A vulture in the spring creek area ended up in a spillway in a large canal over the fourth of July week. Ryan Nadiak was walking along the canal, saw the bird near drowning and fished it out with a board. A neighbor, Julie Burdick called Brenda Miller of Roubideau Rim Wildlife Rescue, 501c3. Brenda advised Julie, if they could please heat up some water and make hot water bottles to be placed around the bird, as its’ body temperature needed to be brought back up immediately, or it would not survive.
Brenda arrived about 1 ½ hours later, to a very miserable, unresponsive vulture. She had to leave the bird while running errands in town, then came back to pick up the bird. By then the bird had dried off, but was still a bit cold. The bird perked up in the truck with the hot temperature of the late afternoon. The bird was kept in an outdoor cage and feed elk and rabbit meat for 5 days, and then returned, right back where it was found and released. The bird flew across a beautiful, forested area and perched high in a tree for the day!
Thank you to the young Burdick’s, Alex and Anna for donating their birthday money to help the wildlife, and their parents too!
Vultures are very important creatures in the web of life. They clean up carcasses of dead animals, and eat bugs. They have bare heads so that food does not stick to feathers around their eyes and ears. An adult vulture has a red head. They urinate down their legs to help cool themselves. They will regurgitate their food when stressed. The smells from both are very unpleasant!
Why the bird went into the canal is not known. There was a ball tumbling in the spillway, which may have triggered the bird’s instincts to go after food. The bird may have been weak from lack of food—it is on the thin side. It may be an old bird, on its way out. It may have neurological problems due to agro-phosphate poisoning of chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. Could be something else is wrong with it. All wildlife wants is to be free, to take its chances in its environment. It does not want to be handled by humans, examined at a vet’s office, stuck with needles, or confined to a cage. Think first before “rescuing” wildlife, what will the consequences be to this creature if I take it out of its environment? Are their consequences to me? Roubideau Rim Wildlife Rescue can be reached at 209-5946 or email: [email protected] on Facebook at: http://bit.ly/RRWR-Facebook
Brenda arrived about 1 ½ hours later, to a very miserable, unresponsive vulture. She had to leave the bird while running errands in town, then came back to pick up the bird. By then the bird had dried off, but was still a bit cold. The bird perked up in the truck with the hot temperature of the late afternoon. The bird was kept in an outdoor cage and feed elk and rabbit meat for 5 days, and then returned, right back where it was found and released. The bird flew across a beautiful, forested area and perched high in a tree for the day!
Thank you to the young Burdick’s, Alex and Anna for donating their birthday money to help the wildlife, and their parents too!
Vultures are very important creatures in the web of life. They clean up carcasses of dead animals, and eat bugs. They have bare heads so that food does not stick to feathers around their eyes and ears. An adult vulture has a red head. They urinate down their legs to help cool themselves. They will regurgitate their food when stressed. The smells from both are very unpleasant!
Why the bird went into the canal is not known. There was a ball tumbling in the spillway, which may have triggered the bird’s instincts to go after food. The bird may have been weak from lack of food—it is on the thin side. It may be an old bird, on its way out. It may have neurological problems due to agro-phosphate poisoning of chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. Could be something else is wrong with it. All wildlife wants is to be free, to take its chances in its environment. It does not want to be handled by humans, examined at a vet’s office, stuck with needles, or confined to a cage. Think first before “rescuing” wildlife, what will the consequences be to this creature if I take it out of its environment? Are their consequences to me? Roubideau Rim Wildlife Rescue can be reached at 209-5946 or email: [email protected] on Facebook at: http://bit.ly/RRWR-Facebook