We bid a fond farewell to intern Sophie. She will continue her studies at Northern Arizona College with the goal of becoming a wildlife veterinarian. We wish her well and know she will benefit wildlife for many years to come.

We had a busy week with lots of trauma cases. Fortunately there were successes too. Tricia and the interns took a road trip to release birds: a Mourning Dove, an American Robin and an American Crow. Ava released the Robin. 

Sophie released the Crow. It’s feathers were in poor condition at the time of admission, the result of a poor diet from the well-meaning individual who found it on the ground. Initially we thought it would need to molt before being able to fly well enough to be released. Once it was at a normal weight, it was moved outside to a flight pen. Its flight improved dramatically and Sophie released it where it had been found.

An injured Hoary Bat was found in the Pendleton Safeway parking lot. Sadly there was too much damage to the bat’s right wing to repair and it was humanely euthanized. At 25 grams (about 1 ounce), it was one of the largest bats we have admitted.

The new clinic keeps getting better.   The wet table in the exam room has hot and cold running water and there is a working sink in the break room.