Happy New Year, and here’s hoping 2013 is a good year for our native wildlife!
It’s not too late to purchase a 2013 LWR calendar through Lulu.com: http://www.lulu.com/shop/lwr-2013-calendar/calendar/product-20508997.html;jsessionid=9A82168D6909525E23A40D22846C7A80. The calendar features full-color photos of 12 of 2012’s intakes, one per month. All proceeds ($10 per calendar) over Lulu.com’s printing fees will be used to support our rehab efforts in 2013. Thanks to those of you who’ve already purchased calendars; for those who haven’t—what’re you waiting for? 2013 has arrived; time’s a-wastin’!
The flying squirrels were released shortly after the last update; several nights recently that the weather’s been decent, I’ve heard flyers in the yard and seen one of my feeders swaying when I aimed a flashlight at it. They’re lightning-quick little rascals! I’m pretty sure the two released flyers took up with the colony that frequents my yard at night.
The gray squirrels continue to grow apace, although they’re somewhat smaller than they should be. I’m not sure if this is because of the crappy diet they had before I got them or if it’s just that they were “out of season” babies. As of today, we had one fully open pair of eyes and one pair beginning to open. All 6 beady little eyes should be open by the weekend.
It’s not too late to purchase a 2013 LWR calendar through Lulu.com: http://www.lulu.com/shop/lwr-2013-calendar/calendar/product-20508997.html;jsessionid=9A82168D6909525E23A40D22846C7A80. The calendar features full-color photos of 12 of 2012’s intakes, one per month. All proceeds ($10 per calendar) over Lulu.com’s printing fees will be used to support our rehab efforts in 2013. Thanks to those of you who’ve already purchased calendars; for those who haven’t—what’re you waiting for? 2013 has arrived; time’s a-wastin’!
The flying squirrels were released shortly after the last update; several nights recently that the weather’s been decent, I’ve heard flyers in the yard and seen one of my feeders swaying when I aimed a flashlight at it. They’re lightning-quick little rascals! I’m pretty sure the two released flyers took up with the colony that frequents my yard at night.
The gray squirrels continue to grow apace, although they’re somewhat smaller than they should be. I’m not sure if this is because of the crappy diet they had before I got them or if it’s just that they were “out of season” babies. As of today, we had one fully open pair of eyes and one pair beginning to open. All 6 beady little eyes should be open by the weekend.
The sharpie’s wing isn’t healing at all, and because of their spastic temperaments, sharpies are NOT good educational birds, so I’ll be taking her in for euthanasia in the morning. I hate having to euthanize the fighters…
This little brown bat (actual species name; Georgia also has big brown bats among its 16 species of bats) came in Christmas Day with a broken wing. Since I’m not licensed for RVS (rabies vector species), I took him in with the intention of transferring him to a properly RVS-licensed rehabber if he was savable. Of course, lacking the pre-exposure vaccine, the only way I could safely handle this little guy was with gloves, so a really thorough exam on my part was impossible. I debated and hoped that what appeared to be an open fracture was actually a puncture wound, but when my vets reopened after Christmas, we discovered that the break was in fact not fixable—there was no need for an x-ray, as when the little fellow began thrashing about in vet Richie Hatcher’s hand, it was obvious that the break was in the joint. Joint fractures in any flying creature, bat or bird, can’t be repaired to allow flight.
This little brown bat (actual species name; Georgia also has big brown bats among its 16 species of bats) came in Christmas Day with a broken wing. Since I’m not licensed for RVS (rabies vector species), I took him in with the intention of transferring him to a properly RVS-licensed rehabber if he was savable. Of course, lacking the pre-exposure vaccine, the only way I could safely handle this little guy was with gloves, so a really thorough exam on my part was impossible. I debated and hoped that what appeared to be an open fracture was actually a puncture wound, but when my vets reopened after Christmas, we discovered that the break was in fact not fixable—there was no need for an x-ray, as when the little fellow began thrashing about in vet Richie Hatcher’s hand, it was obvious that the break was in the joint. Joint fractures in any flying creature, bat or bird, can’t be repaired to allow flight.
Let me digress a bit here and defend bats for a moment. They’ve gotten a bad reputation thanks to horror movies and their status as rabies vectors. They’re beneficial little critters, devouring thousands of insects per bat per night. Bats are actually non-aggressive unless threatened, and the last stats I saw indicated that less than 1% of bats tested for rabies actually tested positive. Annually, only about 2 people in the US die from rabies acquired from bats, and those deaths occur because they don’t know they’ve been bitten—bat bites don’t always leave obvious, bleeding puncture wounds. I do not recommend handling bats bare-handed, and because you can be bitten and not realize it, I do recommend that you err on the side of caution and assume exposure to rabies should you wake to find a bat in your bedroom or in a child’s bedroom. It’s just common sense. Without prompt post-exposure vaccines, rabies is almost always fatal!
These stereotypical grimaces were a reaction to our exam:
These stereotypical grimaces were a reaction to our exam:
This is a more normal expression for bats:
The gorgeous gunshot female red tailed hawk is doing well and seems to be attempting to put a little weight on her broken leg now, which is an encouraging sign. I really adore this lady; she’s so laid back and trusting. She goes in for a follow-up x-ray tomorrow.
And finally, just after Christmas, another gunshot red tailed hawk, a mature male, came in. This guy’s wing is broken but not badly displaced, so he should heal well. He’s not nearly as good humored as the female; in fact, he acts downright paranoid.
And finally, just after Christmas, another gunshot red tailed hawk, a mature male, came in. This guy’s wing is broken but not badly displaced, so he should heal well. He’s not nearly as good humored as the female; in fact, he acts downright paranoid.
Thanks to vet Richie Hatcher for snapping this photo during our exam of the red tail!
Over the next few weeks I’ll be working on my annual reports for the state and feds; what I can report to you right now is that LWR received 200 animals in 2012. I can also promise you that nice, even numbers like that don’t often occur in wildlife rehab!
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