If nothing else, 2015 was a busy year, with 219 intakes as of Dec. 30—that figure could change between this post and midnight, however. I have had critters come in late on New Year’s Eve!
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Certainly one of the biggest stories of 2015 was the construction of the new songbird and raptor flight pens, after several years of delays. Both flights served LWR well in their maiden year and I’m eternally grateful to Cody Rogers and the team of Georgia Southern volunteers and friends he assembled to build these structures from the ground up—and my family members and their friends who pitched in, as well.

​It was definitely the year of the woodpecker at LWR, with downy, red-bellied, redheaded and pileated woodpeckers as “guests”—three separate clutches of red-bellies, in fact! I have to confess a slight favoritism toward the pileated; he just oozed personality.

​And a definite highlight of the year was the two sandhill cranes who were released, came back, and spent another month freely roaming the farm before deciding to be on their way.

​Of course LWR had its fair share of raptor guests, as well, like the two red-shouldered hawks, a juvie and a first-year, who wasted no time leaving Dodge when the opportunity presented itself.

​By far my favorite red tailed hawk was this lady who made no bones about not liking humans and gave me the evil eye even at her release.

​This barred owl from early in the year had loads of attitude and was definitely ready to go when released.

​And of course, no rehab year would be complete without a great horned owl or two.

​The fledgling green heron who hadn’t quite figured out the whole fishing thing when he fledged was a delight to watch as he learned what he needed to do to survive, and seeing him sporadically for months afterward at his release site was extremely satisfying.

​Robins, brown thrashers, blue jays, cardinals, killdeer and such are always welcome guests at LWR, and during baby season we see quite a few various species of songbirds.

​We also had a flying squirrel and a few possums as guests.

​In a nothing short of miraculous occurrence, this black vulture survived being shot with an arrow and, as his wounds were much less serious than they initially appeared, was released after he’d had time to heal.

​And certainly the longest guests at LWR for 2015 were the screech owl trio, one of whom came in as an eyes-closed recent hatchling, another as a brancher, and the third as an almost ready for release older juvy. If nothing else, their photos certainly amused us all as they matured into capable predators and finally gained their release.

Obviously much has been omitted in this "short" year-end review, but when I started pulling it together, I ended up with close to 160 photos and almost 40 videos—and that was after sifting through about three times that many of each!

Thanks to all of you who support LWR through your financial contributions, critter transportation, and encouragement when things get crazy. And a huge thanks to the wonderful vets and staff at Smalley’s Animal Hospital, without whom I’d be a much less effective rehabber.

Now let’s see what 2016 brings…

Happy New Year!

​While most folks were envisioning sugarplums and such on Christmas Eve, I was racing to Smalley’s Animal Hospital before they closed for Christmas. We had a barred owl come in late on the 23rd, and while it was obvious his wing was broken, we needed x-rays to see if it was fixable.

He was an alert fellow—aggressive and very aware of his surroundings, although a little cloudiness in the corner of his eye indicated he was probably recovering from a slight concussion.  I wasn’t optimistic about the wing, honestly, but unless it’s an open fracture, x-rays are a must to see how bad the break is.

It was bad. Life-ending bad.
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While the ulnar fracture (arrow below) was extremely fixable, the bones of the wrist (circled below) were shattered and like Humpty Dumpty of children’s rhymes, he couldn’t be put back together again. There was no way to repair the damage, so he was humanely euthanized to end his pain.

The remainder of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were quite on the rehab front, but bright and early the 26th LWR received a call about a vulture with a broken wing. I always ask if the callers can see exposed bone, as an open fracture on a bird is pretty much a death sentence. The callers indicated they could see what appeared to be road rash but no exposed bones.
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However, when we met, the young turkey vulture’s right shoulder faced the ground. That was the first bad sign. When I took him from their cage to place in my box, a quick parking lot exam revealed the reported road rash on the wrist—nothing that couldn’t be treated—and a very open fracture right in the “armpit.” About an inch of bone was exposed. He also required humane euthanasia. (The photos below were taken post-euthanasia.)

​Among the general public, vultures have a bad reputation, since they eat carrion (“Ewww! Dead stuff!”). But they’re such intelligent birds—just look at this guy’s eyes in the photos I snapped prior to his euthanasia. And really, from a purely logical point of view, all meat eaters eat carrion—dead stuff—right?  Further,  let’s stop and think about the alternative—if we had no vultures and other carrion eaters, we’d be knee-deep in death and disease. Vultures and other carrion eaters play a vital role in nature. Look past their diet and not horribly attractive faces (although I’d even argue with you that there is a certain odd beauty to them, and they’re amazingly graceful in flight) and see their true worth.

​The red screech remains preternaturally docile and her eyes remain pretty much the same. We’re gonna continue to give her the time she needs to heal, although the left eye continues to be a source of worry. At this point, we’re all fairly sure we’re looking at a nonreleasable screech, but we’ve ended up able to release birds we had serious doubts about before, so let’s keep hoping for a miracle for this gal.

