Okay, so it’s a lame ripoff of The Wizard of Oz…What can I say? Sleep deprivation and exhaustion will make a
rehabber…unoriginal, at best!

The finches and Carolina wren have all been released; as of today, I’m seeing only one of the finches periodically, although I hear the  others.  The mocker will still half-heartedly beg for a handout but usually flies away as I approach him.

The mourning dove was flying well enough for release, which is a wonderful turnaround from when he came in. If you’ll recall, I really thought we would have to euthanize him. 

The mallard is slated for release this week.

The robin is doing great; he did pluck out his flight feathers on the injured wing, preening at the splint, though, so we now must wait for the flights to grown back. Meanwhile, he flaps like crazy (never when I have the camera or camcorder handy, of course…). The instinct is definitely there; only time will tell if the ability is.

These two blue jays came in several days apart. The younger one, first photo, had a massively infected eye and you can also see the blood on his little wing. The older one was very lethargic, with a very pale gape. We started antibiotics and rehydration on both immediately upon intake, but neither made it through the night. 

King snakes are truly beneficial snakes, with voracious appetites for rodents and other snakes, including rattlesnakes. They’re easy to identify, as well, even from a distance, so it always ticks me off when some jerk runs over a king snake. This one was near the side of the road when found, meaning that he’d probably just started to enter the road. The jackass who hit him had to go out of his way and nearly off the road to run over a snake that was doing him no harm and was clearly a king snake. Folks, learn to identify the good snakes and leave them alone!

The red-bellied woodpeckers will be headed for the flight pen this week. The runt is still behind his sibs developmentally and I may keep him in a while longer; we’ll see. The bluebird will probably join them in the flight pen, as well.

When an outdoor cat killed one of these Carolina wrens’ parents, the young rescuer bought worms and supplemental-fed the nestlings, aiding the surviving parent in keeping the babies alive. However, when he found them out of the nest, he worried that something had happened to the surviving parent and asked his mother to get the nestlings to LWR. So far they’re doing just fine; with wrens a “take it a day at a time” philosophy is definitely in order, so that’s exactly what we’re doing.

The people who rescued this brown thrasher saw him grounded with a cat nearby. They weren’t sure if he’d fallen from the nest or been stolen from the nest by the cat. He had a ruptured air sac and a scraped hip, both of which could have been caused by a fall or the cat, so I started antibiotics as a precautionary measure and planned to drain the ruptured air sac if it didn’t deflate on its own within a day or two—not a difficult or even especially painful course of action, but stressful for the bird. Fortunately, it deflated without needing draining, and the thrasher is doing quite well.

These poor rabbits had a double whammy. Their mother was killed by a cat and their nest was destroyed by a lawn mower.  Just a reminder, folks—keep your cats indoors, and do a quick walk-through of your yard before mowing to check for fledglings or unnested baby birds, rabbit nests, turtles, etc. 

The mocker has been released, although his favorite haunt at the moment is the tree right at the flight pen, so he can beg for a handout when I feed the flight pen occupants. The finches are ready for release as soon as we
have several consecutive rain-free days forecast; the Carolina wren, now in the flight pen, can be released with the finches.

In a lovely, lovely surprise, the mourning dove decided last week  to start flying, just before I planned to have him euthanized because he was  miserable pacing back and forth in the flight pen. Now he’s still unhappy, but
he’s flying, so he has a chance at release and the freedom he so desperately wants!

The possum trio has been released, also, and they were quite  happy to be on their clueless, dim-witted little ways.

The mallard continues to do well and should be ready for release  on a well-monitored pond in another week or so. 

Despite my best efforts, I was unable to reunite the failed fledgling bluebird with his family, but as luck would have it, he had a “cousin” come in the very next day—a pre-fledgling American robin with a broken
wrist. (Robins and bluebirds are both members of the thrush family.) Idiots set on wiping out every tree in the area they were planning to  “develop” chopped down the tree this baby’s nest was in, and he ended up in the
neighbor’s yard. His siblings were probably crushed by the falling tree; his  finders did look for other survivors and didn’t find any.

