LWR had three new intakes this week, all most likely related to our weather, which issued a firm reminder that, true to the old wives’ tale, there will always be cold snaps until Easter.
Monday saw an adult barred owl and an adult screech come in. The barred favored his left wing and was concussed out of his gourd. However, by Wednesday he was alert and by Saturday morning, he’d figured out how to get out of his box and fly through the rehab facility, so into the mini-pen he went, where he still favors that left wing a little but is making great progress.
Monday saw an adult barred owl and an adult screech come in. The barred favored his left wing and was concussed out of his gourd. However, by Wednesday he was alert and by Saturday morning, he’d figured out how to get out of his box and fly through the rehab facility, so into the mini-pen he went, where he still favors that left wing a little but is making great progress.
The screech had somehow managed to get in the vent of someone’s cooker, where he apparently spent the weekend; upon the person’s return from out of town, he found the bird after hearing a commotion in the cooker. Upon intake at LWR, the screech was alert, aggressive and a little on the thin side. He ate very well Monday night but didn’t touch his food Tuesday night, which wasn’t especially concerning since he’d eaten three mice the previous night and raptors in the wild don’t always eat every day. But Wednesday night, he died. All I can figure is exposure to some sort of chemicals in the cooker.
Saturday afternoon a first-year sharpie came in, rail-thin and with a fresh ding on his right wrist; he’d been down for some time before that, though, based on the shredded tips of his tail feathers. He didn’t eat at all and was quite lethargic Saturday but was much more alert and ate eagerly this morning. Given that his dinged wrist felt a bit crunchy during his intake exam, the goal at this point is to get x-rays to see what’s going on there.
The adult great horned is flying and should, if his progress continues, be ready for release by the end of this week or early next week. When I go in the flight, though, he still prefers to hit the ground and try to intimidate me with a truly gorgeous threat display.
And the nestling great horned continues to grow and inhale mice. He’s also started wing-flapping, which means he’ll pretty soon need a larger box to have room to fully exercise those massive wings.
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