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

Finally.....a new posting

Well, I'm sure you've all noticed the change of the blog template. I'm not happy about it, but it's entirely my fault. In trying to change something, I completely deleted the old 'look'. I don't know how it happened since I was just looking around at a possible tab addition and voila! I had this template saved from a while ago and although I like it, it's not at all the old one and since I'm not computer savvy at all, well, until someone with amazing talent volunteers to help with some computer work, it will have to do, but it's only temporary.
So I'm mad, but only at myself!
A lot to update you on.
First, Rojo, the young golden eagle was finally released! We tossed him at an area in Emery county called Horse Canyon. A local Iraq vet, Joe Tryon, did the honors. The next blog will show those pictures as the other updates listed will contain pic's and I don't want to crowd this post.

The 3 robins are FINALLY in Florida. Yes, the paperwork came through (thank you Federal people) so at 6 AM one morning, they were put on a flight to Florida. I'm so happy they can have this new life and didn't have to be put down. My volunteer Diane paid for their travel expenses since Lori, their new caregiver, was not able to cover them as custom usually dictates.

We had a ring-neck dove come in that a cat had tangled with. I wasn't sure if the bird could survive, but with time and a lot of medication, she sure did and was released at Connie's house. She also had a broken leg and we let it heal without surgery as the feet do not have to be perfect as for a raptor. Once the pain subsided, she was putting weight on it and we could clearly see, she would be just fine.

More Mexican Free-Tailed bats have come in. We were able to release all of them. When I was in Salt Lake getting the robins on their way, another MFT bat came in so I just had Marc, my new sub-permittee take over with that one since it was there in Salt Lake and he released it the next day. Thank goodness, most of these bat calls require hydration 1 or 2 times and can be on their way. I hope they all are in a much warmer climate enjoying themselves.




Cleo, the golden eagle that went through a windshield here in Carbon county has been to the optical vets and my regular vets to repeat blood work. She will be headed to the optical vets again this Friday. Hopefully, we'll get the OK on her eye condition and then she will shortly be released. Her blood work looked great.







Kachina is doing very well. We still need at least one sponser for her so if you can help with this, you won't be sorry. We'll send you personal updates and a photo of her. Right now, she's in Moab with my volunteer Dave. He's working with her, getting her used to being handled by people. She's an amazing bird and has been through a great deal. Please contact me at secondchancewildliferehab@yahoo.com if you can help with her expenses with a donation.

Well, I'd better get to posting pictures, so thanks for being so patient. If anyone out there can help with computer (web-site) design, please let me know. Of course, we run soley on donations and are non-profit.

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

Here a bat, there a bat, everywhere a bat, bat.....

Yes, migration is still taking place. Some species move sooner than others, while some don't migrate at all. And then there are the exceptions, like, yes, this species normally migrates, but in certain geographic areas, doesn't. Another one of those things that wildlife rehabilitators need to know.
It's been mildly busy around here. Just about every patient has been due to migratory issues in one way or the other.
I picked up an adult sparrow at a local nursing home that was completely covered in some sort of oil or grease. Poor thing was extremely thin and several feathers were missing. I suspect once he because soiled, since he could not fly, this made him an easy target for a predator and that's how he lost the feathers. I gave him his first Dawn bath, but he did not survive the night. I'm sure the toxins in the substance on his feathers had entered his body and that's why he was found and was easily caught and this also caused his death.
People, don't leave things laying around your yard or open garage that may harm something else. Besides being careless, it can contaminate indiscriminately.


We also got in a ring-neck dove that tangled with a cat. Boy he sure looked rough, but he's beginning to look much better. We treated him with antibiotics as well because of the cat. He has new feathers growing in, but he does have a broken right leg. With time and rest, we're hoping that he can be released.

We also had an Eared Grebe come in. This little guy had been migrating through Utah and apparently just became exhausted. He was found on someones porch in Moab, so we gave him some time to rest and sent him on his way.
They need water to take off, so we took him out to Desert Lake in Emery county and put him on the water. Those Grebe's are so cute!
The picture shows how interesting their feet are. They are in a group all to themselves. Their feet are referred to as 'lobed'. This, and the fact that their legs are set far to the back of their bodies makes them excellent divers and swimmers, but completely helpless on land. When found on land, people always call me telling me the 'duck' has broken legs. There are several species of Grebe's and they are all just wonderful! This little guy was in his winter plumage, so he doesn't look like the pictures in a lot of reference materials, unless they show the different plumage's.