The robin’s wrist was an open fracture but because his bones are still growing and because he’s never learned what “proper” flight feels like, we opted to soft-splint the wing, use copious antibiotics, and hope for the best.
Meanwhile he has the bluebird for companionship. The bluebird should be in the flight pen, but he seems to help lower the robin’s stress levels, so he’ll stay inside for a while longer.

“Cuz,” as I’m calling the robin, is doing amazingly well. He’s  attempting to use that splinted wing, eating well, and very much likes having the bluebird as a buddy. So we have Cuz and Buddy, unlikely companions anywhere
outside a rehab setting, doing well and growing apace. Only time will tell if Cuz’s wing will heal to allow flight, but we’re gonna give him that time.

Even though it’s hawk nesting season, I was somewhat surprised to get in a nestling red tailed hawk. She’d been grounded for two days before I got her and was not being fed by her parents, which doesn’t bode well for the fate of either her parents or any siblings. She’s a beauty, as you can see below, and rather big for her young age. I kept telling Steve Hicks of Bubba & Friends that she was large, quite large, and when I transferred her to him, he called almost immediately after getting her, laughing at the size of her feet—you can see the source of our amusement below. The gal has gunboats for feet! She also has a healthy appetite and will be a huge bird when she’s full-grown. Steve and I are betting she might be a record-setter. In the videos below, you can hear
her demanding food while it thaws the day she came in and then witness her appetite for yourselves.

This American coot apparently had a mild concussion after being found in a roadway. After observation and examination to determine if anything else was amiss, the ill-tempered little waterfowl was released and promptly
showed off by vigorously swimming upstream against a strong current.

And I originally posted the following paragraph on LWR’s Facebook page, but because I don’t think I could word it any better, I’m copying it here:

 Every so often, someone comes along who halfway restores my hope for humanity's future. The folks who brought me four nestling red-bellied woodpeckers this morning are in that very small group. When their new neighbors chopped down the tree the nest was in on Thursday without even checking for active nests first, the
rescuers 1) cussed out the neighbors (now these are MY kind of people!); 2) attempted to rig a makeshift nest; 3) when the parents hadn't returned by dark, retrieved the babies; 4) called me for advice on feeding BEFORE attempting to offer any food; 5) made arrangements to meet me in the AM with the woodpeckers. And they drove ALL THE WAY FROM BRUNSWICK to save these babies' lives. For my friends outside Georgia, that's a two-hour ONE WAY drive from the coast using the back roads; three hours one-way on the interstate. These are people who give a damn about our native wildlife, and they put action behind their words. We need more people like them, not just in Georgia but around the globe.

The red bellies are doing quite well, and the little runt that the rescuers and I were worried about has now become the most vocal of the group in demanding his fair share of the food! I suspect that as the runt, probably a late hatch, he was getting less food in the nest, which further slowed his development. It may not be obvious in the photos and video, but I can see marked development in just the three days he and his sibs have been at LWR.

And folks, it is now time for my weekly soapbox rant. It is A VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW to disturb
active nests. Yeah, all you developers and chainsaw happy fools out there, this  means you, too. You are supposed to check for active nests BEFORE pruning limbs or felling trees, and when I know the names of individuals or companies who don’t follow the regulations, you damn well better believe I report them to both
the state and federal authorities. I have five babies right now—the robin and the red bellies—who should be in the wild being raised by their parents but were robbed of that right by idiots who don’t give a damn about nature, the environment, or the laws they broke by destroying active nests. I say it’s time for state and federal authorities to come down on some of these violators very hard and very publicly and let people know this nonsense must stop and that violators will be punished to the fullest extent of the law…not nearly as
severely as I’d like, but not everyone believes in the Hammurabian code of justice…

Domain name registries and site hosting companies don’t always play well together, so when this website was first created, I’d purchased the domain name I wanted from a different registry that wouldn’t let me transfer to my web host. So…long story short, I had to stick that pesky “inc” at the end of the address to get on with building the site. NOW, however, the original domain name I wanted is free for THIS hosting company/registry partnership to snag, so…the new address is www.laurenswildliferescue.org . Please change all your bookmarks and alert anyone you’ve shared the old address with.

