In the past three weeks, LWR has received three imprinted owls. You read about the screech in the last update; since then, a Great Horned owl (GHO) and another screech have come in, both imprinted. The GHO also has a broken leg, most likely from improper handling, and the second screech has a massive concussion and a blood-filled eye, both most likely a result of having been sideswiped by a car after being dumped to fend for himself with no clue how to do so. What will be their ultimate fates? That’s still uncertain, as the GHO’s leg may also have nerve damage, and the second screech could lose vision in the damaged eye.
Please don’t mistake my calm discussion of these birds for lack of ire or having vented all my frustration last update—I’m still homicidally infuriated and have spent many hours contemplating a fitting fate for the cretins who ruined these owls for life in the wild. Unfortunately, every punishment I’d like to mete out is considered cruel and unusual. Yeah, and kidnapping owls from the wild, trying to make pets of them, feeding them the wrong diet, forcing them to use improper perches, and then abandoning them to fend for themselves isn’t cruel and unusual??
I could rant about this for the remainder of this update, but I suspect I’m preaching to the choir, so let’s look at some of the less fury-inducing events at LWR over the past couple of weeks.
The bluebird, both mourning doves and both possums have been released. The squirrel with the broken leg has joined her cousins in preparing for release. Below are some photos, from several weeks ago, of vets Jim Hobby and Shelley Baumann working on her. (They were slated for the last update, but the imprinted screech got priority.)
Please don’t mistake my calm discussion of these birds for lack of ire or having vented all my frustration last update—I’m still homicidally infuriated and have spent many hours contemplating a fitting fate for the cretins who ruined these owls for life in the wild. Unfortunately, every punishment I’d like to mete out is considered cruel and unusual. Yeah, and kidnapping owls from the wild, trying to make pets of them, feeding them the wrong diet, forcing them to use improper perches, and then abandoning them to fend for themselves isn’t cruel and unusual??
I could rant about this for the remainder of this update, but I suspect I’m preaching to the choir, so let’s look at some of the less fury-inducing events at LWR over the past couple of weeks.
The bluebird, both mourning doves and both possums have been released. The squirrel with the broken leg has joined her cousins in preparing for release. Below are some photos, from several weeks ago, of vets Jim Hobby and Shelley Baumann working on her. (They were slated for the last update, but the imprinted screech got priority.)
Going under
Tiny or not, it's still a two-person job!
Healing hands
All wrapped up
Almost done
Finishing touches
'You're in good hands...'
Look at me now!
LWR also received an older adult GHO who’d gotten tangled in the netting of a batting cage in another county. The finder couldn’t free the bird any other way than to cut the netting loose around the entangled owl, and I spent 15 minutes just cutting the netting off the wings—every feather seemed to have gone through a separate hole in his struggles to free himself. His right leg was somewhat swollen, so I kept him long enough to run him to Smalley’s the next day and be sure nothing was broken. After an additional day of observation, he was returned to the finder for release, and when I called to follow up, the finder’s family was ecstatic at having been able to release the owl back into his home territory.
Look at his eyes—the deep gold color is a mark of a mature bird.
Look at his eyes—the deep gold color is a mark of a mature bird.
The imprinted GHO with the broken leg also visited Smalley’s for the leg to be splinted. Below are photos of vet Peggy Hobby and vet techs Autumn and Jamie splinting her leg.
Why am I getting so sleepy?
Unwrapping my makeshift bandage
Let's stay asleep 'til we're done
Finishing touches
Why am I so woozy?
Look at the difference in her eye color, compared to the mature GHO above: the color deepens as the bird ages, so this marks her as a young bird. She’s absolutely magnificent, huh?
LWR also received two adorable flying squirrels, about 5-6 weeks old, who’d been unnested. Flyers aren’t uncommon in this area, but they are fairly infrequent rehab guests. These gorgeous, gentle little nocturnal squirrels are very social creatures, unlike gray squirrels, and tend to form colonies. When you’re outside and hear what sounds like birds chirping in the middle of the night, it’s actually flyers, chatting away to each other.
We also had two more gray squirrels come in, male sibs who’d fallen hard from their nest, hard enough to bloody both their noses and break one’s bottom teeth and his right arm. The teeth will grow back; squirrels’ teeth continue to grow throughout their lives. The location of the break makes it pretty much impossible to splint, so vet Shelley Baumann and I agreed to try confinement to a pen that allows very limited mobility, in hopes that his young age and gravity will work in his favor to allow the break to heal properly. These two are doing better but still stiff and in some pain. No photos; they’re still too skittish and traumatized.
And finally, just yesterday, we received the second screech owl I mentioned at the beginning of the update. Isn’t he a gorgeous little fellow? Screeches have several color phases: brown, gray, white and red. He’s a red, as if that wasn’t pretty obvious!
Vet Jim Hobby examined him today and found the right eye so full of blood that determining the full extent of the damage is impossible. We’re treating the eye to reduce inflammation and try to get the blood to drain, so that we can get a better idea of what’s going on with the eye. This little guy’s talons are also horribly overgrown, an indication that he’s not had proper perches. Based on the trauma to the eye, this fellow’s got a serious headache, in addition to the pain the eye must be causing. If he’s very lucky, the eye won’t have sustained so much damage that he’ll lose vision in it.
Vet Jim Hobby examined him today and found the right eye so full of blood that determining the full extent of the damage is impossible. We’re treating the eye to reduce inflammation and try to get the blood to drain, so that we can get a better idea of what’s going on with the eye. This little guy’s talons are also horribly overgrown, an indication that he’s not had proper perches. Based on the trauma to the eye, this fellow’s got a serious headache, in addition to the pain the eye must be causing. If he’s very lucky, the eye won’t have sustained so much damage that he’ll lose vision in it.
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