General Update

Still not a whole lot going on at the RMRP, but certainly some interesting cases coming through the cages.  Here's the quick-and-dirty:

--First off, I can't remember if I told everyone that the Humans released the grill-head Red-Tailed Hawk! Remember him? He was found with his head stuck in the grill of a truck, and came in looking like this:

Very sick Red-Tailed Hawk after colliding with car

Well, he was released last week! Despite a fractured skull and awful head trauma, he's out there striking fear into the hearts of small rodents again. Congratulations to the RMRP for a job well done!

--Onto more current cases, a few days ago the Humans admitted a Cooper's Hawk that hit a house window...and shattered it. Can someone who's better at physics than an Owl please explain how a soft, feathery bird that weighs about half a pound can shatter a house window? Unfortunately, the outlook for this bird isn't hopeful, but it is a good reminder to keep your bird feeders away from windows, and apply decals to your windows if you have lots of birds zooming around.

--Admitted two baby Great-Horned Owls last week! Same nest, different days!  The first kid to come in was still very young. He was found at the base of the tree in fine health, but pretty vulnerable.  The Humans were able to put him back in the nest with his younger sibling.  Then, the very next day, the Humans had to rescue another young Owl from that same nest.  This one had gone out on his maiden flight and ended up standing in the middle of the road.  The Humans couldn't put that bird back in the nest because he was more flighted than his younger sibling. If they tried, the Humans would place him in the tree near the nest, he'd instantly fly away again because of the Human in his face, he'd end up on the ground, and the cycle would begin again.  Therefore, when the RMRP gets in mostly-flighted babies, they have to keep the baby until it's fully-flighted. So the mostly-flighted baby is here at the RMRP, finishing growing in feathers and learning how to be a fearsome creature.  Hm, I wonder where they put him?

Poor wing position, but excellent flight! Can't judge a book by it's cover...

--The Great Horned Owl with the luxated (dislocated) elbow is doing surprisingly well.  Despite the fact that he holds his wing out at an awkward angle, he's doing laps around his cage like nobody's business.  Soon he'll graduate to a cage with fewer perches to depend on.  Then he'll attend mouse school, and if he passes that he'll be released!

--The Red-Tailed Hawk with the broken foot is out of his splint and beginning to use the foot to grab the perch. That's excellent news because while wings need to be perfect for release, feet only need to be functional enough to grab perches and food, and this guy is well on the way to two functional feet.

--There are still FOUR Bald Eagles in house. Enough said.

SWHA's nest-building skills at work

--As for Educational Ambassadors, the female Common Barn Owl is busy rolling and tending her fake eggs, and the female Swainson's Hawk is contentedly arranging sticks in her cage.

And that's all the news for this week!  Time for me to get back to my baby.