Wildlife Rehabilitation in Utah/Second Chance Wildlife Rehabilitation: June 2010

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Get ready, get set, GO...............

Wow, we are really busy here. Babies everywhere.

We took in a bunch of new patients for DaLyn Erickson, another rehabilitator in northern Utah. She will be getting in some of the oiled birds from our Chevron disaster in Salt Lake.

To help her make room for all of these new patients, we offered to take several of hers.
We added another 2 more Great Horned owls, now totaling 5 babies. The two new ones have injuries; one is healing from sutures and the other looks more serious, with a couple of broken bones.

We also took in 3 nestling Screech owls. What cuties! I'll post pic's of them next time.

We took in 2 more Barn owls, that's a total of 4, all of which came from DaLyn's

facility. They are learning to kill at this time.

We took in 17 baby Robins, all in various stages of needing supplemental feedings. We finally
have been able to release 3 of those and expect another 2 or 3 to be ready in a couple more days.

I've included a picture of Connie feeding the babies outside with her 'burka' so they can't escape.

We also took in 7 Magpie babies, which was great since we had only 1 and she needed to hang out

with her own kind. They are all outside and learning to eat on their own, some were a little older than others and 5 of them have been released-2 of them just released today. I've included one photo of our Magpie baby when she first came in and of some of the others playing outside in their mew.

We also took in another Golden Eagle. She has some injuries to one of her wings that don't look good for release, but there is still plenty of time to determine this.

We are still waiting on the surgery for Horizon and Ivie will most likely be going to the Zuni Tribe down in New Mexico as she is non-releasable. We have sent several eagles to them as they are one of only 2 tribes in the United States that take non-releasable eagles. They have a HUGE facility where they can live out the rest of their lives with other eagles, which I believe in this case is what is best for her. She is younger and she'll adapt well I believe.

We have had several other Robin babies brought in and some Sparrow babies as well.

Just today, we got in 2 Robins and a new Starling chick, completely naked and cold. I've included a cute picture of starling fledglings learning to fly in one of the outdoor enclosures.

We also had brought to us, a Northern Flicker male that was covered in coal dust. He was found in a cabin near an area where there is an active coal mine.

We started the normal protocol of washing and drying and sub-que fluids, but he died shortly after arriving. A stressful situation to begin with and then adding all of the handling from washing was just too much. You can see how dirty the rinse water is in the one photo and that was AFTER two baths. Terrible. Who knows how much of that stuff he had ingested trying to get it off of his feathers.

We also had a new mew built by Dedicated Hunters here in the area.

This is where all the Great Horned owls are living right now. Connie and Don made it look like a tree inside with a nest, where they could started "branching" when it came time, which they all are doing now, but occasionally like to return to the "nest" for security.

Feeding, feeding, feeding; that's all I'm doing right now, OH, and cleaning up poop! Well, I think that's all the newbies. I'll add a few photo's and then I'm off to feed again!

Debbie

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

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Get ready, get set, GO...............

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