We had another week of extreme heat - punctuated by monsoon rainstorms. We had some interesting intakes, and spent a day getting X-rays of some birds that are in fairly serious trouble. There is also a new addition to our Education Collection! So, here's the "TW@L summer X-ray special!" (With a feel-good video tacked on to leave you smiling...and hopeful!)
A common occurrence in Arizona is that of some of the local birds having multiple clutches. The prolonged breeding season is a result of our short winter and extended warm period. Right now, we're getting in some second and even third clutch barn owls, harris' hawks, and this little kestrel, one of three from the same nest that arrived over the past week. He will join his brothers and sisters as soon as he's checked for canker and other injuries.
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A small cactus wren came in last week. It appears he had been in contact with some dry wall mud and was mostly coated with the dried material. He was carefully washed and his eyes were flushed and treated with ointment. As always, stress is always the number one danger to small birds like this.
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Several baby BCNH chicks were brought in (including this one by yours truly) from nests on the area. He displayed a pronounced limp which deteriorated over a day or two so X-rays were in order. Luckily, he has no broken bones, just a very sore hip from the fall from his nest to a concrete walk below.
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A great blue heron also went for X-rays, but his photos showed more serious damage. Broken bones are never trivial, but breaks near major joints are especially egregious. The X-ray shows this guy has a clean break, but it is just a fraction of an inch from the shoulder. This makes it unlikely that a recovery can be made that would allow release.
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The fledgling GHO that came up from near Tombstone last week was also taken for X-rays. he has both a broken leg and a broken wing. Like the blue heron, his break is close to the shoulder joint and is therefore not in a good spot. He is still a very young bird, so the plan is that when his bones heal, we'll place him with Hogan and if they get along well enough, he can join the foster parent team. Keep your fingers crossed!
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We've had a raven with a case of canker in the ICU for a couple of weeks. The canker is healing well, but he also has a seriously broken leg as seen in this X-ray. The first break is in a pinnable spot, but the second one is lower and is very close to the ankle joint. Lots more wrapping and a little luck is what's required now.
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Our new Ed bird, Gallahad!
We finally got another merlin to add to our Ed collection. This little male is going to be a great compliment for Vivian, our female merlin. As soon as he's acclimated to his new surroundings, we'll fit him for jesses and begin to hand feed him.
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The new little bald eaglet that arrived a few months ago has survived his broken wings, but unfortunately he is non-releasable. So with his bands removed and jesses added, he is now being glove trained and after only a few weeks is eating perfectly on the fist. On Friday, Jan gave him his daily ration of rat parts at the feeding station. Here's a handsome little guy who never got a chance to be what he was meant to be, but he still seems to accept life as it is - not what he might like it to be. We might all learn from him...
2 comments:
Fantastic Video.
That little eagle makes rat parts look tasty!
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