It was one of “those” weeks, with a mix of good news, heartbreak and anger. Let’s start with some good news, shall we?
The vision-impaired red-tail seems to’ve totally recovered from his head trauma and is not only continuing to perch on the high perches in the raptor flight, but is also sailing smoothly to snatch his food from the forceps before I can even lay it down anywhere. This is beyond good news; it’s excellent! If you’ll recall, I was worried he might have permanent vision issues. Apparently not! I tried all week for a short video of him snagging his food, but he’s sitting on “ready” the moment he hears the latch on the flight door, and I barely even make it in the door now before he’s snagged his food and hit the ground to eat, so…maybe next week we’ll have a release video!
There are actually three entries into the “bad” and “infuriating” categories this week, all of them intakes on the same day.
First off, this gorgeous adult male red-tail came in with a wing injury. Nothing felt broken but he had a “ding” that looked suspicious to me, so he made a trip to Smalley’s Animal Hospital, where x-rays confirmed my suspicions: he has a pellet lodged in his wrist. The x-rays also confirmed no fractures, so vet Peggy Hobby and I feel pretty confident he should be flight-capable once the wound has healed.
The vision-impaired red-tail seems to’ve totally recovered from his head trauma and is not only continuing to perch on the high perches in the raptor flight, but is also sailing smoothly to snatch his food from the forceps before I can even lay it down anywhere. This is beyond good news; it’s excellent! If you’ll recall, I was worried he might have permanent vision issues. Apparently not! I tried all week for a short video of him snagging his food, but he’s sitting on “ready” the moment he hears the latch on the flight door, and I barely even make it in the door now before he’s snagged his food and hit the ground to eat, so…maybe next week we’ll have a release video!
There are actually three entries into the “bad” and “infuriating” categories this week, all of them intakes on the same day.
First off, this gorgeous adult male red-tail came in with a wing injury. Nothing felt broken but he had a “ding” that looked suspicious to me, so he made a trip to Smalley’s Animal Hospital, where x-rays confirmed my suspicions: he has a pellet lodged in his wrist. The x-rays also confirmed no fractures, so vet Peggy Hobby and I feel pretty confident he should be flight-capable once the wound has healed.
On the heels of the GSW red-tail, this little hermit thrush came in, found the previous night with what appeared to be puncture wounds all over his back and plucked nearly bald in the same region, a probable cat-attack victim. The finders, before calling LWR, slathered Neosporin on the wounds.
And here let me stop to beg you PLEASE not to do that. I understand the desire to do “something” when you find a wounded bird, but antibiotic ointments gum up their feathers something awful and can even cause them to fall out. Clean the wound(s) with sterile saline, NOT tap water, and let that be the extent of your “treatment” until you’ve spoken with a rehabber. PLEASE.
Unfortunately, it didn’t really matter for this sweet little bird. The wounds and the stress were simply too much; he barely lasted an hour after intake. He was the first hermit thrush LWR has ever taken in; they’re not in Georgia except during migration, and some few overwinter in South Georgia. Those of you who’ve been with me for a while know how I feel about thrushes in general. I adore every single species in the thrush family, and to have the very first hermit thrush I’ve ever had the privilege to see die from someone’s stupidity and carelessness in letting their cats roam free just quite frankly broke my heart and infuriated me, as well.
And here let me stop to beg you PLEASE not to do that. I understand the desire to do “something” when you find a wounded bird, but antibiotic ointments gum up their feathers something awful and can even cause them to fall out. Clean the wound(s) with sterile saline, NOT tap water, and let that be the extent of your “treatment” until you’ve spoken with a rehabber. PLEASE.
Unfortunately, it didn’t really matter for this sweet little bird. The wounds and the stress were simply too much; he barely lasted an hour after intake. He was the first hermit thrush LWR has ever taken in; they’re not in Georgia except during migration, and some few overwinter in South Georgia. Those of you who’ve been with me for a while know how I feel about thrushes in general. I adore every single species in the thrush family, and to have the very first hermit thrush I’ve ever had the privilege to see die from someone’s stupidity and carelessness in letting their cats roam free just quite frankly broke my heart and infuriated me, as well.
And number three in the “bad” and “infuriating” categories was this sweet little Eastern cottontail, the victim of someone’s out-of-control dog. Now, normally, LWR doesn’t handle cotties; for one thing, they have a bad tendency to stress out and die and as a colleague once said, I’d rather let someone else dig those graves. For another, LWR specializes in birds of all species and flying squirrels. But this poor baby was the sole survivor of a dog attack on the nest that killed Mama and all sibs, and he was in the hands of someone I knew would attempt to rehab him without proper permits or knowledge if LWR didn’t take him, so…I crossed my fingers, held my breath and hoped—and he made it!
He had only a slightly sprained back leg on intake, but his eyes were open and he was eating solids, so after a couple of days of observation to make sure the leg wasn’t gonna be a major issue, he was released. Now, I already hear some of you saying, “But he’s too small!”
Nope. If a wild rabbit is large enough to cover half a dollar bill, he’s old enough to be on his own. He may still return to the nest to sleep with Mama and sibs, but he’s independent as far as food and survival.
He had only a slightly sprained back leg on intake, but his eyes were open and he was eating solids, so after a couple of days of observation to make sure the leg wasn’t gonna be a major issue, he was released. Now, I already hear some of you saying, “But he’s too small!”
Nope. If a wild rabbit is large enough to cover half a dollar bill, he’s old enough to be on his own. He may still return to the nest to sleep with Mama and sibs, but he’s independent as far as food and survival.
And finally, we have the flyers for your weekly dose of adorable. They’re growing like weeds and will soon need bigger digs.
Oh, and for a bonus, I surprised these wild turkeys yesterday as I was freshening up the outside feeders. I love how, in the video, the tom herds his “harem” to safety out of my sight!
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