Fellow Mortals--Compassion Changes Everything

On July 9, 2017, we received a call about a young Bale Eagle that was obviously in distress.  He had been seen on a roof, then on a small bird bath, then sitting in the middle of a lawn in a residential area.  He was weak and unable to fly more than a few feet.  While we go out on rescues of bigger raptors whenever possible—we could not get to this bird quickly, so after considering the situation and weakened condition of the eagle, we gave instructions to the caller about how to safely contain the young bird for transport without the need to handle it.  

The caller followed our instructions, and used a blanket to gently herd the bird into a big dog crate.  With the help of friends, he did an excellent rescue and drove the young eagle to our hospital immediately.

On examination, the eagle was just eight to ten weeks old, possibly the first to hatch from a newly identified nest in the area.  His mouth and throat were full of blood--he was emaciated, severely dehydrated and infested with mites.  Bald Eagles admitted to Fellow Mortals have weighed as much as 14 pounds—this bird was just 2.2 kg—under 5 pounds.  If not for the intervention of kind people, the eagle likely would have died that night.

While we could provide critical care for the eagle and space to fly, we knew this young bird would need to be with an adult of his own species in order to imprint properly on his own kind.  Although he had the size of an adult, he was still a baby, and in danger of improperly imprinting on humans.  Human-imprinted birds cannot survive in the wild.

Once the eagle had stabilized to the point where he could survive transport, we drove him to friends at another wildlife hospital several hours away where he now continues to heal and mature in the company of other young eagles and an unreleaseable adult Bald Eagle who can teach the young birds vocalizations and behaviors that will help them survive when they are released.

Wildlife rehabilitators work from homes, from centers, from hospitals—but we all work together toward the same end:  release of physically healthy and psychologically normal wild individuals that are equipped to survive and thrive when they return to the wild...

…none of which would be possible without You, and your compassion for wildlife—and your gifts that make happy endings possible for more than 1,000 animals a year.

Links:

• Rescue of injured young Bald Eagle

Every May when white-tailed deer fawns are being born, the calls start to come in from people who worry a baby is orphaned--because they don't see it with a mom--or injured, because the babies look so fragile.

Newborn fawn can weigh as little as 3 pounds and are helpless and therefore very vulnerable during the first few weeks of life.  Mama can't protect them from predators, so nature has provided the fawn with natural protections until it can run and keep up with the doe: coloration that serves as camouflage and helps it blend in with the grass and weeds and trees; a lack of scent so that it is not easily found by predators such as coyotes and dogs; the instinct to lie still and not react with more than a twitch of the ears or nose if approached by anyone other than mother deer.

Not all babies stay healthy.  If the doe is killed by a car and the baby is orphaned, or the baby is caught by a predator or in a fence and the baby is injured--it cannot stay in the wild or infection, blood loss or dehydration would take its life.  While mother deer won't abandon her baby if it is injured,she is helpless to do more than provide nourishment.

"Tiny Tim" is one baby who would have died if left without care. Deep puncture wounds to the head and neck, an ear that was nearly severed by a bite, and wounds down to his skull, meant this days-old baby would need surgery, follow-surgies and post-surgical care in order to preserve the baby's life and ear.  Thanks to Dr. Marcus Gordon, "Tiny Tim" is recovering and doing well today with his foster siblings, including a new little one who was also attacked by a predator and suffered similar injuries which were treated by Dr. Megan Slamka.

Wisconsin is a big state--26th of the 50 United States in area with 34.8 million acres of land.  The population of 6,000,000 people statewide is densest in the southeastern part of the state--the area served by Fellow Mortals, and Fellow Mortals is currently the only option for injured and orphaned deer from the southern 1/3 of the state.

Fawns brought to Fellow Mortals are cared for by advanced wildlife rehabiltators with the knowledge and experience to not just provide care, but to keep the babies wild.  This is more difficult than people realize, as the babies seek out human affection in the place of their mother's care.  We feed and clean in silence--not talking to the little ones, but doing what we need to do and then leaving them to sleep--as mom would do in the wild.  Fawns which are not raised to be wild will lack the healthy fear of humans that will help keep them safe after release.

We currently have 10 orphaned and injured white-tailed deer fawns in care.  Caring for this many babies takes16 hours a day to prepare formula, sterilize bottles and nipples, bottle-feed, provide clean bedding, potty the babies after each feeding and manage any wounds and provide necessary medications.  The daily cost for formula is now $60. Babies admitted into our care will gradually be weaned and moved to two large habitats on 52 acres in the country, where they will remain until after hunting season when they will be released together as a herd to join deer in the wild. Before a fawn is released, the cost of supplies and facilities alone will exceed $1,000 per animal.

Fellow Mortals doesn't charge a fee for the care we provide for any wild animal. Over 2,000 animals will find help and a second chance in 2017 despite the fact that less than 50 percent of animal rescuers donate anything toward care.  

So who does cover the cost of care for injured wildlife like "Tiny Tim?"  As our donor through Global Giving, you buy formula and supplies for this little fawn and hundreds of others, and give the people who find injured and orphaned wildlife a place to find hope as well as giving injured and orphaned wild ones the care they deserve.

Today, you made a difference for "Tiny Tim." 

Thank you.