​And on a final note, my goal is to give you a “2015: Year in Review” post later this week, although if it’s a slow (Shhh! Don’t let Murphy hear that!) week, I may hold off until next Sunday. 

…And all is quiet on the rehab front!  There were several calls last week, though, that didn’t end with intakes. In one case that’s worrisome; in another, it was a case of the critter not surviving to reach LWR. And, of course, we still have the vision-impaired, brain-damaged screech.

In the worrisome call, the caller had noticed an injured hawk by the roadside a couple of counties away. She was initially willing to bring the bird to me but needed help to capture it. That help apparently came in the form of someone associated with her local vet clinic, who then “volunteered” to take the bird to a vet even farther north—a person NOT on the state list and with no rehabbers in that county.  I questioned this, remembered there is a vet near the area who prefers not to be listed but who’s licensed for mammals and will triage and transfer birds, and figured the hawk would either come back to me or go to the rehabber closest to that vet. We have no idea where the bird ended up, as no one with proper permits ever saw it.

Folks, PLEASE, when a rehabber asks you to get the bird to them or another licensed individual, don’t let someone who claims they “know a rehabber” or says they “take care of birds” or whatever their line is take the bird. If you MUST allow someone else to transport the bird to a rehabber, make sure you get the transporter’s name and number and the name and number of the rehabber they claim they’re taking the bird to—and follow up with that person to make sure they actually got the bird.

In the second case, the caller did all the right things. The owl literally fell on her boyfriend’s car the previous night, and early the next morning she called LWR from work. She’d properly confined the bird and was willing to bring him to me. Because the owl was in a safe, quiet place, I told her we could meet when she got off work. About half an hour before we were to meet, she called to inform me that when she’d gotten home from work, the owl was dead. Suspecting starvation, I asked her to feel his keel, or breastbone, and she confirmed that it was “sharp”, meaning the bird was in the process of dying from starvation when it fell on the car. Anything I could have done would have been too little, too late; he would have died no matter where he’d been. But the caller did everything “by the book” in terms of  safely confining the owl and seeking help for him.
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And our current solo patient, the red-phase screech, has  approximately doubled her body weight—yes, HER. We initially thought she was male because she weighed so little but was fairly well-fleshed. At her checkup at Smalley’s Animal Hospital Friday, however, we decided that a 7-ounce (198g) screech was either a massively overweight male or, the more likely scenario, a female. With screeches you pretty much have to go by weight to determine gender unless you have a male and female together to see the size difference.

​So she’s gained weight like crazy, which is good, but her eyes are showing no improvement and she’s still unnaturally docile. Vet Richie Hatcher agrees she can see out of her right eye and can at least distinguish light and dark in the left eye, but the left pupil remains extremely dilated and cloudy. I was discussing this with colleague Kathryn Dudeck at Chattahoochee Nature Center, and she recalled a similar case they’d had several years ago, so we’ll be discussing the treatment that worked miracles on their raptor with my vets this week. It’s worth a shot.

​The brain injury, however, is an iffy thing. Remember, a bird with no threat reflex, fully sighted or not, cannot survive in the wild, and right now, this girl has NO concept of danger. We have plenty of time to wait this out, though, and see if the “switch flips” and she remembers she’s a “big, bad screech.” Brain injuries can sometimes take months to heal.

​And finally, since our next update will occur after the fact, Merry Christmas, y’all!

December seems to be a slower month for rehabs--this year, at least. (And since I said that, Murphy will more than likely now cackle with sadistic glee and inundate LWR for the second half of the month…)
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The red screech that was hit by a car is currently our only guest, and he’ll be headed back to the vet to have that left eye re-examined this week. He finally opened it late last week, and it’s not looking good. I’m guessing he’s going to be seriously vision-impaired in that eye.

His appetite remains excellent, though, and he’s still got some lingering head trauma, as he’s still quite docile, but the promising thing is he’s more alert acting, as if the switch is slooooowly starting to flip in his little mind. The day I go to feed him and he foots or bites me, I’ll throw a little party to celebrate!

This week the goal is to give him at least some limited time in the flight pen to see just how impaired his vision might be. Hopefully it won’t mean he’s nonreleasable, but if  that turns out to be the case, given the number of young screeches LWR has seen in the past couple of years, I might look into using him as a foster parent for screech intakes in the future. Basically, his future is still very uncertain and much will depend on his vet visit this week and his actions in the flight pen.

And if you’re thinking, “But nothing’s broken and owls hunt mainly by hearing,” you’re absolutely right. But remember, his right eye looks as if he might be vision-impaired in it, as well, and we still have the head trauma to deal with.  He may recover fully and be a little bundle of attitude; he may have permanent brain damage that would preclude release because he won’t have the skill to survive. When you’re at the bottom of the raptor pecking order and seen as a nice snack by your fellow raptors, attitude is preferable to docility. Docile screeches don’t last long in the wild.

