn’t hang around long enough for a post-release photo.

That leaves two male red tails still at LWR: the young fellow with the humerus fracture and the starvation-thin mature guy who’s slowly gaining weight. They’re both getting antsy, too, but the young feller still has a couple of weeks before he can go into a flight pen, and it’s just too dang hot to put the old man outside—besides, I’m still not satisfied he’s gained enough weight yet.

But look at them; they’re gorgeous too! Y’all know I love my red tails…

Young feller:

Old man:

During the week’s break from updates, a barred owl came in, thin and lethargic; he didn’t survive the night.  Friday of this past week, a starvation-thin red shoulder came in. He’s alert but reluctant to eat. If he’ll start eating like he should, he’s got a good chance at survival.

And, of course, the MIKI (Mississippi kite) continues to grow, although he stubbornly refuses to self-feed. He’ll eagerly take food from the forceps; he just won’t pick it up himself. He has started attempting to use his feet to hold bits of food that he snatched from the forceps and positioned awkwardly in his beak, though—that’s a good sign, as MIKIs use their feet to hold their food and eat it while on the wing. THAT is an amazing sight to see!

LWR’s fundraising goal of $2000 was met mid-week. As always, heartfelt thanks to those who donated!

We’ll begin this week’s update with the red tail who, in last week’s update, was en route. He’s a mature male, keel (breastbone) 1.5 (starvation level) but alert. He tends to fall over on his side at the slightest stress but is eating well. He just needs to gain a lot of weight back before we can even consider release, and with the heat advisories we keep having, he’s inside until he’s more stable nutritionally.

Maintaining the red tail theme, the big ol’ gorgeous female ain’t stupid, y’all. She stubbornly refuses to let me see her fly, although I know she can; I’ve walked to the main flight and heard her leaving the perch above the door just as I reached it. But until I actually SEE her fly the length of the flight and back, she’s not going anywhere…which appears to be what she wants. Can’t blame her—three hots and a cot, as it were, plus shelter from the elements in the flight blind…she’s got it made right now!

The “older” of the two male red tails with wing fractures—older in this case meaning he’s been here the longest—got loose in the rehab house twice last week, so since his fracture was a hairline “wannabe” break and he was flying quite well inside, it seemed safe enough to move him into the mini-pen for the duration of his stay at LWR. He’s doing well outside.

The more recent of the two younger males is still eating like he’s starving. His philosophy is “don’t come near my box without food in hand,” and he watches me, well, like a hawk while I’m feeding everybody, after he’s inhaled his mice.

The barred owl did require euthanasia; once the swelling went down it was obvious without x-rays that the wing wasn’t fixable.

The paralyzed red shoulder, though, has surprised me immensely. After a couple of days of steroids, he was able to sit back on his hocks. By week’s end he was able to move his feet and legs, although he’s still not standing. He may stall at this level, or he may, in a couple of weeks, be able to stand. At this point, given his progress thus far, I’m willing to give him the time he needs to see what happens.

The MIKI who’d been trying to escape but was too fat to fly slimmed down to the point that one morning last week he slipped past me as I opened the door to feed him, and he took off, strong and straight. No release photos, as he self-released on his schedule, not mine.

However, within two days of his self-release, a call came in for another MIKI, this one a nestling. He was stressed out of his gourd on arrival but once he realized he would get fed rather than be eaten, he settled down nicely. MIKIs are amazing little birds at all ages!

There will be no update next Sunday, August 20. Regular updates will resume on August 27.

We’re doing well with the fundraiser, with $1935 of our $2000 goal raised—just $65 to go to meet the goal, folks! Many heartfelt thanks to those who’ve donated; for those who haven’t, if not now, when? If not you, who?

The barred owl who came in with a massive concussion was released last week. As you can see in the video, it took him a few seconds to realize if he’d just stop biting the glove, he was free, but when it sank in, he wasted no time taking off! I tried to walk over to where he landed for a post-release photo and he flew off again, so I zoomed as far as my camera would go and got the not-great shot of him glaring at me.

