Gemert, Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Last night, on Tuesday, August 30, the peregrine S2, who was operated on more than four weeks ago by the veterinarian Caroline Hommers, was examined to see how the recovery of the fracture of her right wing is progressing. The veterinarian is satisfied with the results so far. There is still a chance of complete recovery.

Although the vet has a mobile X-ray machine, and could use this for the falcon, it was decided to take the falcon to the clinic. There it would be possible to anesthetize the falcon if necessary and take X-rays this way.

But first they attempted to do it without anesthesia, and that worked wonderfully well. S2 remained very calm, even although she had been taken away from her now familiar surroundings. She handled all procedures without resistance, and when the X-rays were taken she still remained calm.

The result is visible on the photo. According to the vet, at this stage the main thing is bone growth and that is clearly visible. The ulna and the radius, which are fixed externally, appear in the correct position to grow back together. The non-fixed parts, such as the loose piece of bone from the radius, are still not completely in their original position. But that can still improve in the coming weeks. Ultimately it's about the bone pieces fusing back together correctly. Some callus formation may remain, but it will give extra strength. The crucial factor is that the original position of the wing is again attained. Now the principal parts, where visible, appear to be in the correct position, which gives a better chance of a complete recovery.

However, the future will tell whether that is the case. For now, the fixation will remain for four weeks. Then a new X-ray will be taken and, if the outlook is still positive, then the fixation will be removed.

The next stage is that it will be time for the falcon to move once again into a bigger aviary. This will clearly tell whether she can use her wings well and maintain them in the proper position. Finally, the weather conditions must be suitable before she can be released.

In short, many more steps must be gone through before that happens. For now, in any event, everything is going well.

    and welcome back, Aafke!  You've been missed!  Love all your pictures-the flowers are beautiful and nice veggies too!

Kendal at nestbox now at 2:50pm.
it is funny how alpha male he looks, he always has that very cautious look on his face, looking around checking out every possible threat and potential meal that is visible from his guard point.
kind of different from pretty boy archer.

They are very differnent aren't they?    Young Kendal was the model mate/parent/protector this season, and I do hope that we get to see Kendal and our Quest have more young next spring!    Archer?  That is another story.  It has been a soap opera with him since the day he arrived on the scene...or at least it seems that way to me.  :-)

Soap opera is definitely what it's been! Archer certainly hasn't been the ideal mate for our Beauty.

well we know animals communicate to each other thru their own languages. sometimes i wonder how extensive their languages are.
say for example, when quest tucked harlie in for the night when harlie was still a baby, would quest tell harlie stories of the wonderful places she has traveled to and inspire harlie to do the same before she settle down.  it would be wonderful if they are capable of communicating such details to each other.

sometimes, i also wonder after harlie leaves the nest and if she come back to visit next year. would quest and kendal be able to recognized harlie if harlie has a new coat of feathers on?

too much thinking and wondering on a slow day at work. 

Sounds like the makings of a good book!

Just FYI, I've just emailed our camera guy to see if he can zoom in on the upper ledge. I think it's Harlequin....

Nope...Quest. Sigh...will we ever see Harlequin again?

Her breast feathers looked dark, which is why I thought it was Harlequin. I guess she's molting.

Harlie's probably out on her new life adventures but it's always good to see Quest!

Just FYI, I've just emailed our camera guy to see if he can zoom in on the upper ledge. I think it's Harlequin....

I see Quest!  Antenna's still there.

    and welcome to the Forum!

Was this a result of the storm?  RIP 

Not sure about that Janet.  But I'm sure there will be an investigation into how it happened. 

Here's an article about it from the D&C:

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20110830/NEWS01/110830024?source=twitter-dandc

Update on S2 from BCAW: 

S2 heals amazingly well after her surgery.

To everybody's surprise the Peregrine Falcon female S2, the (inter)national celebrity from De Mortel that was shot last July, is most likely to be released into the wild in about four months.
Although everybody was aware of the possibility that the result of the x-rays could force the veterinarian Caroline Hommers to euthanize S2, the "Lady of the Tower" surprised us all by showing a remarkable recovery.
According to deputy-chairman Martin Vink of the Bird workgroup Gemert (VWG), the Dutch laws dictate that a wild bird-of-prey is to be put down if it can't survive on it's own in the wild.
In another 4 weeks the doctor will do a new examination and (when the results are good) remove the fixating pins from the wing of S2. Then she will need training to build up her strength and lose weight, she's become quite fat, said Martin Vink.

At the end of the video is some text that I have translated for you too:

Up to now, over €1500 has been been donated worldwide for the care and recovery of S2. For that we thank you whole heartedly!
There is still a long way to go to get her fully recovered so additional support from you would be greatly appreciated.
Wishing that S2 will be free again and live at the tower once more, thanks to your help as well.

Video of exam:

       http://youtu.be/1Q_V7YEX3NY

Crane has fallen near brewery by the gorge.  This is from the news:


Rochester firefighters, police and other first responders were called to a report of a crane that collapsed in the Genesee River gorge near the brewery on Tuesday afternoon.

There is a report that one person was trapped in the crane. No other details released so far.

Oh, no!  Hope no one was injured.  That's terrible.  

The man that was trapped died.

Update...

12:07
   
Congowings:
I have some more details concerning NX. Once released she flew off, but then u-turned and landed on the ground a distance away - and hid in some bushes. But when she saw Dr. Dave advancing she took off and gained altitude quickly - flying a bit over the water and the trees -  landing near the river bank. She then took off and flew up into one of trees - where she still remained when everyone left. She did make some vocalizations at one point - but they were adult vocalizations, not juvenile distress sounds. So, it sounds like she is doing well.

I hope she does well. Thanks for the update!

This is the disheveled look that I was talking about! 

Beauty is molting too Jeanne! 

Sure is! She's looking a little disheveled lately.

Glad all reporting that they made it thru Irene even though so much damage and flooding.  Nicole In Montreal wrote me today that they had (in her words) +++rain but are OK.

Here's a follow-up to the story of Shirley and Jenny:

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/bestofnature/update.html