Saving a Raven - Why we do this
A kind lady named Lindy called with an injured Raven that she wanted help to heal. I explained that this bird would do best with trained wildlife rehabilitators, but she really wanted to be involved and knew his family was on her property because they had been visiting him.
Lindy brought Raven to us and he was in awful shape, emaciated with a drooping left wing, I didn't hold out much hope. He did not give up much of a fight upon examination which was a bad sign too.
We took Raven to Dr. Alison to get an x-Ray of the drooping wing, but her look said volumes when she said an x-Ray was not called for because the injury was at the joint which was seriously swollen. Our immediate job was to stabilize this bird and get some weight on him even though we did not believe that he would ever fly free again.
Lindy took cages, crates, bowls, worms, mice and all the supplies needed to try to get this bird to gain weight while at her home. She was loaned an outdoor cage where we asked her to place this bird in the hopes that his family members would see, hear and reconnect with him as we tried to get him back into the air.
After two weeks, Lindy discovered that rehabilitating a bird is a full time job and more than a little overwhelming. The family of birds had not returned as we had hoped, so we brought the bird in to our baby bird nursery. Lindyhad given him a good start at gaining the weight he needed and our job was to continue this trend.
We needed to provide a large cage that still restricted movement to protect the injured wing. Ravens are fearful and intelligent birds and baby bird associates, Tasha and Teddy, soon realized that he needed enrichment in his cage to keep him busy and happy.
They chose a Kong dog toy with treats hidden inside which he quickly mastered. Next a plastic circular toy with doors was introduced and he quickly learned to open the doors to get at the king mealworms hidden inside. He surprised everyone by soon jamming sticks into the doors for continual access, smart bird! These ladies tried not to interact with this bird any more than necessary, but when they did, he would start to lose weight. On his way back to freedom, we had a delicate balance to keep him wild
and gaining weight.
We always tried to match birds up with a buddy bird of the same species so they do not bond too closely with people, but no matches were available. As soon as we could, this bird was placed into a flight cage to see if he would continue to eat and most importantly if he would fly
Lindy brought Raven to us and he was in awful shape, emaciated with a drooping left wing, I didn't hold out much hope. He did not give up much of a fight upon examination which was a bad sign too.
We took Raven to Dr. Alison to get an x-Ray of the drooping wing, but her look said volumes when she said an x-Ray was not called for because the injury was at the joint which was seriously swollen. Our immediate job was to stabilize this bird and get some weight on him even though we did not believe that he would ever fly free again.
Lindy took cages, crates, bowls, worms, mice and all the supplies needed to try to get this bird to gain weight while at her home. She was loaned an outdoor cage where we asked her to place this bird in the hopes that his family members would see, hear and reconnect with him as we tried to get him back into the air.
After two weeks, Lindy discovered that rehabilitating a bird is a full time job and more than a little overwhelming. The family of birds had not returned as we had hoped, so we brought the bird in to our baby bird nursery. Lindyhad given him a good start at gaining the weight he needed and our job was to continue this trend.
We needed to provide a large cage that still restricted movement to protect the injured wing. Ravens are fearful and intelligent birds and baby bird associates, Tasha and Teddy, soon realized that he needed enrichment in his cage to keep him busy and happy.
They chose a Kong dog toy with treats hidden inside which he quickly mastered. Next a plastic circular toy with doors was introduced and he quickly learned to open the doors to get at the king mealworms hidden inside. He surprised everyone by soon jamming sticks into the doors for continual access, smart bird! These ladies tried not to interact with this bird any more than necessary, but when they did, he would start to lose weight. On his way back to freedom, we had a delicate balance to keep him wild
and gaining weight.
We always tried to match birds up with a buddy bird of the same species so they do not bond too closely with people, but no matches were available. As soon as we could, this bird was placed into a flight cage to see if he would continue to eat and most importantly if he would fly
These birds survive by being fearful, so we were not surprised when Raven chose to remain on a log on the ground rather than to fly up to the perches provided. A check on him later in the day found that he had moved up to the highest perch. This was quite a relief, but we were still not sure if he would ever fly.
The following day he took a short leap flight to a perch closer to me as I entered his cage. I was elated, he would FLY. We had not expected this because joint injuries frequently fuse leaving the wing frozen and useless. My first call was to Dr. Alison who shared my joy because we did not believe he would ever be able to take flight and be free again.
Next, he began to work on landing and I cringed each time he missed and fell or barely stuck a landing. I was reminded of the skills that had to be learned and practiced for this bird to succeed in the wild.
