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.
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.
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?
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!
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