By Yvonne Wallace Blane | Project Leader
When the young black-crowned night heron was admitted—near death, emaciated, missing a large portion of the upper bill and with a horrendous injury to one eye—we had a decision to make. The top bill was broken about midway to the head and could possibly grow back, but the right eye was badly injured and there was no way to know if the bird would be sighted, even if the eye healed.
Black-crowned night heron aren't commonly admitted; they are a nocturnal species and not often encountered by humans. We made the decision to go ahead and provide life-saving care in the hope that the bird would be releasable, thinking that if that was not ultimately possible, he could be placed in an aquatic exhibit with an established educational center.
After stabilizing the heron with fluids and tube-feeding by putting nutrients directly into his stomach, we started hand-feeding him minnows that had to be held in just the right position where he could grab them from us, one at a time—up to 50 at a time every few hours for the several weeks. Obviously this couldn't go on forever, and we reached out to our veterinarians and our dentist for help!
Dr. Chris and Dr. Ann visited Fellow Mortals to assess the heron and Ann carved a prosthesis from wax that was then formed into a plastic piece.
When the temporary prosthetic was ready, our team of Dr. Scot, Dr. Chris and Dr. Ann—three talented, generous, and compassionate professionals—met in surgery to attach it to the broken upper bill.
We had left the eye to heal on its own, which is often the best way, but the scab was starting to lift and we were nervous about what we would find beneath. Miraculously—when the scab was cut away from the injured eye—we could see the eye was not only intact, but the bird could see from it!
The heron has now doubled in weight and has been self feeding since the surgery. With his only remaining injury the broken bill, we hope that with time his own natural bill will grow and the prosthesis will fall off, and the bird will be releaseable!
If not for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, wildlife rehabilitators would not be allowed to provide care for wild birds. We are so grateful we can help when we are needed.
If not for the surgery, this bird would not be able to be kept in captivity and given time to heal. If not for the person who saw the bird in distress and rescued him, he would not be alive today.
If not for your support, this story would never have been told. Thank you for the gifts you give the wild ones.
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