The Hubster went out in the garden Sunday morning and found a Hawk in dire straits. It was caught up through the fence, somehow it had managed to get its neck wedged in a half inch crack between the individual boards on a stockade fence. So his head was literally hanging one side and his poor body was on the other, with his claws in the wood to support his weight!
He was not in a good way, very tired, shocked and dehydrated, with an injury to one wing. The Hubster said his tongue was so swollen it wouldn't fit into his mouth. He very carefully got him off the fence and back onto the patio, where he worked to calm him down.
I got water and a spoon and once he was calm, I very gently gave him water off the spoon. We spent about twenty minutes doing this, his tongue went right down and retracted back into his mouth. We could both tell he was feeling better all the time, as we discussed what to do in quiet voices.
The Hubster put him on the patio and he hopped around with his injured wing extended. It did not appear broken but had a wound halfway up, we think from ebrasion maybe. So the Hubster picked him up again and I very carefully put a little Neosporin on the wound and we refolded his wing. We then sat with him held gently for another fifteen minutes. As we continued to discuss where to put him to recover from the shock, I gently gave him more water, but by now he was more lively and didn't appear to want anymore.
So we decided to take him out to our Artesian Lake area, which is a wildlife area and safe. Mr Hawk got to take a 2 mile ride out there in the Pickup and then the Hubster braved the high (snake prone) grass to place him. He chose an area next to an overflow of the lake so he had water, deep in the shade and brush where he was protected and had bugs to eat. He set him down and watched him walk around for a minute still with his wing extended, but much more revived.
It was such a privilege to get so close to this beautiful wild bird and gain his trust. He just seemed to know we were trying to help him, even accepting the water off the spoon. And so we left him in a safe place, having done all we could and hope that he made it.
The Hubster went out in the garden Sunday morning and found a Hawk in dire straits. It was caught up through the fence, somehow it had managed to get its neck wedged in a half inch crack between the individual boards on a stockade fence. So his head was literally hanging one side and his poor body was on the other, with his claws in the wood to support his weight! He was not in a good way, very tired, shocked and dehydrated, with an injury to one wing. The Hubster said his tongue was so swollen it wouldn't fit into his mouth. He very carefully got him off the fence and back onto the patio, where he worked to calm him down.
I got water and a spoon and once he was calm, I very gently gave him water off the spoon. We spent about twenty minutes doing this, his tongue went right down and retracted back into his mouth. We could both tell he was feeling better all the time, as we discussed what to do in quiet voices. The Hubster put him on the patio and he hopped around with his injured wing extended. It did not appear broken but had a wound halfway up, we think from ebrasion maybe. So the Hubster picked him up again and I very carefully put a little Neosporin on the wound and we refolded his wing. We then sat with him held gently for another fifteen minutes. As we continued to discuss where to put him to recover from the shock, I gently gave him more water, but by now he was more lively and didn't appear to want anymore. 
So we decided to take him out to our Artesian Lake area, which is a wildlife area and safe. Mr Hawk got to take a 2 mile ride out there in the Pickup and then the Hubster braved the high (snake prone) grass to place him. He chose an area next to an overflow of the lake so he had water, deep in the shade and brush where he was protected and had bugs to eat. He set him down and watched him walk around for a minute still with his wing extended, but much more revived.
It was such a privilege to get so close to this beautiful wild bird and gain his trust. He just seemed to know we were trying to help him, even accepting the water off the spoon. And so we left him in a safe place, having done all we could and hope that he made it.
25 comments:
I think birds can sense this. I had a similar experience, some years ago.
We really think he did and after all, a Hawk is highly intelligent.
This is so beautiful, Sarah! You and Hubster are the best!
What an awesome experience. Thanks for sharing.
Great story and well done for caring.
JJ
http://jeannisart.blogspot.com/
What a story, Sarah! Thanks for sharing - pics are great!
Sarah, what a lovely story! I'm glad you could save him.
Great story. You guys did great.
You did a good thing. What animal wouldn't accept help when in a bad way. Well, maybe humans.
Our Raptor Center would give you a huge thumbs up and a medal for your wonderful job of helping the young hawk...I feel sure it probably made it...thanks so much for sharing the story.
Sandi
What a rescue! Hope he makes it now after your efforts!
How wonderful of you both! Congrats on the Post of the Day Award!
What a wonderful thing to do. I hope the hawk made it back to where he belonged.
An incredible experience - hooray for you and the Hubster.
Awwww! You guys! What a magnificent creature! There is a place here in town that takes in wild birds that need help, a friend took a baby bird that had fallen from a nest there recently. However, I think you did just right. Nature will heal this situation.
What a wonderful post .. you and Hubster are the best ...
Neosporin can be so handy sometimes...lovely post, congratulations!
That is so very awesome. Great!
You certainly did a lot for the hawk. Hope he did make it. Great story.
How wonderful of you and DH! What a gorgeous bird.
How kind of you to have taken the time to help a bird in need..
Hawks are very intelligent, as you previously noted, I'm sure he knew you were trying to help him.
I love kind-hearted people, good on ya !
I like this story.
I gave a baby bird water from a dropper a few weeks ago, and put it in a shoe box for shelter. It's parents were still hopping around, and I read on the web that its best chances were to stop it dehydrating, and leave it to the parents to take care of it. I think it survived. I found it very moving to help it on its way in life.
It sounds like your gentleness and kindness calmed the hawk----what a beautiful creature! I've had a somewhat similar experience a couple of times when a bird has flown into a window. They lie on the ground, looking like they're dying, but really just in shock, and I give them water. both eventually felt better and flew off.
What a magic moment! It's such a privilege to have one of these moments. My brother was sitting up late one night, walked outside and found a small owl floundering around in his pool. He fished it out and wrapped it in a towel. The owl let him use the hair dryer to dry his feathers. After the drying, the owl sat on the back of a chair outside, then flew off.
What a heart warming story. You are good people.
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