Wildlife Rehabilitation in Utah/Second Chance Wildlife Rehabilitation: December 2009

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Some wonderful news...and some sad news.....

Time to get everyone caught up.

I've included in this post the release pictures of Rojo, the golden eagle. The release was at Horse Canyon in the Emery county area of Utah. The
gentleman releasing Rojo is Joe Tryon, and Iraq war vet that served 2 tours. What an honor to

have him do this release. Rojo flew around, over us and around us, then lit down, taking in his new home. I hope he will do well and make beautiful eagle babies when he's older.

The second release was Cleo, and for everyone following her dilemma, it was sure wonderful

to see her in the air. Her's was one of those releases you never forget. She flew in circles, climbing higher and higher over the Dead Horse Point area of Grand county. For those who don't know what this is, Google it.

It's like the Grand Canyon on a smaller scale. She finally flew so high, we could not see her any longer. Wonderful!

We had one of the vet's involved in her care, Dr. Nicole MacLaren, do the release.

Since then, we've had a red-tail hawk come in from Grand county. The poor thing didn't survive the drive to get him here. He was so thin. It appeared he was down due to illness and not injury as no broken bones were found on his exam. I'm glad his suffering is over but I wish we had the oppertunity to help and possibly save him.

We also have a cottontail that was brought to us after wildlife officers confiscated it from some people that had raised it illegally. Now thanks to these 'people', this bunny is not afraid of people or house pets. UGH!!!!!
I'm hoping, (it'll be a long shot) we can teach it these things by hanging out with another cottontail. Best Friends has one in the same predicament, so maybe they can help each other out.
Hopefully we can get the transfer done before Christmas.

We also had a new eagle come in and a new Great Horned owl. They came in the same day. Of course it was a day I left town with my husband, so Connie and Don had to go get them both. The Great Horned owl had a traumatic wing injury. It appeared to have been caused due to electrocution. The entire wing was "dead" so he had to be euthanized. Unfortunately, due to the extent of his injury, surgery could not have been

performed to remove such a large portion of
that wing, so this is why euthanizing him was the only option.

The eagle was also in very bad shape. When Connie and Don found her, she was covered with frost. She would have surely died that night had not some deer hunters in the area come across her and notified the Sheriff's department. There were so many things wrong with her,

it wasn't apparent what the primary problem was. She really wasn't thin, but her feet were balled up tight and she couldn't move them. She could move her legs somewhat, but not her feet. This can be caused by several things, so we started antibiotics, pain medication and gave her some SQ fluids to warm her up and tube fed her. We then noticed she seemed to have something bothering her airway. We could not see anything, so got her into my vets in Payson for a bunch of testing.

We drew blood for several things including heavy metal poisoning, which could cause the feet to be like this. We also tested for infections and West Nile Virus and metabolic problems. With the x-rays, the bill is close to $1,000 just for all of that.
The x-rays showed nothing obstructing her airway and her lungs were clean. Once the other
tests started coming in, we were still in the dark. Everything was ok. Some of the chemistries were a little off, but nothing life threatening. We continued her supportive care and bathing her three times a day since she couldn't deficate properly. But even after a brief period where she got her appetite back, things quickly got worse. We got her back into the vets at she was in respiratory distress and he looked again for foreign matter in her airway and took more x-rays, which again showed nothing. She died two days later. She fought so hard, but whatever this was, finally won.........
I took her back up to the vets for a necropsy, which didn't tell us what we were looking for, so we sent off many tissue samples to be examined and some cultures of internal organs. I'll keep you posted as to their results. We named her Hera; she isn't suffering anymore. I hope she's flying high and pain free where she's at. I just wish we could have found the answer and saved her.

Finally, we just got in an adult male Prairie falcon. He looks to have tangled with a barbed wire fence. He has some trauma to his right wing and came in with a concussion as well. Right now, we're trying to get some food down him, which is no-small-feat for these falcons. They are vicious! We're treating him with antibiotics for his wound and pain meds. He also had lice when he came in, so we're treating him for that as well. We've named him Ari. I don't have pic's of him at this time, but will take some and post them next time.

