Do y’all know how hard it is to come up with headlines about the rain that aren’t stultifyingly repetitive? We had a brief three days of no rain, but it remained too wet to get anything released. And now the rain is slated to start again…for most of next week…Anybody got any gopher wood to donate toward the ark?
Last week wasn’t a good week, quite frankly. If you recall from last Sunday’s update, LWR had a turkey vulture come in with a leg fracture. I’d said he was slated for a vet visit ASAP. Well, Monday afternoon he got his vet visit, and it was bad news all the way. The poor bird had TEN pellets scattered throughout his body, including one in his eye, the leg was broken and there was an old healed-in-the-wild shoulder fracture that would have effectively grounded the bird, which is probably why some jackass filled him with birdshot.
Last week wasn’t a good week, quite frankly. If you recall from last Sunday’s update, LWR had a turkey vulture come in with a leg fracture. I’d said he was slated for a vet visit ASAP. Well, Monday afternoon he got his vet visit, and it was bad news all the way. The poor bird had TEN pellets scattered throughout his body, including one in his eye, the leg was broken and there was an old healed-in-the-wild shoulder fracture that would have effectively grounded the bird, which is probably why some jackass filled him with birdshot.
The whiteness you see in his eye is damage from the pellet lodged in it.
Because of the sheer number of pellets and the fact that the poor fellow was already showing neurological signs of the inevitable lead poisoning that would result from so many pellets, vet Peggy Hobby and I agreed euthanasia was the kindest option.
And because he’d been injured as a result of illegal activity, both DNR and FWS had to be notified. It’s frustrating for all concerned because we know without eyewitnesses, no case can actually be made. Still, rules is rules, and at least both agencies know some jackass is taking potshots at raptors in the county where the vulture was found.
Adding to the general “Mondayness” of the day, a local mammal rehabber picked up and transported a weak and lethargic adult female red tail to LWR. She had multiple issues: emaciation, early stages of frounce and, I was afraid, rodenticide poisoning. I loaded her up along with the turkey vulture in hopes she wasn’t too far gone. Unfortunately, she had two seizures in the vet clinic waiting room—and we didn’t wait long—and died.
And because he’d been injured as a result of illegal activity, both DNR and FWS had to be notified. It’s frustrating for all concerned because we know without eyewitnesses, no case can actually be made. Still, rules is rules, and at least both agencies know some jackass is taking potshots at raptors in the county where the vulture was found.
Adding to the general “Mondayness” of the day, a local mammal rehabber picked up and transported a weak and lethargic adult female red tail to LWR. She had multiple issues: emaciation, early stages of frounce and, I was afraid, rodenticide poisoning. I loaded her up along with the turkey vulture in hopes she wasn’t too far gone. Unfortunately, she had two seizures in the vet clinic waiting room—and we didn’t wait long—and died.
Y’all, let me get on my soapbox here: rat poison is deadly to more than just rats and mice. I don’t care if you’re using bait boxes—you do know the rodents eat the poisoned bait and then run back outside the bait box, as they’re not designed to trap the rodent they’ve just poisoned. As it bleeds to death internally, it becomes sluggish and easy prey for a hungry raptor, who then becomes a secondary victim of the poison—and, in even more horrifying instances, takes the poisoned rodent back to a nest of hungry babies, who then also die from rodenticide poisoning.
In short, DON’T USE THE CRAP. And don’t use glue traps, either—they also snag unintended victims like songbirds, lizards, bats and snakes. Use snap traps, humane traps (if you want to take the captured rodents far into the woods away from your property) and general hygiene, i.e., pick up your trash and don’t leave pet food sitting outside—and yes, even bird feeders will attract rodents, so you may want to bring them in at night. My preferred option would be, where possible, to place some owl nesting boxes to attract barn owls. One barn owl can eat a thousand rodents a year—imagine having a family of them on “rat patrol!”
In happier news, today the bumblesome Coop finally got it together enough to perch for the first time since intake. In another week or so, he should be good to go.
In short, DON’T USE THE CRAP. And don’t use glue traps, either—they also snag unintended victims like songbirds, lizards, bats and snakes. Use snap traps, humane traps (if you want to take the captured rodents far into the woods away from your property) and general hygiene, i.e., pick up your trash and don’t leave pet food sitting outside—and yes, even bird feeders will attract rodents, so you may want to bring them in at night. My preferred option would be, where possible, to place some owl nesting boxes to attract barn owls. One barn owl can eat a thousand rodents a year—imagine having a family of them on “rat patrol!”
In happier news, today the bumblesome Coop finally got it together enough to perch for the first time since intake. In another week or so, he should be good to go.
The barred owl is ready for release but rain-delayed—well, actually soggy-release-site-delayed last week and a further rain delay this week. But he’s good to go as soon as the weather cooperates.
The screech is also ready for release—ditto the above statements; meanwhile, he’s obviously got a PhD in stink-eye!
And the red tail recovering from the wing fracture is, quite frankly, just a gorgeous gal. I confess to being just a wee bit besotted with her, but then, who wouldn’t be? Just look at her!
RSS Feed