I have learned that with Ravens at some point we change from caregivers to captors. Raven learned to find the worms that I hid in various places in his cage and he started gulping down small mice, but he also seemed to enjoy raising the feathers on his head and charging at me.
At the end of a month in the flight cage, Raven was clearly bored and ready to try a life of freedom. He had begun to fly from front to back in his cage as if pacing, so I prepared to release him.
I called Lindy and asked her to come watch. She lives nearby and we agreed to do a soft release from my cage because there are many Ravens on my property and her family of Ravens had left. A soft release is when a critter is released directly from the cage where they are rehabilitated. This is done to allow for observation and recapture if necessary and to give supportive care. My hope was that Raven would join up with other Ravens that would help him learn their language and feeding skills.
We opened the cage door and waited and waited. Raven approached and then showed he was fearful and retreated. About 30 minutes passed when he finally jumped out and quickly flew up and away. We were thrilled that he was FREE!
Release day is always joyful and sad at the same time because we just never know how our birds will do in the wild long term. I thought our Raven was flying close by as a Raven seemed to circle closely, but I could not be sure.
Two weeks after his release, Raven paid us a visit and I was elated and worried. I felt elation to know he had survived two weeks and that he was smart enough to have found me. The flight cage is over an acre away from the house to keep recovering birds on their way back to freedom away from pets and people. I was worried that Raven might not be finding the food that he needed to thrive and that he should not be close to people or pets.
The following day he took a short leap flight to a perch closer to me as I entered his cage. I was elated, he would FLY. We had not expected this because joint injuries frequently fuse leaving the wing frozen and useless. My first call was to Dr. Alison who shared my joy because we did not believe he would ever be able to take flight and be free again.
Next, he began to work on landing and I cringed each time he missed and fell or barely stuck a landing. I was reminded of the skills that had to be learned and practiced for this bird to succeed in the wild.
I have learned that with Ravens at some point we change from caregivers to captors. Raven learned to find the worms that I hid in various places in his cage and he started gulping down small mice, but he also seemed to enjoy raising the feathers on his head and charging at me.
At the end of a month in the flight cage, Raven was clearly bored and ready to try a life of freedom. He had begun to fly from front to back in his cage as if pacing, so I prepared to release him.
I called Lindy and asked her to come watch. She lives nearby and we agreed to do a soft release from my cage because there are many Ravens on my property and her family of Ravens had left. A soft release is when a critter is released directly from the cage where they are rehabilitated. This is done to allow for observation and recapture if necessary and to give supportive care. My hope was that Raven would join up with other Ravens that would help him learn their language and feeding skills.
We opened the cage door and waited and waited. Raven approached and then showed he was fearful and retreated. About 30 minutes passed when he finally jumped out and quickly flew up and away. We were thrilled that he was FREE!
Release day is always joyful and sad at the same time because we just never know how our birds will do in the wild long term. I thought our Raven was flying close by as a Raven seemed to circle closely, but I could not be sure.
Two weeks after his release, Raven paid us a visit and I was elated and worried. I felt elation to know he had survived two weeks and that he was smart enough to have found me. The flight cage is over an acre away from the house to keep recovering birds on their way back to freedom away from pets and people. I was worried that Raven might not be finding the food that he needed to thrive and that he should not be close to people or pets.
As I went outside to see him, he flew to the roof which made me feel better about his safety. He then bent down, spread his wings and began to shake them in the endearing "feed me" baby bird posture. I ran back inside to defrost mice for him.
When I exited the house again, he was waiting on the roof. I tossed up 6 mice and he hopped over to them and gulped them down. I was relieved to see that when I left for work that he had flown away. I was also relieved that on following days he did not appear. I considered this visit a gift and then about a week later, I got the best of gifts.
There was Raven circling close to the house and he was a beautiful shiny, glossy black with a strong, smooth flight. Best of all, he was no longer alone, Raven was flying with a companion which showed he had made the transition to freedom and was joining up with other birds that would allow him to survive and thrive.
When I exited the house again, he was waiting on the roof. I tossed up 6 mice and he hopped over to them and gulped them down. I was relieved to see that when I left for work that he had flown away. I was also relieved that on following days he did not appear. I considered this visit a gift and then about a week later, I got the best of gifts.
There was Raven circling close to the house and he was a beautiful shiny, glossy black with a strong, smooth flight. Best of all, he was no longer alone, Raven was flying with a companion which showed he had made the transition to freedom and was joining up with other birds that would allow him to survive and thrive.
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