Friday, May 22, 2009

project 365 - day 3



Rio, in her cat bed which used to actually hold plants until they kept laying in the dirt on top of them.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

project 365 - day 2


me, stimulating a raccoon to eliminate after tube-feeding her.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

project 365 - day 1



Newly re-potted jalepeno, rosemary, italian parsley, and sweet basil, being carefully monitored by Sprocket.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

owl cupcakes

whoooo cooks for youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!



oreo cupcakes with chocolate buttercream

Saturday, May 16, 2009

wildlife case update - vi

Here we go again, been awhile! Things are picking up as summer is coming.

Old Cases (Link to previous update--here):

1. Opossums (babies, 31 total) - Group of 11 were released last night!! Back down to 20 Opus now... but we just admitted some new babies today! It never ends :)

2. Golden Eagle (asper suspect, healed wing injury, callous on bone causing painful flight) - This one is sad guys, sorry. We had to euthanize him. After the surgery, they took radiographs to see how the break and correction to the bone were healing, but a callous was forming to incorporate the joint. As a result, he wouldn't be able to fly, and thus, couldn't be released. We had this bird since January, so everyone was pretty attached.

3. Band-tailed Pigeon (2 infants, orphan) - One of them has been released, the other has really poor feather condition. They anesthetized him and pulled a few of his feathers, so hopefully the new ones will be in good shape and we can get rid of this guy. Part of the reason he is having such problems is the people who brought him in fed a exclusively meat diet... because pigeons are big meat eaters ;)

4. Mallards (42 now!) - FOUR RELEASED!! We are not accepting anymore until we release some, we just have nowhere to put them.

5. Gosling (infant, orphan, 1 with leg injury) - We transferred these guys to a different center. We got in one more after we let the other two go, so we recently got 2 transferred to us. How's that for confusing?! They are cute! Peep peep!

6. Bald Eagle (adult) - Has injuries on his carpals. They think the asper is gone, but have to do bloodwork first and wait for his carpal injuries to heal... then they will let him go. Probably 2 weeks or so.

7. Hermit Thrush (adult, dog attack) - Wasn't flying or improving in the aviar, so they went up to catch him for euthanasia, but then he started flying like mad. So we are giving him more time.

8. Eastern Cottontails (infants, orphans, 14) - A bunch died (bunnies are very difficult to rehab), and a bunch were released! Still have some left and new ones have come in since.

9. Great Horned Owl (juvi) -
Doing good, still sassy and clicking his beak. Gaining weight and starting to get his adult feathers in.

10. White-winged Scoter (adult) - Still have her, not much has changed. She has a blood parasite and is on treatment for that, hopefully released soon after the treatment ends.

11. Sharp-shinned Hawk (adult, crop wound) - Didn't make it through the night :(

12. Raccoons (babies, orphaned, 17) - Okay! We have gotten a few more in, and everyone is growing big and strong (and loud)! They are starting to get to the age where they are growling when you wake them up from their slumber. They make a wide range of noises, including growling, purring, lip smacking, and screaming.



13. Beavers (2, orphaned, infants) - Still here, doing great. Started swimming for the first time! VERY cute.

Bobcat is scheduled for release next Thursday!!!!
Bears have a number of possible release dates in June. They will be released with radiocollars so we can track their activities--how cool is that?!

New Cases:

1. Beaver (adult, head trauma, etc.) - Came in very ataxic and nonresponsive. Hand fed critical care and rehydration fluids for a week, started improving, standing when eating, making noises, being more active. Then today, he died :( I hate it when they improve and THEN die. He was so cute and heavy and clumsy....



2. Western Tanager (window strike) - Rammed into someone's window, just giving time and supportive care until he improves enough to be released, already moved into the outdoor aviary.



3. Black-headed Grosebeak (broken humerus) - Break in the wing, possible surgery candidate. Applied a wing and body wrap until the vet staff could look at him. Eventually euthanized.



4. Pine Siskin (window strike) - Depressed and lethargic. Was being tube fed originally, but has been improving and began eating on own. Hopefully he will still be there tomorrow!



5. Barred Owl (young, orphan) - Transferred to us from another center. I just moved him outside to his raptor box on sunday night, and so far he is eating well and being fiesty. Has some swelling on left shoulder, but the vet staff said no intervention is needed at this time.



6. BABY BIRDS (orphans, cat caught, you name it) - - Tons of them--Dark-eyed Junco, Stellar's Jays, Robins, Bewick's Wrens... all eating and growing big and strong-ish...







