The total intake number for the year now stands at 1484
And still the babies arrive... It's interesting to see the ebb and flow of the different species that breed at staggered intervals - first you get GHOs, then RTHs, then ravens, then... it goes on and on, until we have nearly 100 orphaned raptors and ravens, not to mention the several hundred passerines in the Orphan Care area. On the very bright side, we will all be cooler this summer, which might help us tolerate certain unimaginable things we see... sigh.
A variety of different night hunters, from screech owls to barn owls, are now in foster care at the facility. It's sometimes difficult to envision the aggressive killers these cute little fuzzy balls of down will become. But then the hummers and the little round-tailed ground squirrel will still be small and cute when they are fully grown. All inhabitants of this planet must become what they were meant to become, our hope to be the best at whatever that is.
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As was mentioned in an earlier post, the R&C team performed several raven nest removals for a federal power company last month. Currently, one of the major projects is keeping the 30+ hungry raven babies fed and healthy. It seems to be a never-ending task, but it is ultimately rewarding to Jan, Nina, and the rest of the raven squad who stops what they are doing periodically during each shift to drop BOP (Bird of Prey diet) or an in-house concoction we call "mouse-mash" (trust me, you don't want to know...!) into the open gapes of these hungry birds!
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With Dr. Orr helping on her days off, no patient is lacking for top quality care around Liberty. A lucky peregrine falcon got some TLC last week, and even though it might lose part of its wing, it has a chance for a good future as an education bird or possibly a foster parent. And several great blue herons (including the one that was hanging from his beak!) have recovered well and are all close to release!
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If you have been one of our volunteers in the last couple of summers, you know that our ability to deal with the Arizona heat is iffy at best. At least once a day (or more!), we'd have to turn off the A/C so it could defrost or blow out the drain line, to say nothing of providing a nice habitat for the local rodent population... Recently, one of our totally awesome volunteers, Johanna Brosie, paid over $2,200 for a new A/C for the ICU, office, and Orphan Care room! Coupled with installation services donated by Airepros Air Conditioning & Heating, we might actually survive another summer! THANK YOU Johanna and Airepros!
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Carl Price brought in two gopher snakes from a storage facility recently. Although they were probably doing a great job of keeping the rodent population minimized, they were not safe themselves and it was determined to relocate them. After a week or so at Liberty, they were both released by a family of Liberty supporters in the Chandler area. Everyone seemed to enjoy the activity, especially the two snakes who got to go free!
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OK, I don't care what you think of pigeons - whether you consider them a nuisance or the beautiful flyers they are, no creature deserves to be the victim of wanton cruelty. This young pigeon arrived to day with a large roofing nail driven nearly entirely through his body. Most likely the target of somebody with a nail gun, this little bird died soon afterward, but not before suffering greatly from the impalement. This kind of callousness is indefensible to anyone with a heart. C'mon people, this kind of thing has no place in anyone's list of acceptable behavior.
2 comments:
First of all, BEAUTIFULLY written regarding the Pigeon, Terry! I could not believe my eyes today when that poor little thing came in. Nothing deserves to be thus treated.
Secondly, JOHANNA!! I don't think I can say THANK YOU enough times to make you understand how GRATEFUL we all are for you and your generosity! WOW!
Terry, I couldn't agree more on the pigeon, but it shouldn't surprise us. Time after time, over the years, we have seen how cruel humans can be to animals, children, & each other. Don't you just wish that if these people felt the need to inflict pain on another creature they would just do it to themselves--much better.
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