Now, on to the critters. Let’s lead with a release. The Mississippi kite with undetermined issues resolved said issues with a little TLC from LWR. Okay, actually, all I did was provide a safe haven and a nutritious diet while he did all the hard work. Anyway, he’s free, free as a bird! (Sorry, couldn’t resist…)

The cardinal with the eye issues also developed neurological issues and required euthanasia. The sneeze-calling little possum failed to thrive and I was on my way to have her euthanized when she died. Despite our best efforts, the snapping turtle didn’t make it, either. The shell wasn’t cracked too badly for repair, so the lawn mower might have ruptured internal organs. It’s so hard to tell what’s going on internally with a turtle…And rounding out the death list from last week’s critters, the runt Carolina wren put up a good fight but just wasn’t strong enough to survive.

The finches, on the other hand, grew like little feathered weeds.

Three of the four are in the flight pen.

The fourth, the runt, is behind developmentally but is making progress and should join his sibs soon.

The surviving Carolina wren should be in the flight pen but refuses to accept this, so he’s inside with the runt finch.

The mocker is reluctant to leave the flight pen, so he’s being pestered to death by those chatty little finches. The mourning dove still shows no signs of flight ability, so his time is growing short.

The three possums are growing at an insane rate and might even be releasable in another couple of weeks if they keep up this growth pace. Still camera-shy, though…

This hummingbird was found on the pavement in a neighboring town. The person who called about the bird was at work and did the best he could to provide food for the hummer until he could get her to me, but hummers don’t grasp the concept of taking sugar water from a paper cup. By the time I got her, she’d started shutting down and was refusing to even attempt to eat on her own. I thought I had her stabilized by lights-out, but when I removed the cover from her pen the next morning, she had died. (Any sustained light at night, like a night-light or appliance lights, will cause a hummer to wake up and starve to death during the night, hence the need to cover their pens.)

While I see quite a few wood ducks, I’ve never had a mallard in rehab. Weird, I know, but true. Until this week, that is. A caller from a nearby town called to say he’d rescued a juvenile male mallard that was being chased by two Canada geese on a major thoroughfare in the town. His wing appeared to be broken.

The next morning, I took him to Smalley’s Animal Hospital, where vet Jim Hobby confirmed, after x-rays, that the wing was broken right in the wrist joint. This is not a fixable break and in most other birds would require euthanasia. However, this mallard actually appears to have been a commercial bird (state and federal laws permit raising mallards commercially), raised in close contact with people, as he has very little fear of humans, so he’ll  thrive on a well-monitored pond. We’re giving him time for the break to stabilize, and then he’ll go to a safe pond to live the life of Riley as a free bird with a lifetime food subsidy.

One of the primary things I wish well-meaning but untrained people would get through their skulls is NOT to feed orphaned babies ANYTHING until they contact a rehabber. Yes, in the case of baby birds, frequent feedings are a necessity, hence the need to contact a licensed avian rehabber ASAP. This hatchling mockingbird was found beside its dead sibling with no nest in site. The finder called LWR almost immediately but had already given the hatchling water. Baby birds and water don’t mix; there’s too much risk of aspiration. I was hopeful that maybe we’d avoided that but started antibiotics, to be safe. He did well his first day, gaping like a pro. His second morning, however, he was lethargic and had a distinctly gray tint—never a good sign in baby birds. Since I had to make a vet visit with another critter, I decided this little one would need euthanasia while there. He checked out on his own before the menagerie ever made it to the exam room.