Monday, May 4, 2009

wildlife update - v

Long time since I updated, so this baby is gonna be LONG. We got some pretty cool animals in though! I love being on the night shifts without other seasonals or staff on because that means I get to be more involved in intake exams and restraint things. No one to compete with!

Old Cases (Link to previous update--here):

1. Opossums (babies, 31 total) - All groups are still doing great! Most of them have made it to the outdoor pre-release caging, all except the youngest six who had some issues with bloating and stuff. Everyone is off tube feedings! Hooray!

2. Golden Eagle (asper suspect, healed wing injury) - I think I accidentally said Bald Eagle in my previous post. It is a golden, oops! Anyway, so turns out, no asper. We thought he was just fat and having issues with getting tired, but they took another set of radiographs and think that the way the bone healed is causing some pain when flying. Dr. John plans to do surgery Wednesday to correct the problem.

3. Opossum (adult, L leg luxation) - RELEASED!!

4. Band-tailed Pigeon (infant, orphan) - RELEASED!! 2 new ones have come in since, nothing exciting to note about them.

5. Chestnut-backed Chickadee (adult, missing tail feathers, cat attack) - RELEASED!!

6. Mallards (31 now!) - So we've been hit by mallard season! We've had a few die for various reasons, but no major problems to report. The first group of 4 are living a pool already with just a couple floats for them! Man, they grow up quick.

7. Gosling (infant, orphan, 1 with leg injury) - We got another one in, much older than the first orphan, but they seem to do okay together. They have moved up into outdoor caging. One is receiving antibiotics for leg injury--radiographs didnt show what the problem was.

8. Bald Eagle (adult) - Now they are thinking he has an Asper infection (v. agressive fungus). He is being nebulized 2x a day with amphoteracin to try and control it. Pretty much, we catch him up, put him in a kennel and hook up a hose that mists the medication into the air so he breaths it in. Hopefully it was caught soon enough.

New Cases:

9. Hermit Thrush (adult, dog attack) - Started on antibiotics. He seemed okay on admit, could fly, etc. Then he developed a wing droop while we had him which has since resolved. Right now he is on cage rest and soon will be moving to the aviary!


10. Eastern Cottontails (infants, orphans, 14) - These guys are the bane of my existance. They don't get quite as many in as we did in the midwest, and I don't have to tube feed them here, so it isn't quite so bad. Bunnies are very challenging to rehab because they are so sensitive to stress and are very susceptible to diarrhea. Everyone is off tube feedings and in the bunny hutches awaiting release.


11. Great Horned Owl (juvi) - Young guy, still has his downy feathers. This is my favorite kind of owl. They are so sassy! I was really excited when he came in.... and I was the only one there to help! Not too much to note, he is in good health except for a small injury on the beak.


12. White-winged Scoter (adult) - This is a type of seaduck and was found beached, so someone scooped her up and brought her in. She is thin, but that is the only thing we could find wrong at this time. While at PAWS, she has gotten some lesions on her feet which were treated yesterday (with my help)! Currently being tube fed 3x a day and fish being offered.


13. Sharp-shinned Hawk (adult) - This was the coolest admit ever! I've never seen one of these guys close up... they are tiny! I was expecting more Cooper's Hawk size. This must have been a male since he was so small. Anyway, he was found on the ground (probably a window strike) being attacked by crows. The receptionist mentioned that there was a large wound on chest. Turns out, his crop burst. The cool thing is there was a foot sticking out of his chest from the bird he ate just before this happened! Dr. John is doing surgery today to repair it.


14. Raccoons (babies, orphaned, 13) - And raccoon season is upon us! There are 13 so far... they are tube fed KMR about a billion times a day. And they scream.


15. Beavers (2, orphaned, infants) - We got one in initially. Beavers are very social, never left alone when they are young, so it was a bit worrisome to keep him at first. We tried placing him elsewhere, but no one had beavers. People were taking him home at night to feed him and keep him company. The first one was found on a sand bar by a kayaker and brought in since babies wouldn't leave the den at all. His temperature was so low on admit that it wouldn't even register on the thermometer. Then, 3 days later, another unrelated baby beaver came in! WHAT LUCK! This ones mom got run over by a skido. :(


Both are doing well now, except for a bit of a loose stool. Apparently, we will have these guys for 1 year min. - 2 years max. -- it takes that long for them to mature enough to be on their own. Keeping them is a huge commitment. Hopefully they make it to the end!