The third red tail from last week’s update, the one who needed x-rays to confirm what I suspected was a shoulder fracture, actually had a fractured humerus. It’s not a promising-looking fracture, but vets Jim and Peggy Hobby and I agreed it was worth giving the bird time to see what would happen. It’s a long shot, but long shots have paid off with releasable birds in the past, so…we’ll see. Meanwhile, he’s inhaling everything I offer him, making up for the meals he’d missed in the wild. And he apparently has “fainting goat” genes somewhere in his lineage, as the shot below is what I see every time I look in his box with no food in my hand…

Red tail #2 is still recovering from a fractured ulna and is doing well. He’s very antsy, and much unhappier at confinement than the other two red tails are.

And the big ol’ female red tail remains utterly gorgeous and stubbornly refuses to demonstrate that she can fly; I’ve only seen a half-flight from her, which is not enough to warrant release. Honestly, I think she’s decided she’s got the proverbial “three hots and a cot” and doesn’t plan to go anywhere anytime soon…not that I’m actually complaining, as walking into the flight to feed her still takes my breath away. She’s just…perfect.

The MIKI has been moved into the mini-pen and is apparently a bit…ummm…pudgy. Okay, he’s too fat to fly. I overfed him. We’ve cut back, which he’s not thrilled with, but he’s already making better progress with his flight. He really, really wants to fly away, so once he’s at flight weight, he won’t be at LWR too long.

A red shoulder came in late Friday evening exhibiting full paralysis of his legs and tail but full use of his wings. He’s starvation thin but alert and hungry, so we’re trying steroids for a couple of days to see if the problem is inflamed nerves. My gut says this is a fatal injury but sometimes a couple of days of steroids will reduce swelling that causes paralysis.

This morning a barred owl came in with a right wing fracture. It’s still very swollen but the crunchiness I felt during his intake exam leads me to believe it’s not going to be a fixable break. Since it’s a Sunday and Smalley’s won’t be open till Monday, we have a little time for the swelling to go down before attempting an x-ray. Poor baby’s also experiencing a massive molt, so his head looks all funky!

And a call just came in as I was working on the update: Another red tail is en route and should arrive before 6 pm…

The fundraiser is at $1570, with just $430 to go to meet the goal. Many heartfelt thanks to those who’ve donated; for those who’re waiting, now’s the time to make that donation. Waiting for “someone else” to do something usually means it doesn’t get done, so be “someone else” and donate today!

The purported red shoulders who were supposed to arrive last Monday turned out to be a single MIKI (Mississippi kite); his sib died before transport from UGA to LWR. He’s doing well, totally self-feeding now, and is headed to the mini-pen late this week to build up his flight muscles prior to release.

The older MIKI did, as I theorized in last Sunday’s update, require euthanasia. Vet Peggy Hobby of Smalley’s Animal Hospital agreed that he had developed a cataract in his left eye, and recall the right eye had been damaged in what appeared to be a nest injury. A blind bird cannot survive in the wild and cannot self-feed in captivity.

In better news, the little male red tail had only a minor fracture to his left ulna, so he just needs time to heal. Peggy described it as “wanting to be a fracture”—it’s that minor (I circled it on the x-ray so you can see it). But he has to remain confined until it heals; a minor fracture can easily become a major one if not treated properly. He’s eating well and should be ready for a flight pen within 4-6 weeks, but he’s an extremely unhappy and restless camper and not a single photo of him last week was worth a flyin’ flip.

The female red tail who came in a couple of weeks ago is flying better but still not where she needs to be. Lordamercy, she’s gorgeous, though! I might be a wee bit biased, but I firmly believe red tails are among God’s most perfect creations—and she’s a mighty fine specimen of that perfection.

A third red tail came in last night, another small male. His right wing is broken at the shoulder; I suspect it’s not fixable but will wait for x-rays to confirm. Shoulder fractures can be iffy. He’s pretty thin but his tail feathers aren’t too badly frayed so he hasn’t been down long; the thinness predates the injury.

