Wildlife Center Of Virginia-Sad News About The Eagles

[falconsforever129]

King George Bald Eagle: Pox Case?

PATIENT:  Bald Eagle, #10-2220

LOCATION OF RESCUE:  King George County, Virginia

CAUSE OF ADMISSION:   Avian pox?

ADMISSION DATE:  November 21, 2010

PROGNOSIS:  Died December 4

December 6 update

While the pox lesions on Bald Eagle #10-2220’s face and feet were slowly improving over the past week, the bird showed a decreased appetite and was noticeably more depressed on December 3.  Bloodwork revealed a very high white blood cell count.  When the veterinary team arrived on the morning of December 4 and checked on all the patients, they found that the eagle died during the night.

Dr. Kelly performed a necropsy on the bird and found it to be in good body condition with no large abnormalities other than an enlarged spleen.  There were several plaques in one of the bird’s air sacs; these will be cultured to see if there was a bacterial or fungal infection in the air sac.  Samples are also being sent out for further testing. 

Caroline County Bald Eagle

PATIENT:  Bald Eagle, #10-2153

LOCATION OF RESCUE:   Caroline County

CAUSE OF INJURY:   Struck by vehicle — perhaps twice?

ADMISSION DATE:  October 29

PROGNOSIS:  Euthanized December 3

December 6 update

On December 3, Drs. Miranda and Kelly took this Bald Eagle to surgery to re-pin the fractured humerus that never healed.  Once they were able to visualize the fracture more clearly in surgery, they saw that the piece of bone that had not attached to the callus was dead.  While Dr. Miranda attempted to freshen up the fractured humerus by removing the dead segment, it soon became clear that she would have to remove a significant portion of the bone—nearly 35%.  With such a significant piece of the wing missing, this bird would never be able to fly again.  The vets decided to humanely euthanize the bird during surgery.

Dulles Airport Bald Eagle

PATIENT:  Bald Eagle, #10-2143

LOCATION OF RESCUE:  Dulles International Airport, Virginia

CAUSE OF ADMISSION:   Struck by plane?

ADMISSION DATE:  October 25

OUTCOME:  Euthanized December 3, 2010

December 3 update

On December 2, Drs. Kelly and Miranda Sadar took Bald Eagle #10-2143 to Virginia Tech (along with the Peregrine Falcon recently admitted from Richmond) to see J. Phillip Pickett, DVM, Professor of Ophthalmology in the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences and Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists.

Unfortunately, the news was not good. Dr. Pickett confirmed what the WCV veterinary team had been suspecting:  the bird is mostly blind in both eyes.  In addition to the retinal tears, Dr. Pickett also found retinal atrophy in the right eye; he also suspects that there is severe degeneration of the optic nerve to both eyes.

What all this means is that the eagle is permanently blind and is definitely non-releasable.  Drs. Miranda, Kelly, and Dave McRuer discussed the option of placing this eagle as an education animal and decided that the bird is not a good candidate.  Based on observation of the bird in its flight pen, as well as abrasions to the eagle’s left wing and feathers, they concluded that the eagle was often running into things in his enclosure.  Sadly, the Bald Eagle was humanely euthanized.

Fly free little ones....

[valhalla]

  At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Wildlife Center of VA provides treatment for many injured birds, animals, and reptiles.  The drugs, x-rays, and surgery are VERY expensive.  The below patients received the same Costly Care that Buddy, for example, has received.

Please consider including the Wildlife Center of VA in your TAX Deductible charitable contributions this year.

And don't forget to click the donate button here, to make a TAX Deductible charitable contribution to OUR Falcons. 

Your contribution doesn't have to be a lot because a few dollars from all of us goes a long way.

Thanks in advance - this IS the Season for Giving, you know     

[falconsforever129]

Absolutely so! These people do such a wonderful job taking care of these little angels who need our help! 

[Donna]

Down Through the Chimney

PATIENT:  Eastern Bluebird, #10-2252

LOCATION OF RESCUE:  Albemarle County, Virginia

CAUSE OF ADMISSION:   Fell down chimney into fireplace

ADMISSION DATE:  December 11, 2010

PROGNOSIS:  Hopefully releasable in 2011

On Saturday December 11, residents in Crozet received an early (and unexpected) Christmas visitor down their chimney—an Eastern Bluebird!  After falling down the chimney and into the lit fireplace, the bird was quickly plucked out and brought to the Wildlife Center.

Eastern BluebirdThe veterinary staff examined the bird and it was found to be in fairly good condition … given that it had landed in a fire.  The bird’s eyes were shut when it first arrived, and its wing and tail feathers were singed.  Dr. Kelly Flaminio flushed the bluebird’s eyes with saline solution and checked for corneal ulcers—fortunately, no ulcers were found.  The bird also received fluids.

Since most of the bird’s flight feathers are singed, the bird will need to remain at the Center until it fully molts–which could take several months.  Thus far, the bluebird is bright and alert and is eating well.  Live mealworms are a particular favorite.