Grackles aren’t especially attractive birds, aside from those striking yellow eyes. And they have lousy temperaments. Still, for some reason, I really like the ill-tempered cusses. This grackle was found in someone’s back yard with a broken leg. While he hasn’t been x-rayed yet, the break is right in the knee and will not be fixable. I’ve seen too many of these types of fractures before and know what they look and feel like. Because this week witnessed a spate of euthanasias by my vets, I’m giving them a break before taking this bird in.

I really, really like chuck-will’s-widows, nocturnal insectivores with tiny beaks that open to great, gaping maws to scoop insects from the air  while in flight. They’re shy but not at all hesitant to put on a big show of aggression when they feel threatened. This poor bird’s left wing was pretty much  sheared off; it was hanging on by a tendon or two. He still managed to remain  alert and put up a brave front, but there was nothing we could do for him. In the video clips below, vet Jim Hobby examines the chuck-will’s-widow.

Finally, what is my cardinal rule with fledglings? Repeat after  me: Don’t kidnap fledglings; unless
their lives are in imminent danger, let their parents finish raising them!
 
Why do I mention that rule? Well, aside from the obvious—that it  bears repeating ad infinitum, ad nauseum this time of year—because there are  times I make a judgment call and break that rule myself.

 Most of you know I have Eastern bluebird nesting boxes on my  property. I monitor these boxes obsessively. I know when nests are started,  when each egg is laid, when they hatch, and when the babies fledge. 

Yesterday we had four nestlings become four fledglings. Near dark  the parent bluebirds were raising a worse than usual post-fledging ruckus, so of  course I investigated. Near my flight pen, clinging to a blade of grass, was a gorgeous little fledgling. I had just killed a 3-foot rat snake outside my  flight pen and an app. 18 inch one in the flight pen (you can’t snake-proof a  flight pen, no matter how hard you try, unless you can hire someone to monitor  it 24/7). We have barred owls, GHOs, bobcats, foxes, coyotes and Lord knows what  other nocturnal predators.

I first moved the fledgling to a safer location, within sight of his frantic parents. He promptly flitted right back down to ground level. Hell would freeze over before I was leaving a defenseless fledgling on the ground at night under the aforementioned circumstances.  Little Boy Blue spent the night safely inside. 

This morning while I was in the flight pen I heard his parents and sibs off in the distance, so I hoped I could reunite him with his family if they’d come back within earshot of my unwilling guest. I have on occasion (two
other times in the past 10 years or so) done this and in one instance I was able to reunite the fledgling, a red-bellied woodpecker, with his parents. So far, however, this gorgeous little man’s family hasn’t been back close enough for me to put him back out to call for them. I hear them faintly, way off in the distance, but I don’t see them—and I won’t risk losing a bluebird to wandering dogs, hawks, or other diurnal predators, either. So…we’ll keep trying and see if we can stage a reunion. The woodpecker took three days before we managed to get
him back with his family, but what a reunion that was to witness! Hopefully we’ll be able to do the same for this little bluebird. Fingers crossed…

The last two weeks of April saw a pretty heavy influx of babies, so spring has definitely sprung at LWR!

The turkey vulture from the last update was released after a few days’ R&R. No photos; turkey vultures are so shy all he’d do is hunker down in his box and hide his head while I was watching. I left the box open in a safe place and left him undisturbed for a while, and he was gone when I came back.

The mocker is in the flight pen now and eating some mealworms on his own. His flight skills have improved dramatically in just the past few days, so I hope to release him within the next week or so.

The mourning dove joined the mocker in the flight pen but thus far has made no attempt to fly. The “wing injury” he was found with seven months before he was brought to me was a broken bone that healed improperly, hence his inability to fly. I’m trying to give him all the time I can, on the off chance that he’ll eventually be able to fly, but it’s not looking hopeful right now.

For the record, a bird with a broken bone has 72 hours before the bone begins to set in whatever awkward, ill-aligned position the break has caused. Time is of the essence in treating fractures; don’t delay getting a bird you suspect has a fracture to a licensed rehabber.