Quality of life must also be considered. A screech with permanent brain damage that renders him docile and unfit for the wild could have an excellent quality of life as a foster parent because he really won’t know any better, as harsh as that may sound.  A screech with impaired vision might not be as content if the head trauma subsides and he becomes “aware” of his captive condition but can’t see well enough to hunt on his own. These are complicated humane and health issues with lots of soul-searching and paperwork involved and rest assured, no rehabber makes snap decisions about the fate of a bird or mammal who, although otherwise healthy, has brain or vision issues.  
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We do, however rely heavily on the advice and recommendations of our vets, and this is why I’m exceedingly grateful for the wonderful vets at Smalley’s Animal Hospital, who never give me false hope about any wildlife they treat for me but on the flip side are always willing to do everything HUMANELY (yes, humanely. Think about it.) possible to give wildlife a second chance. I honestly believe that no rehabber can be truly effective without a good working relationship, based on mutual respect and trust, with their vets. I know just how fortunate I am to have that sort of relationship with exceptional vets who are also my friends.

For about three hours early last week, LWR had NO critters in rehab. Recall, if you will, that the three young screeches were released the week of Thanksgiving. The old and tattered great blue heron died peacefully in his sleep last Sunday night. So Monday morning—no rehabs. Wow. Weird feeling.

But it didn’t last. That afternoon, within 10 minutes of each other, two calls came in. One caller had a baby squirrel or a chipmunk; she wasn’t sure which, but it was injured.   While LWR’s focus is primarily birds and flying squirrels, since I had neither at the moment, I agreed to meet the caller and see what could be done. On the way to meet her, the second call came in; this caller had a “baby” owl that he’d found in the middle of the road.  Wrong time of year for baby owls, so of course he had to have a screech.  I told him I’d meet him as soon as I got the squirrel or chipmunk in hand and could see what actions it required.
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What Caller 1 actually had was an adult chipmunk. They’re tiny little things, even as adults. His left back leg was bloody and raw, a fresh wound, so I quickly treated him and got him settled in a proper cage before meeting Caller 2.

​Caller 2 indeed had a screech owl, red phase, adult.  He had been in a line of cars on the road at night, and the three cars in front of him passed the screech, who was sitting on the yellow line in the middle of the road. Caller 2 nearly passed by, as well, because the screech, huddled on the pavement, looked like a pine cone. He said, however, the “pine cone” turned its head as he went by, so he immediately pulled over and stopped the cars behind him long enough to rescue the screech. Kudos for his keen observation and for stopping when he realized the “pine cone” was in fact a live owl in need of assistance. Upon intake, his right iris had some blood in the bottom, and the pupil was slightly misshapen; the left eye was closed tightly.

Both intakes headed to Smalley’s Animal Hospital the next day. Because chipmunks are vicious little snots, I’d waited for a second pair of hands to do a thorough exam.  Based on my initial exam and treatment of the wound, I was sure the chipmunk would need stitches, but vet Richie Hatcher, after examining the leg, said it was merely raw and not ripped open. The topical and oral antibiotics I had begun treatment with were fine to continue. He was active and eating well after his vet visit. Unfortunately, the little guy must’ve had internal injuries, as he died that night.

Richie said the slightly misshapen pupil in the screech’s right eye was likely from tissue “hanging” on the inside and, we hoped, wouldn’t impair his vision in that eye. The left eye was still swollen shut but when we gently pried it open the pupil, although massively dilated, didn’t appear misshapen in any way. After Richie gave the screech a steroid injection to bring down any residual swelling, standard for head traumas, we agreed on non-steroidal eye drops for the left eye.
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The screech was extremely calm throughout the entire exam and remains unnaturally docile, indicating some serious brain trauma. It can often take weeks for this sort of injury to heal properly, and sometimes it just doesn’t. In addition, his left eye remains closed, so we may be looking at impaired vision in that eye. We won’t know for sure for some time. Meanwhile, he’s safe, warm and well-fed while he recovers.

Unfortunately, the third intake of the week wasn’t as fortunate, spending two days trapped in a vehicle grille because the driver initially thought he was dead and then was scared to attempt to remove him and could find no one to help her. Because there are so few rehabbers  in the state, and even fewer who are federally licensed, which is required to rehab birds, DNR often simply tells callers to “let nature take its course”, meaning to just abandon the orphaned, ill or injured animal rather than drive two or three (or more) counties away to a licensed rehabber.
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When the driver finally did find someone to remove the screech and get him to LWR, the intake exam showed a broken wing and leg, both on the left side. X-rays at Smalley’s the next morning showed fractures that couldn’t be mended. The wing fracture actually appeared to be an open fracture, although neither vet Peggy Hobby nor I could find the exposed bone. Peggy and Richie, sharing my love of screeches, extensively debated possible ways to fix the little fellow, reaching the conclusion that there was really nothing that could be done except end his suffering. 

Last week I asked for firm commitments from 25 people by Dec. 4 before creating a 2016 LWR calendar. Unfortunately, we fell far short of that figure, with only 9 firm commitments. To those of you who were planning on purchasing calendars, I do apologize, but there will be no 2016 LWR calendar.