[falconsforever129]

That poor little one!  I am glad they got it to the center in time...It was probably cold and sat on the chimney for warmth....At least this is a happy ending although the little one has a lot of healing to do.
 

[Donna]

Red-shouldered Hawk

PATIENT:  Red-shouldered Hawk, #10-2257

LOCATION OF RESCUE:  Hanover County, Virginia

CAUSE OF ADMISSION:   Gunshot

ADMISSION DATE:  December 12, 2010

PROGNOSIS:  Guarded

On the evening of December 9, a Red-shouldered Hawk was found injured in Hanover, Virginia.   Its rescuers took it to a nearby veterinary clinic; the bird was then quickly transferred to a permitted rehabilitator.  On Sunday, December 12, the bird was admitted to the Wildlife Center.

RSHA radsThe Red-shouldered Hawk was bright, alert, and in great body condition upon arrival.  It had a wound over its left pectoral muscle, an indication of a potential gunshot wound.  There was also some crepitus in the bird’s right shoulder — a grinding or crackling that typically indicates a fracture.  Radiographs confirmed that the bird had a broken coracoid — and a pellet lodged in between the two fractured segments of bone.

A blood test found that the hawk had extremely high levels of lead in its blood.  Dr. Kelly Flaminio and team started the bird on chelation therapy to treat the lead toxicity.

Sometimes, if a raptor is shot and a pellet lodges in the bird’s muscle, the body essentially walls it off and the pellet may not need to be removed.  When lead pellets make their way into the bird’s gastrointestinal tract  or the pellet is lodged in the bone, in contrast, lead is slowly leached into the blood.

In this case, Center vets knew that the pellet would need to be removed.  Given the location of the pellet, this was a huge challenge, as the pellet was lodged in a highly vascular area with many nerves and large blood vessels. 

On Wednesday, December 15, Dr. Miranda Sadar led the team in surgery to extract the pellet.  Using the fluoroscope — a tool that allows the veterinary team to see a “rePelletal timeâ€� x-ray of the patient — Dr. Miranda was able to continually visualize the pellet while carefully making her incision into the bird’s shoulder.  This was the first time she had done this particular approach in a raptor’s shoulder area.

After about an hour in surgery, Dr. Miranda’s patience paid off– she was able to safely extract the pellet.  Oddly enough, when she pulled the small lead pellet out of the bird’s shoulder, it had a chest feather still stuck to it.

Post-surgery, the Red-shouldered Hawk is recovering well.  Additional diagnostics reveal that the lead levels are gradually decreasing with continued chelation therapy.   The hawk has not shown a great deal of interest in eating yet, so the veterinary team has started to hand-feed the hawk; they hope that it will begin to eat regularly on its own now that the pellet is removed.   

The hawk is wearing a body wrap to stablize the coracoid fracture; the veterinary team should know if the fracture has healed in about three weeks.

This Red-shouldered hawk is one of four gunshot victims that has been admitted to the Wildlife Center in just the past two weeks.  Each of these cases has been reported to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.  If you need to report a wildlife violation, please visit the DGIF website for more details.


lead pellet removed   (Guns are bad)

[Donna]

Golden Eagle

PATIENT:  Golden Eagle, #11-0017

LOCATION OF RESCUE:  Craig County, Virginia

CAUSE OF ADMISSION:   Caught in a leghold trap

ADMISSION DATE:  January 11, 2011

PROGNOSIS:  Guarded

On Tuesday, January 11, the Wildlife Center received its first eagle patient of the year — a Golden Eagle from Craig County, Virginia.  The eagle was found with its toe caught in a leghold trap and was rescued by Conservation Police Officer J.W. Koloda on January 9.  Officer Koloda brought the bird to permitted wildlife rehabilitator Gwenn Johnston, who brought the eagle to the Wildlife Center the following day.

The Golden Eagle’s third toe on its right foot has an old, necrotic fracture that is down to the bone.  In addition, the veterinary team found a superficial wound on the left side of the bird’s beak; however, the underlying bone is stable and intact.  Preliminary bloodwork revealed that the Golden Eagle is extremely anemic.

Once the bird’s bloodwork is more stable, radiographs of the foot will be taken and surgery will be scheduled.  The veterinary team should be able to safely amputate the end of the toe, with no long-term ill effects to the bird.  In the meantime, the eagle is quiet but alert and is receiving pain medications, anti-inflammatories, and antibiotics in addition to an iron injection to treat the anemia.

Golden Eagles are more commonly found in the western United States and Canada and are typically only winter visitors to Virginia.  While Golden Eagles are uncommon patients at the Center, it’s not uncommon for them to get caught in a leghold trap.  In addition to 11-0017, Golden Eagles admitted to the Center in 2006 and 2009 were rescued from these traps.


Golden Eagles can sometimes be mistaken for juvenile Bald Eagles.  One identifying characteristic is the feathering on their legs down to their toes, while a Bald Eagle’s lower legs are bare.

[MAK]

Leg hold traps are just plain wrong!