Thanks for checking in...........
and remember the wildlife this holiday. Donations are always needed for the work we do. Our medical supplies are not donated, we have to purchase everything, the vet work as well. Surgeries,-x-rays and other supplies all cost us like they would cost you at your doctors. It's an ongoing need, 365 days a year. Help us help them!

Debbie.......................

Second Chance Wildlife Rehabilitation
725 North Carbonville Road
Price, Utah 84501
435-650-3441

ATTENTION

Spring is a very active wonderful time for all animals. Babies are born and learning what it takes to be wild from their parents. Unfortunately, many may end up in trouble and often times humans may try to intervene, whether or not it is necessary. The inexperienced human finding a baby bird, for instance, more than likely cannot tell if the bird is truely in need of help, or is learning to fly, something that can take a few days to master. Leaving the baby to learn what it needs is something an experienced birder can spot, but taking that baby home, thinking you're helping, when in fact, it is the worst thing possible for that baby, has now changed it's life forever.
Call a rehabilitator for answers. Yes, we want that baby to be safe from predators, but give that baby a chance. The worst thing that happens in these situations is an improper diet being fed by the 'rescuer'. This will result in death, if not right away, then in time, due to improper development. Different birds require different diets and different amounts of food at different times. Here is where a wildlife rehabilitators knowledge and experience makes all the difference. Don't try to do this yourself, only to attempt to find a rehabilitator as the baby is dying due to your 'efforts'. When they are at this stage, there is very little that can be done AND it is also illegal to attempt raising wildlife. Only a permitted wildlife rehabilitator can do this legally, for we know how to keep them wild and ready for release as well. Making them pets, besides being illegal is very selfish and is not what's best for the wildlife. They need to be free and have learned how to find the food they will need to survive in the wild and know what to avoid and learn the language of their species. There is a lot that goes into a successful rehabilitation and the orphans out there deserve the best chance possible. Don't you agree?

DID YOU KNOW...........

Wildlife rehabilitation is a profession borne of a love and concern for wild things everywhere. We wildlife rehabilitators have taken this many steps forward, increasing our knowledge, skills and techniques into a career that most people do not know exists. Most people assume that the work that a wildlife rehabilitator does is something all state wildlife agencies perform as state employees. This could not be further from the truth.
The reality is, all wildlife rehabilitation is done, in all 50 states, by us, wildlife rehabilitators. State and federal officials MAY occasionally pick up the patients that come to us, but they bring them to us at our homes and facilities, not their state or federal offices or vets offices.
Ours is a specialized field that primarily involves vet/medical expertise. No, we are not veterinarians, but many of us have extensive backgrounds in medicine (people and animals).
We also have vast backgrounds in the natural history of the patients we care for. Our work involves many fields. State and federal wildlife folks just don't have that training or background.
The other aspect of our work that is not known, is that we are not paid by anyone. Our patients don't 'belong' to anyone. They are wild beings. So when they have medical needs, there is no one to step up to this challenge except wildlife rehabilitators. Most of us work basically 24/7. Holidays are no exception. When an animal is hurt, it needs help now!
To top it all off, whatever expenses these patient incure, the bills are paid by us, for vet care, surgeries, medications, all of it. We build their homes and repair them as needed. All of our patients need something. They are not here to visit, they are in trouble. So imagine if you will......going to work everyday, driving your own vehicle to do that work and never getting a paycheck. OK, so maybe you can do that.....now imaging having a source of income from somewhere, now, this is where things get really different. When you get that money, you just turn it over to other people to pay for what your patients need, regardless of your financial needs!
This is wildlife rehabilitation.
We also are constantly pursuing continuous education of the latest finds in our field. We strive to be the best we can for those entrusted to us.
So please, support your wildlife rehabilitator in your area. They need it and believe me, it is very much appreciated.

Wildlife Rehabilitation in Utah/Second Chance Wildlife Rehabilitation

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Some wonderful news...and some sad news.....

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