It was a slowish week, which I never complain about. Rehabbers learn to appreciate downtime whenever it occurs.
A barred owl, hit by car, came in Monday morning, and his wing faced backward but wasn’t an open fracture. I knew this was a “euthanasia fracture” but wanted to see just how bad the damage was—call it morbid curiosity. An x-ray revealed that the bones were completely separated at the joint—it wasn’t dislocated, the fracture was literally right in the joint.
A barred owl, hit by car, came in Monday morning, and his wing faced backward but wasn’t an open fracture. I knew this was a “euthanasia fracture” but wanted to see just how bad the damage was—call it morbid curiosity. An x-ray revealed that the bones were completely separated at the joint—it wasn’t dislocated, the fracture was literally right in the joint.
The red tail who’d flown through the window also went to Smalley’s on Monday, where vet Peggy Hobby said the cornea wasn’t actually as bad as I’d thought. It was lacerated and swollen but the laceration had already sealed, so he’s on medicated eye drops for a while. The eye, while still cloudy, is noticeably less swollen and not as cloudy as when he came in. Compare the first photo, from last week, with the one below it, taken just yesterday.
Eye 9-22-18
Eye 9-29-18
The poor little cat-caught flyer struggled for five days. He must’ve been the runt of his litter. He constantly threw up his food—and he wasn’t eating near enough, anyway—he stayed dehydrated despite rehydration efforts, and he just generally wasn’t doing well. It was no surprise, therefore, when I walked in for his second feeding Thursday and found him dead.
Then, Saturday, a lady brought a crow to LWR. Based on her description, I suspected West Nile virus in its advanced stages. When he arrived, my suspicions were confirmed. He was rail thin, couldn’t stand at all, and was too weak to even keep his eyes open for long. I started a thin slurry every few hours to see if he’d rally, and he seemed more alert at bedtime but it was too little, too late. He was dead this morning.
Then, Saturday, a lady brought a crow to LWR. Based on her description, I suspected West Nile virus in its advanced stages. When he arrived, my suspicions were confirmed. He was rail thin, couldn’t stand at all, and was too weak to even keep his eyes open for long. I started a thin slurry every few hours to see if he’d rally, and he seemed more alert at bedtime but it was too little, too late. He was dead this morning.
West Nile (WNV) isn’t contagious; animals (including humans) get it from being bitten by mosquitoes carrying the virus, who got it from biting infected birds or animals—it’s kind of a vicious cycle. Most humans have only mild symptoms, may not even realize they have WNV, and recover without ever seeing a doctor. But it’s a nasty little virus for birds, especially crows for some reason. There is no treatment aside from supportive care; there’s no vaccine, no meds—rehabbers simply provide a safe environment, food and water, etc., and hope for the best. From what I’m seeing from colleagues, this fall there seems to be a rash of WNV cases.
And rounding out the week, this juvie mourning dove was taken from a cat this morning. He has a couple of small puncture wounds on his right wing and is missing the vast majority of his tail feathers but has no life-threatening injuries. Because cat saliva is toxic to wildlife, however, he’s been started on antibiotics. He arrived at LWR hours after he was attacked and got his first dose of meds immediately after an intake exam, so he should be good to go in a couple of weeks.
And rounding out the week, this juvie mourning dove was taken from a cat this morning. He has a couple of small puncture wounds on his right wing and is missing the vast majority of his tail feathers but has no life-threatening injuries. Because cat saliva is toxic to wildlife, however, he’s been started on antibiotics. He arrived at LWR hours after he was attacked and got his first dose of meds immediately after an intake exam, so he should be good to go in a couple of weeks.
And again, people, I cannot stress this enough: KEEP YOUR CATS INDOORS.
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