We also have had two more bats come in. Both of them are Mexican Free-Tail bats. One is doing much better than the other. I don't have pictures of them for this posting, but I will for the next.
We're calling them, Bruce Wayne (I didn't name him) and Sid Vicious (what an attitude).




Last, but not least, we are looking for people to sponsor the newest Red-Tail hawk, Kachina. She will be with us for awhile and this will get expensive. If you're interested, click on the questions tab or go to the donate tab. For each $50 donation, I will send you and sponsorship certificate with her picture. This would also make a great gift for someone that loves animals/wildlife. I'll post a couple of pictures of her. She is the hawk that was found in Eagle Mountain, Utah, almost dead. She's doing great now!
Thanks everyone,
Debbie................
Mark your correspondence titled Kachina for the sponsorships.

A sad note.........

Today is a sad day here. Iris the Ibis, fought the good fight, but lost her battle today and died. She hung in there, so we did as well, hoping all along that the little bits of 'gain' we were seeing meant she would survive, but with all the fluids and food we put down her, (enough for a bird 3X her size), it just wasn't enough.
We'll miss her and we know she's better off wherever she is at (hopefully Ibis heaven).
Debbie..............

Where are all these bats coming from...............

I actually know the answer to that question....it's migration and just about everything is on the move preparing for winter. The new bat, the silver haired bat was released successfully and another Western Pipistrelle bat came in and he has since been released as well. Usually, they just need a few days of hydration and food and they can be sent on their way. Thank goodness that is all these two required. Unfortunately there are no pictures of the releases as they were released at nighttime.
I've included a picture of the chipmunks' release here in Price. Hopefully he'll remember this valuable lesson and be more watchful, now that he's been given a second chance.

We have two new patients with us; a first year red-tail hawk from Eagle Mountain, Utah and a first year White-faced Ibis from Santaquin, Utah.
The red-tail, named Kachina by her finder, has an injury to her left humerus that has already healed. I had an x-ray taken to verify what I felt during her intake exam and she's been healing at least 8 weeks at this point. There is no way to fix it, so she is a non-releasable hawk. She was also VERY thin and weak, but is slowly coming up in weight with supportive care. She is actually showing some fight now, which we love and has been tolerating the foods we have been feeding her as she progresses. She needed hydration as well, for several days.
She's like a different hawk! We are working on placement for her once she is healthy enough for that, which will still be a few weeks away.



The Ibis, named Iris by Connie, is a different story. No injuries, but something is seriously wrong. She shows behavior of a neuro nature, whether it is a head injury, which I don't believe is the problem, but more likely something toxic, like a chemical or some natural toxin, like Botulism. Without running many expensive tests, which may or may not give us the answer, the care is pretty much the same. Fluids, fluids and more fluids. We have to get those kidneys flushing out all that they can and hope, the damage isn't permanent. She's so sweet and trusting, it's really hard watching her struggle and I'm sure she is aware of everything that is happening to her which only increases her anxiety level. She is also very thin because of being like this, therefore, not being able to stand and walk to find her food, let alone fly.
I hope we can get her through this.
Debbie.....................

A quick post............

Well the new bat is a Silver-haired bat. He is absolutely adorable. He's black with his back fur being tipped with silver, sort of like a silver-backed gorilla. What an attitude! Every picture we have has his mouth opened and showing us how scary he is.
We have been giving him sub-cutaneous fluids and feeding him a formula. No broken bones or anything like that.
We also released the chipmunk. I'll have those pictures on the next post.
That's all for now,
Debbie....................

Goodbye Shu, Fremont and Zuma.................

