This week was filled with victories and losses. I was also extremely busy, so have far fewer photos than in the previous three.
On the triumphs side, the wild turkey has been released. The pheasant chick is doing well, though we're still uncertain precisely which species he is. He's been christened 'Dude' after the towel he was brought in.
The tiny baby raccoon we got in last week still hasn't opened its eyes, but is doing pretty well. This week we got in a baby possum, stiff and cold as ice, but we got him warmed up and he appears to be in perfect health, so he's been introduced to a second lone possum we had.
I also had a curious encounter on the way TO Oaken Acres. Pulling out of our apartment's lot, we found three tiny blurs on stilts being escorted across the road by their parents: killdeers! They scattered wildly, each a different direction along the roads of a T intersection. I hopped out and went after them, and was able to gather them up, even saving one from a kestrel hovering nearby. It wouldn't have been bad if there hadn't been quite a bit of traffic around; the parents were panicked, the chicks were panicked and running wildly, and they were SO tiny and easy to miss. We called Oaken Acres then for what to do; in my own panic I'd forgotten that killdeers nest on the ground, so THAT wasn't a problem. Finding their nest to return them to it was impossible, so we carried them out and placed them together in an open area where there was some brush, after making certain the parents spotted us and the chicks. Killdeer instinctively try to lead predators away from their young using themselves as bait; they'd tried this with our car, which didn't work well, of course, and tried it again with us, which we allowed, following them off then watching as they doubled back to collect their wayward young. It proved a good thing, too; not ten to fifteen minutes later a storm hit with a real heavy downpour. Had we not reunited them, there's a strong chance one or more would have been lost in it. I can tell you, though, these little guys are FAST.
That storm was still raging when I arrived, and we even had tornado sirens! I spent much more of the day inside, and helped to feed the birds by hand and do a lot of indoor work, but was able to get out to put down new wood chips and do other chores.
Before I get to other discoveries and pictures, though... the tragedies.
Working with young and injured animals in a rescue situation inevitably means some losses. We lost a young squirrel that had been raised from a pinkie by a colleague there: pneumonia. He'd been there since I started volunteering, too. A rabbit had come in the previous night and died of its injuries, but at least it was made comfortable before it went. That's very important I feel; even if an animal looks like it might not make it, it can be made comfortable and less afraid for its passing, and some will surprise you, like that fawn with the head wound which is striving to survive. It's important to forge ahead, aware you cannot save them all but you can give it your very best.
A great horned owl came in dead, though. It passed away on the ride in, sadly. And, most appalling, a red-tailed hawk we received calls about was RUN OVER by a police officer. Details are still fuzzy, but it seems they did it because they couldn't handle it, and if so, that will certainly be reported, as it's both horrific and illegal. The hawk was an hour away and we had a lot on our plate, so we couldn't send somebody out to get it (we usually can't to begin with), but that's just no excuse to treat it so! It's believed it was injured in the storm.
I did get my first real look at the female snowy owl, Frosty, found last November. Here are two videos and a few pictures, not my best work, but then I was using my small camera, as we were busy with vaccinations, cleaning, and intake of a number of animals (a rabbit, a grackle, and a couple of wood ducks also came in):
I also finally got a picture of one of the property-owner, Kathy's, dogs. It has one blue eye and one brown and I've wanted to get a picture of this, but the dog never holds still: Blue and Brown.
We had a bit of excitement with a trio of raccoons, too, during the vaccinations. One of the three escaped, climbing out of a carrier that had been upended to keep it in. We were worried it had gotten outside, but it turns out it had gone to hide in a pile of blankets, and I spotted it roaming behind the containers later while I was sitting watching the container we'd placed outside with his siblings in the hopes of luring him out; only my sitting down there on the floor allowed me to spot him sneaking around!
Here are a few other fun videos and pictures I took of the raccoons this week. I have two videos that are more for listening; I like showing how they sound: Chitter Chitter Chur and Chitter Chitter Chur 2. Also have a nice video and less nice picture of a group of our older raccoons eating outside (old enough not to be hand-fed, but not live outside): DINNER and Gruel Babies Video. Lastly, I caught one in a precarious position: he had managed to get himself onto the roof of his enclosure... upside down... and couldn't figure out how to get down! It reminds me heavily of one of our budgies (Dandy, who passed away lasy December), who used to do this: Vampire Budgie! We rescued our poor stuck friend after I got this video: Topsy-Turvy Raccoon.
Anyhow, hopefully next week will bring many more good stories, but I feel it's important to tell the bad ones as well, for the sake of the animals we look after.
