Golden Eagle 20-001 Update
It has been three weeks since the eagle’s right leg was pinned. She is using her right foot normally, but not yet bearing full weight on the leg. She is eating well, and beginning to object to her mandatory cage rest. We are going to begin a third course of chelation because her lead level has increased. We suspect this is due to mobilization of calcium from her bones as the leg fracture heals. Lead that has been stored in her bones is also moving back into the blood where we can measure it.
Gizmo, Cackling Goose 20-010
Employees at the Amazon Data Center near Boardman found an injured goose inside their perimeter fence and named it Gizmo. The data center is on the flight path between the Columbia River and a field where the geese feed during the day. Apparently Gizmo didn’t quite clear the fence on the way back to the river. The collision fractured the metacarpals in the left wing and the left tibiotarsus. Gizmo is eating and will hopefully be recovered in time for spring migration.
The Week in Review
The snow has melted and temperatures increased so that it feels like spring. Fortunately, business is still slow. There were just five admissions in addition to Gizmo: one Sharp-shinned Hawk, one Red-tailed Hawk, one Western Screech Owl, one Snow Goose and one Ring-billed Gull. A car tire must have gone directly over the gull’s right wing, crushing the ulna. I have never seen a bone broken into so many pieces.
Western Screech Owl 20-009
This little owl was likely hit by a vehicle, receiving a head injury. He is still squinting his left eye, but has a good appetite. There is an owl pellet, all that’s left of the two mice he ate for dinner, on the towel by his foot.