Sadly, the wrens that were doing so well all died. Wrens are stressy little birds, but honestly, until last year I had really amazing release rates. Last year was atrocious for me on the wren front, and I finally experienced the struggles my fellow rehabbers have reported with the nervous little darlings. This year is a mixed bag so far.

These possums were found wandering in a yard with no mama in sight. Actually, they’re totally self-feeding and would be able to handle that aspect of survival on their own. At this small size, however, they’re easy prey, so the general rule of thumb in wildlife rehab is to provide them a nutritious diet and a safe haven while they grow to a size that will make them less vulnerable to predators. Since they’re self-feeding, I have no reason to handle them, and they’re very skittish. This isn’t a great photo, but it’s the best I’ve managed of all three of them—so far, at least.

Cardinal nestlings and fledglings are impossibly cute, with their bulging, alien-looking eyes and their endearing habit of licking their beaks after each feeding. This little one was nearly run over by a lawn mower. He was actually a bit too young to be out of the nest when he came in, but he also had what appeared to be an eye infection. The impaired vision may have factored into his fall from the nest. Even with antibiotics, his eyes aren’t looking promising. The left eye appears to have atrophied and the right remains swollen—they don’t seem to be getting worse or better, so this may be some sort of congenital condition. We do think he may be blind at this point, and unlike a blind mammal, blind birds can’t locate their food by scent, so lack of vision is a death sentence. Because he’s a young bird and we’re trying to give the meds time to work, he’s got a reprieve, but I really suspect he’s on borrowed time.

These four Carolina wrens lost their mother. The father was able to feed them during the day but could not brood them at night. When their finder checked on them after dark and confirmed that they were not being brooded on a 40 degree night, she brought them in and placed them on heat for the night. They also appeared to be doing well on intake, but within 48 hours, three of the four had died. The sole survivor is vocal and eating well, so…fingers crossed for this wee one.

When 911 called with a reported possible injured bald eagle, I have to admit my heart sank—not at the injured part, at the bald eagle part. I’ve dealt with exactly one bald eagle, and I don’t care to repeat the experience. Still, I told the 911 operator if the officer on the scene could get the bird in a box and meet me, I’d take it. When I drove up, the officer pulled a small box out of the back of his patrol car and said, deadpan, “I don’t think it’s a bald eagle.” So nice to deal with people who share my warped sense of humor!

The “bald eagle” was in fact an adult Mississippi kite that we suspected had been shot, as he had blood on his neck and was unable to stand. The next morning, I got the M. kite to the vet, where I was sure his x-rays would light up like a Christmas tree. Instead, we had…nothing. It was a lovely, normal x-ray--no lead, no fractures, nothing to explain why the M. kite favored the entire left side of his body. We opted for a small dose of steroids and a mild antibiotic to see what would happen. That night, he flopped on his back and couldn’t flip back over. Convinced he was done for, I flipped him to his belly and made him as comfortable as possible, figuring he’d check out during the night, but lo and behold, the next morning he was standing! He’s still favoring his left side some but he is standing now, so hopefully we’ll be able to release him soon. Below is a photo of him on his side; he flips on his back or side in defensive mode every time I go near him, so you’ll just have to take my word he’s standing!

This snapping turtle was run over by a lawn mower. My first reaction was, “How could anyone NOT see a snapper this big?” Vet Richie Hatcher and I agreed that it looked fixable, so I gave it the old college try. He was still swollen when I epoxied the band to his shell, so it’s not completely flush in the photo. We’re still going round and round with this stubborn fellow, so we’ll see what the final outcome is.

This single possum is a tiny little rascal who sneeze-calls for her mama quite a lot, especially when she’s hungry. She was one of several rescued from the pouch of a dog-killed mama possum, but the others died before the rescuers could get them to me.

These Carolina wrens came to LWR after their nest fell. The finder did the right thing by replacing the nest, as she knew exactly where it had fallen from, but within a few hours it had fallen again and one of the babies had died. These two were cold and gray when they came in and I honestly didn’t hold out much hope they’d survive the night. The runt is still struggling a bit, but the older nestling is doing very well.