It's been busy again, strange things coming in. We had a Wanderer Garter snake come in that a cat tangled with. He needed to be treated with antibiotics, so I called my friend Carmen at Best Friends in Kanab, Utah, to find out where to inject meds on a snake. She's the only rehabilitator in Utah that does reptiles, so I followed her advice and he made a successful recovery and was released five days later near the Woodside area of Utah. It's pretty desolate there, no pets or people, but there is some water and a lot of cover for him. I know Connie's happy to see him gone; she did her best, as always and didn't complain, but it was obvious she wasn't thrilled working on a snake. She's a trooper!

A little chipmunk was dropped off at the local DWR office. It turned out to be a Least chipmunk. We still have him or her. She was found in a driveway of a home here in Price, up near our college. It looks like a predator of some kind tried to catch her, but she was able to get away, with part of her tail ripped off. We've have been treating her with antibiotics as well and hope to get her back out to her home in a day or two. What a sweetie! She weighs all of 20 grams if that helps you in picturing her size.

There's been a lot of driving these last couple of weeks. From Utah county and Grand county and back and forth. DWR needs to give me one of their vehicles....yeh, like that will ever happen!

We also got in a bat from near Price. Unfortunately, he did not survive. The people that found him (their dog initially brought the bat to them), then kept him in a room where he could see and hear everything which only makes things worse by adding a huge amount of stress to an already stressful situation. I told the lady that he needed to be moved to a quiet, dark room and she responded "but he's so cute". PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then while HANDLING him, he got away and her cat then got him. The poor thing was doomed in this particular situation.
He was a Western Pipistrelle. They are a very small species. The public always calls them 'babies'. People, just because something is small, doesn't make it a baby!
I have another bat on his way here from Ogden. Don't know what kind, only that he was found floating in a pool this morning.

I also picked up a first year sharp-shinned hawk. He had a lot of trauma from hitting something and heavy bruising on his body. He also had two broken wings at the shoulder area and he was thin as well. He died this morning. I was sort of surprised, but not. He showed the signs of serious trauma, besides what we could see. He probably had internal bleeding and that's why he died. We had him on pain medication so I hope we made him comfortable at the very least.

The really big news is, the three eagles, Zuma, Shu and Fremont, are now in Oklahoma. Victor and his wife Lisa drove all the way here and picked them up this past Saturday, the 11th.
What wonderful people! While here, he and I did an interview with the local TV station. I'm glad their journey is at it's conclusion. Three birds, with entirely different stories from different areas around Utah, all in Oklahoma, living with other eagles from all over the country with their own stories, but assuredly all human caused.




Well, the bat just showed up so need to go,
Debbie.................

Yep, Fall migration has started here in the mountain west...

Yes, it's that time of year. Fall migration! Chances to see things we normally don't the rest of the year. Take the opportunity to look up and see the splendor. Hummingbirds are already coming through so get your feeders cleaned and full. This is also the time of year that we may see the young and older critters having some difficulty, so be alert and should you find an animal that doesn't appear to be injured but is obviously in trouble, call your local wildlife department right away. Don't try to help it yourself, remember, good intentions often kill! If you know of a licensed wildlife rehabilitator, or where the local wildlife department is, and you can transport the animal yourself immediately without jeopardizing yourself or others, then go ahead. Don't try to feed the animal, just secure it and get it to help and when I say help, I don't mean taking it to 'that lady down the street that takes in all kinds of animals', this is wildlife and there are laws protecting them from that sort of thing. They need a "licensed" wildlife rehabilitator with experience with that particular species.

Well, Jasper, the Harris hawk is now in Phoenix and in this post I have the last picture taken the day Diane came to pick him up on her way back to Phoenix. What a wonderful experience it was to have him with us.

We released our last releasable robin a couple of weeks ago. Again at Connie's house, and this time my grandson was able to do the release. It happened so quickly that the only picture I got was of him opening the container. Once that happened, the robin took off and that was it! A great release.








We have had several new patients come in. We had 2 nighthawks come in with terrible injuries and the decision was made to euthanize them. It's a difficult thing, but is sometimes necessary for the animals sake. They are not suffering any longer.
We also picked up a crow that had come from Moab. He was found on the ground and pretty near death. We met a volunteer in Green River, Utah who drove from Moab with the bird and picked him up, but he was dead by the time we got back. It's a very strange case. He was extremely thin and dehydrated, but his right foot had several enormous 'balls' of tissue on the foot and toes. They smelled horrible as did the bird itself. There was no pus or anything like that in the growths, just an odd looking tissue. I removed one of them and I'm going to have our vet take a look at it. These obviously played a roll in his death. He couldn't stand or use that foot for anything and I'm sure he was in a great deal of pain.

