Believe it or not, the 100 acre dream site sold two days after I sent out the last update—so much for a slow economy, huh? Oh well…I’m not happy but I don’t have time to sulk; sulking requires energy better spent on the rehabs that just keep comin’.
Our little pinkie from the last update is growing by leaps and bounds, as evidenced by this photo of her on 8-10…
…and this one taken today. She’s not a pinkie anymore! Amazing, huh?!
And I received another little pinkie, also a female, today. She’s pretty bruised up: the left side of her head is blue-black, as is her lower back, but she survived a fall that apparently killed her two siblings. The finders said both other babies were dead when they discovered them this morning. Squirrels can usually survive a fall of 100 feet or better with nothing more than bruises, but we had some wind yesterday that may have knocked these babies into branches on the way down, or they may have had branches fall on them—who knows? At any rate, this little girl is only around 5 days old and still has most of her dried-up umbilical cord in place.
The older squirrel is pretty close—another couple of weeks—to release and is weaning herself. Some squirrels will do that; others have to be gradually weaned. This lady is an independent little cuss and has decided she doesn’t need formula too often now that she’s a “big girl.”
The two new possums mentioned in the last update continue to grow slowly—with possums, growth always seems slower to me. The female is a friendly little thing; the male is a hissy, snarly little rascal.
The blue jay no longer comes down for supplemental feedings; here’s a shot of him sunning shortly before he stopped coming down to me. I love watching birds sun: it’s just gorgeous!
In other intakes, we had a great horned owl with a massively broken leg who had to be euthanized. Very little makes me cringe anymore, but when I saw his leg, I cringed. It was about the nastiest fracture I’ve seen in a while.
Continuing along the raptor trail, LWR also received a 1st-year Cooper’s hawk last week, and we’re still not sure what her issues are…but they are numerous. When she came in, she was severely dehydrated and unable to stand, in addition to being very emaciated.
Within 24 hours of fluids and food, and after a vet visit for x-rays to confirm that nothing was broken, she was able to sort of sit back on her butt.
By 48 hours, we had the ability to more or less crouch…but she still can’t perch or stand: she pitches forward, face-first. Raptor rehabber Steve Hicks & I have spent a lot of time tossing theories back and forth, and I also called Cornell University’s wildlife clinic for advice, and based on their recommendations, we’re headed back to the vet in the morning for some additional tests.
And today the police chief at the Carl Vinson VA Hospital called me with a downed red tailed hawk. This guy’s big and he’s gorgeous, and he’s missing all but one tail feather. Officer James Pettis & I chased him down—for some reason, he doesn’t seem to be able to fly, but he can run really fast! Officer Pettis said it had been a long time since he'd had to engage in a foot chase, but he nabbed his suspect today! This gorgeous bird will be making a vet visit tomorrow, too.
Baby season should pretty much be over for songbirds, although there’s still the possibility of a few late-season nestlings/fledglings, and I have received very young mourning doves as late as early October. We’re into the second baby season for squirrels now, though, so I expect to see more furry (or pinkie) little ones right up through November.
On a final note, I’ve had several people over the past few weeks ask about touring LWR. Sorry folks, that ain’t gonna happen. This is a rehab facility, not a zoo. The animals LWR houses are all slated for release, which means their contact with humans must be as limited as possible. I handle these critters only when feeding/medicating, so that even their contact with me is minimized. There are nature centers around that house non-releasable animals: visit them if you absolutely must see animals in captivity; otherwise, take a quiet walk in the woods, find a nice clearing, sit down, and enjoy whatever wildlife you happen to see—THIS is the best way to experience and appreciate our native wildlife.
On a final note, I’ve had several people over the past few weeks ask about touring LWR. Sorry folks, that ain’t gonna happen. This is a rehab facility, not a zoo. The animals LWR houses are all slated for release, which means their contact with humans must be as limited as possible. I handle these critters only when feeding/medicating, so that even their contact with me is minimized. There are nature centers around that house non-releasable animals: visit them if you absolutely must see animals in captivity; otherwise, take a quiet walk in the woods, find a nice clearing, sit down, and enjoy whatever wildlife you happen to see—THIS is the best way to experience and appreciate our native wildlife.
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