Laurens Wildlife Rescue
  • Home
  • I found a wild baby - what do I do?
  • How can I help?
  • Contact us
  • FAQ
  • This week in wildlife

What’d I tell y’all?

5/15/2022

4 Comments

 
Remember last week when I said my mentioning it was a slow rehab season thus far would invite Murphy to the party? Yeah, well, that’s exactly what happened...

I now have FIVE—count ‘em, FIVE—little leather-lunged red shoulders in-house and two young black vultures from different locations. And let’s not forget the juvie barred owl lingering from owl baby season. The LWR B&B has gone from “vacancies” to “no room at the inn.” (Okay, I could squeeze in a screech or two...)

The first arrival of the week was this brancher red shoulder, who came in via DNR from a county within our Region 4. He’s reluctant to self-feed and resistant to being fed, so he’s been a bit of a chore over the past week; additionally, although no injuries showed upon exam by the wildlife biologist who took him in overnight until he could make it to LWR or when I examined him on intake, he doesn’t want to stand. I suspect a pelvic fracture, which doesn’t always show in x-rays; but he’s been kept in a donut all week and is starting to get more mobile, so maybe it was just a really bad bruise. I’ll probably aim at x-rays this week just to be sure, even though the odds are we won’t be able to see any fractures.
Picture
The very next day an in-county caller indicated they had two nestling red shoulders that they couldn’t bring to LWR. I called the same game tech who brought me the brancher to see if he could get them, and he was able to do so—and informed me the callers had several vehicles sitting in the yard. So much for “I can’t drive them there,” right? More like “I WON’T drive them there.” I’m not sure how long they’d been with the individual, as they reeked of fish and had bits of fish stuck in their down on intake. For the record, fish is NOT on the red shoulder menu, so for the first few days after their intake I had screaming, hungry birds with indigestion. They wanted the food but couldn’t eat much at a time. And it took them three days to cast pellets. This is what happens when untrained individuals rely on “instinct” or the Internet for wildlife feeding advice.
Picture
Now, however, they’re eating well and casting pellets properly. And they look—and smell—much better, too.
Picture
Picture
And then red shoulder number 5 arrived, a second brancher who’d been with another rehabber for about a week while she tried to find someone who had other red shoulders to house him with. During baby season rehabbers don’t always communicate well with each other; we’re too busy dealing with our intakes. He’s doing well and will go into the mini-pen as soon as the barred moves into the main flight. And yeah, I know his eye color looks Coopish but he SOUNDS like a red shoulder.
Picture
The older vulture was apparently dog-attacked but not injured and spent several days with a vet in the county where he was found...where he was fed cat food...which I understand he promptly upchucked all over himself when colleague Kathryn Dudeck triaged him before his transport to LWR.  God love her, she made sure he was clean before transport!
Picture
The second one was fed inappropriately as well, based on advice from a rehabber who isn’t licensed for raptors, resulting in rotting food crammed in his crop. Again, Kathryn triaged this one with a crop flush before his transport to LWR, and we’re still considering him critical, so it’s a wait-and-see situation with him.
Picture
Meanwhile, the original red shoulder nestling is growing apace and looking just gorgeous. Given the size, I’m thinking this is a female, and she’s gonna be a beauty once her feathers are fully in.
Picture
Picture
The barred owl hates me and would like to be gone NOW but he has to move to the main flight and pass a live prey test first!
Picture
For your listening pleasure, last night...ALL night...I had the battle of the nightjars going on in my yard, as the chuck-will’s-widows and whippoorwills competed to see who was the loudest. And the area unattached male mockers joined in quite frequently...Good thing I was up all night reading anyway!
4 Comments
Anne Golden
5/15/2022 10:43:33 pm

The battle of the nightjars is a treat! Thank you for remediating the mis-fed hawks.

Reply
Laurens Wildlife Rescue
5/22/2022 05:19:48 pm

Glad you enjoyed it!

Reply
Ann Feldman
5/16/2022 09:33:41 am

I wonder where the amateurs get their feeding advice? Off the internet I suppose, where all the other crapola comes from.

Reply
Laurens Wildlife Rescue
5/22/2022 05:21:04 pm

Nailed it! There's so much crap feeding advice out there...

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009
    September 2009
    August 2009
    July 2009
    June 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009
    March 2009
    February 2009
    January 2009
    December 2008
    November 2008
    October 2008
    September 2008
    August 2008
    July 2008
    June 2008
    May 2008
    April 2008

    Categories

    All
    Baby Birds
    Baby Deer
    Baby Opossums
    Baby Possums
    Baby Rabbits
    Bluegray Gnatcatchers
    Carolina Wren
    Common Loons
    Epd
    Fawns
    House Finch
    Mbta
    Migratory Bird Treaty Act
    Mockers
    Mockingbirds
    Orphaned Birds
    Orphaned Deer
    Orphaned Fawns
    Orphaned Opossums
    Orphaned Possums
    Orphaned Rabbits
    Orphaned Wildlife
    Squirrels
    Wildlife
    Wood Ducks

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.