Good news! The approval came in for the transfer of the two golden eagles and the bald eagle to the Iowa Tribe in Oklahoma! It sounds like the transfer will take place on the 11th of this month. I'm so glad for the eagles as they need to start their lives in the place they will call home for the rest of their natural lives. The transfer involves Shu, Fremont and Zuma.
More good news; Ivy had her final surgery to remove this last set of pins in her wing. Just prior to the surgery, she started getting up on the high perches, so she was READY to get those out of there! Once the 3 eagles are transferred, we will start working with her wing.
We are still waiting on the OK for the robins to be transferred as well.

Keep your eyes to the skies and enjoy; I know I will!
Debbie...........................

Fly robin, fly.....................

Just a short update before I hit the pillow.
My computer (both the laptop and PC) have been giving me a headache these last few days so I'm sorry for the delay. We released another robin the other day. Connie released him at her house.
That leaves us with two robins.
Saturday, Diane drove to Phoenix with the Harris hawk AND she (Diane) won't be returning. She's moving back to go to school. She's been very helpful to us and will be missed. Hopefully she can find a group there to volunteer with.
So Jasper, the Harris hawk is now at Adobe Mountain Wildlife Center in Phoenix. He'll be hanging out with other Harris hawks and hopefully will "wild up" so he can go live as a hawk should, in the wild.
Tomorrow, I will be meeting up with Best Friends again. This time, I'll be picking up a couple of their robins that need to hang out with other robins for a little while.
Still waiting on the eagle transfer to Oklahoma and Ivy, the juvenile golden eagle with the pins still in her wing, will be going up to my vet's next week to have surgery to remove those pins.
The pictures in this post are of the robin release.
Debbie................

Goodbye Lionus, robin, Acorn and Berry........

Well what a week it's been!
We released one of our robins at Connie's house. She has lot's of robins that hang out there so that should be a good place for her.
The last two rock squirrels were also released the same day. We put them in the same area as the others. They were acting so independent prior to the release yet when we let them go, they froze and didn't want to move. We had to coax them and reassure them. I could have just as easily have picked them back up and brought them home again, but that would have been selfish and that is not why we do this. Releases can be very difficult and these little rock squirrel releases definitely were. Goodbye my babies. Remember all that we talked about.



Also, that same day, we released the Peregrine falcon. The trip to the vet's office on Tuesday showed no broken bones or dislocation.


I've included the picture of the x-ray and us at the vet's office. Connie and Dr. Ipsen are working with the bird just before the x-ray. We let him go the next day, close to the area where we picked him up. We first had Tony Wright with DWR come and band him for us.
We band all of our raptors prior to release. They are banded with federally issued bands. We are lucky Tony helped us fight that battle to do this. At first, it was only the eagles, then, they wanted to stop banding entirely, but when it was all over, we were granted banding of ALL our raptors. Yeah!!! So Lionus went back out with some 'bling'.











It was a great release and since I'm NO photographer, I'm lucky I got him in the shot of the toss. Those falcons are little bullets with feathers! There was a short burst of intense flapping, followed by a long soar with a lot of lift and then he was out of sight.






I'm still working on the paperwork for the two golden eagles to be transferred to the Iowa tribe in Oklahoma. Right now it's just a waiting game on my part.


Jasper, the Harris hawk has been approved to go to Arizona. I spoke with the lady at the center where he will be going and they are thrilled to have him. Should he not 'wild up' like we hope, they are definitely interested in him as an educational bird, so either way, he'll have a wonderful life, something he is definitely deserving of and not been used to. I'll keep you posted as things progress for him. I've included some new photo's of him on this post.
We're still feeding several orphan passerines of different species and they are progressing nicely.
Connie has been busy cleaning out the living facilities (mews) that are now empty. It's an ongoing job as soon they'll be housing someone else who needs our help.
Time to go feed the feathered babies again...............