After the horse trailer these finches were in was moved, the nest was found. The finder placed it in the fork of a nearby tree and hoped the parents would continue to feed the nestlings, and for two days they did just that. On the third morning, however, the nestlings were found to be cold and lethargic. Apparently something had happened to both parents. Finches will eat themselves into a near-stupor, and they’re SO enthusiastic about feeding time! They also have a rather unsavory habit of pooping all over each other and the nest, so keeping them clean is a real challenge. They get a wipe-down after each meal, which they’re not real enthusiastic about, but hey, when you bob and weave and sling food when being fed and serve as a latrine for your sibs, what do you expect, right?

Time for my usual “keep your cats inside” rant, for two reasons this week. When I received a call about a downed “baby” red tailed hawk, I was positive this was not the case, based on the caller’s description of a brown fuzzy bird about the size of a biddy. The caller’s cat had been batting this baby around, so I was equally sure the bird of whatever species needed antibiotics and a precautionary measure. When the bird came in, it was a pre-fledgling brown thrasher, Georgia’s state bird. Despite their rather imposing appearance, brown thrashers are remarkably sweet birds, even when they come in as adults. I have an inordinate fondness for them.

This little one, while sporting no obvious injuries, had become very lethargic her second morning at LWR. We’re on the third day of antibiotics with no discernible improvement or worsening, so this little sweetheart may also be on borrowed time.

And Monday, a cat-attacked baby Eastern cottontail, eyes still closed, came in. He also showed no signs of injury but was started on antibiotics to be safe. Poor fellow checked out in less than 24 hours, though…

Why the need for antibiotics if there’s no sign of injury? Cat saliva is toxic to wildlife. If the brown thrasher or rabbit ingested any cat saliva while preening/grooming, it would have basically the same effect as cat saliva in an open wound—death within 48 hours if not treated. You can prevent this threat to wildlife by keeping your cats indoors. Indoor cats live longer, healthier lives, anyway. Did you know the average lifespan for an outdoor cat is 4 years, while an indoor cat can live over 20 years? If you love wildlife AND your cat, do them both a favor—keep your moggie indoors!

LWR also received yet another downy barred owl, found on the ground in an area frequented by dogs. He only overnighted here before heading for Bubba & Friends to join several other downy barred owls I’ve sent that way this season.

Finally, last week I received a call from a person who’d attempted—illegally, of course—to “raise” a dove and then after a week got tired of the situation and simply released the bird…and then had a conscience attack and called me. First, the caller was near the Florida line; second, the bird was released and the caller admitted it couldn’t be caught. The person had been given horrifically bad advice by someone not licensed for songbirds. I pointed all this out, and then the caller got huffy with me for explaining that at this point the individual would have to live with the consequences of their actions—in other words, let nature take its course. For future reference, yes, I’ll be short with anyone who exhibits this level of idiocy; further, I’m not in this for the people I deal with, I’m in it to help our native wildlife. When someone, through stupidity, arrogance or a combination of both, screws up “my” wildlife, all the while claiming they “love animals,” my blood boils and my attitude nosedives. This incident led me to post the following on LWR’s Facebook page, and it bears repeating here, as well:

Just a reminder, folks--it's against state and, in the case of birds, federal law to possess wildlife without a permit. Rehabbers cannot and should not provide care advice for any members of the public possessing wildlife in violation of said laws, other than emergency measures until the wildlife can be gotten to a licensed individual. Please don't ask us to break the law because you "have a big heart" or you "love animals." If your heart is that "big" and you truly "love animals," then do the right thing and get the wildlife to a licensed rehabber who is trained to provide the proper care. Don't screw the wildlife up with improper care and then ask us to rectify your mistakes, either. If you couldn't contact us when the wildlife had a chance at being rehabbed, don't contact us when you've "loved" it to death's door.