Breaking the red tail/MIKI cycle LWR’s been in lately, a barred owl also came in last week, with his bell well and truly rung. The feathers on his facial disc that hide his right ear were actually pushed forward from whatever lick he took, leaving his ear bruised and him concussed out the wazoo. Luckily, he had no broken bones, just a lingering massive headache. Within 48 hours he was alert and eating everything offered, so he’ll need a couple of days in the min-pen before the MIKI goes in, to make sure he’s good for release.

We have 17 days left in the fundraiser, so if you haven’t donated already, please consider doing so soon—and again, thanks to those who’ve already donated.

We’re currently at $1400 of our $2000 goal—just $600 to go! Many thanks to those who’ve donated, and if you’re waiting, why? “If not now, when? If not you, then who?”

 This week saw two new intakes, the most recent—yesterday—a gorgeous second-year red tail, a small male. Nothing appears broken but he can’t get lift, suggesting a coracoid fracture.  We’ll aim at x-rays this week, although coracoid fractures usually don’t show on x-rays. (And yes, I know the gloves are useless draped over my shoulder...)

The second, albeit earlier, intake for the week was an adult red shoulder with an open wing fracture. He required euthanasia.

The fledgling MIKI may also be facing euthanasia; his “good eye” on the left has what appears to be a cataract that developed literally overnight late-week. I started medicating in hopes that the white mass I was seeing was a clump of white blood cells, but there’s no improvement. He’ll also head to the vet to see if there’s anything we can do for him. The right eye cleared up nicely but the pupil remains deformed into a straight line and tightly constricted. He’s stopped self-feeding because he can’t see the food or the forceps so I’m having to hand-feed him until we can get a firm diagnosis.

And the red tail from last week’s update, who I now believe is female, based on her size in comparison to this week’s male, is showing some slight improvement in her mobility. She’s still not able to get real lift, which again, in the absence of any wing fractures—confirmed by x-rays; see last week’s update—could be a result of soft tissue damage or a coracoid fracture. She remains a regal, commanding presence in the main flight—takes my breath away every time I look at her!

Finally, although they’re not here yet, two nestling/brancher red shoulders are headed to LWR Monday. DNR’s Bob Sargent, who’s actually head of the eagles program, contacted me late last week to ask if I could take the two young ones from UGA. There are two bat techs headed to the coast Monday who’re supposed to drop off the red shoulders on their way. The photo below was provided by the vet overseeing their care at UGA.

More birds means more mice needed—see that fundraiser link above to donate!

Monday, one day after our update stating that LWR had no birds in care at the moment, a fledgling MIKI (Mississippi kite) came in, followed on Wednesday by a second-year red tail. Both were believed by their finders to have wing injuries; neither did—talk about lucky birds!

Let’s discuss them in order of intake, shall we?

The MIKI was found grounded and didn’t seem to be able to fly, which is why his finders thought he had a wing injury. What I noticed first, though, was a funky right eye with a pinpoint, misshapen pupil and worm-like clumps of white cells floating around in it. Well, he had to be x-rayed anyway, to ensure no wing fractures, so that eye would also need checking out.

Tuesday both Jim and Peggy Hobby of Smalley’s Animal Hospital were fascinated by the MIKI’s odd eye, so he was examined by both vets. The consensus was that whatever eye injury he’d had led to infection and inflammation. The resultant pain and inflammation caused the pupil to constrict and basically freeze that way. He’s on meds to see if we can straighten this issue out, and they’ve already made a noticeable difference in the inflammation, but he may still end up needing placement as an ed bird. MIKIs require perfect vision in both eyes for their very survival.

Oh, as y’all can see from the x-rays, he had no fractures, but he’s also learned to twist that neck into godawful positions to compensate for the eye injury. I suspect it was a nest injury of some sort that didn’t become a problem until he fledged.

The red tail was found in the road, with his finders also indicating he had a wing injury. On intake no injuries were immediately apparent but he guarded his left wing. Off we went to Smalley’s again the next day, where x-rays again showed no fractures. His balance seems off at times when he’s hopping to or from a perch, and he’ll flare both wings perfectly symmetrically briefly, and then droop the left one, so there may be soft tissue injury. As y’all know by now, that doesn’t show on x-rays and can take months to resolve…or never resolve.  Time will tell.

Meanwhile, he’s a feisty bird who ate like a feathered vacuum cleaner till he realized the food supply was gonna be steady and reliable in his new temporary digs. He’s slowed down some now, down from 16 medium and large mice a day for two days to only 6 extra-larges a day the past couple of days.

Y’all know I adore red tails, so despite the fact that he bit the crap outta my finger on intake, bruised a couple more fingers through the raptor gloves with his death grip, tried to eat my raptor gloves, and shredded several exam gloves, he still gets a “good morning/afternoon, big boy” in dulcet tones…I mean, he’s a red tail—what’s not to love?

In case y’all’re wondering how I could specify he’s a second-year bird, here’s the secret: a first-year (hatched in whatever the current year is, e.g., 2023 in this case) has yellow eyes. As they move into their second year, their eyes go caramel; by their third year, the eyes are dark brown. Note in his photos his eyes are a gorgeous caramel color. Interesting, huh?! (Not all raptors follow that pattern: Coops have grayish eyes that turn red; red shoulders’ eyes are brown throughout their lives; MIKIs have dark brown eyes that turn red; bald eagles have brown eyes that turn yellow…)

And while I usually lead with fundraisers, I decided to end this update with a new fundraiser. As you can see from the stats in the fundraiser info, it takes a LOT of mice to feed these birds, and mice are expensive. The red shoulder recently transferred to a falconer ate slightly more than 2500 mice at an approximate cost of $1842 during his 12 weeks at LWR. Not all birds spend 12 weeks here—some barely get one meal before requiring euthanasia due to their injuries—but the majority of our “guests” spend at least a couple of months getting regular rodent rations. And often theirs are the larger, more expensive mice—the red shoulder ate smalls and mediums; larger birds like great horneds, barreds and red tails require large and extra-large mice. Remember that we rehabbers get no state or federal funding for our efforts, so we rely on your generosity to help keep us in mice to feed our intakes.

We’ll run this campaign for a month unless our $2000 goal is met sooner. Please donate as generously as you can, and on behalf of the raptors LWR cares for, thank you!

Hope y’all enjoyed last week’s  break from updates and your Fourth of July celebrations. Here at LWR, the Fourth was spent backing up files from a crashing computer; luckily all files were saved.

We had only one new intake in the past couple of weeks, an adult Mississippi kite (MIKI). I cringe when adult MIKIs come in, as 99.9% of the time they have fatal injuries…and this time was no exception to the rule. This gorgeous bird had an open wing fracture right at the left shoulder. He was humanely euthanized.

In more upbeat news, all three barreds were released. No video, as they all flew in separate directions from the single box they were in, but I did manage a few photos—not great, because they were at the limit of my camera’s zoom when they landed, but decent enough given their distance in the woods!

And in even better news, the red shoulder raised from tiny hatchling to gorgeous young adult is, as of yesterday, with the falconer who will spend the next couple of years partnering with him as he learns to hunt and improves his survival chances from about 50% to over 95%. She was thrilled with his overall physical condition and personality, so I think theirs will be a beautiful and beneficial partnership for both parties.

And that leaves LWR, for the moment, with no birds in care…in July. That is truly weird. Colleague Steve Hicks and I were talking about this toward the end of last week and we both feel that the avian flu outbreaks of the past couple of years have taken a heavy toll on our raptors, one that will take years for the populations to recover from. We’re both hoping we’re wrong—this is one case where we’d be delighted to be wrong—but our experiences thus far (we both live in rural areas) would indicate otherwise.