Raptor rescue rangers

Ever since Cman made his appearance into this world, my poor doggies have become second class citizens in their own home. They don't have the run of the house, I hardly ever play with them and due to R's strange work schedule, they don't get taken out on walks as often. On Sunday, since R was home, I decided to take the puppies for a little walk by the lake so they could get some exercise and fresh air. Candy had a great time and didn't want to go back home, but I had to take her back so I could take Lucy out. Walking with both of them is a bad idea.

When it was Lucy's turn to go out she was going crazy running everywhere and dragging me at the end of the leash. When we made it to the lake I let Lucy run some laps around me (still on the leash because she is a crazy crazy untrained dog that should not be left to run loose outside) to tire her out. As we were doing this, I noticed a little birdie standing by this huge tree. I walked over so I could get a better look fully expecting it to fly away once it saw my dog. Oddly enough, we kept getting closer and closer and the bird wasn't going anywhere. I was standing three feet from it and was in total awe of how cute it was and how amazing that it hadn't flown away considering the crazy Jack Russell at the end of my leash (Lucy hadn't noticed it yet). That's when I got a good look at it and noticed that it was some type of eagle or hawk because it had one of those scary looking beaks that can rip a finger off. It was definitely a baby though because it was not afraid of me at all! I leaned over and talked to it and told it what a beautiful little baby it was and that it should fly away because a doggy might come by and eat it. Because I was not high (or crazy) the bird didn't talk back, but it did hop away when Lucy noticed it and tried to lunge at it. The birdie raised it's wings and opened it's jaw, but still no flying. I looked around to see if the big momma was anywhere around. I had been pecked by a protective momma bird once before and I didn't intend on having it happen again, by an eagle/hawk no less.

I grabbed Lucy and headed home where I proceeded to tell R about the baby bird that we just HAD to rescue because if it stayed there, a dog was going to eat it. He called the emergency animal clinic and they told us to bring it over. We grabbed a box, grabbed the camera, put Chris in the stroller and went back to the lake. I told R to bring a towel so he could catch the bird, but he didn't listen to me as he imagined the bird to be the size of a budgie I guess. As we walked to the place where I had seen the bird, my mom's neighbor ran into us and asked us if the box was for the hawk and we said "yes...is that what it is?". The birdie had moved from his spot and another lady was standing by it taking pictures. She was glad to see us coming with a box because she too felt that the bird would definitely get injured by a dog if it stayed there. As we approached the bird, R suddenly realized why I told him to bring a towel. The bird was the size of really large pigeon or a small barn owl. After seeing the beak on this baby, R was hesitant to approach him and grab him. He and the lady tried to scoop him into the box, but the bird was hanging on to the ground for dear life. I was keeping an eye out in the sky for the momma bird, I didn't want R to lose a chunk of hair from a sharp talon or two. I also found the nest where he had fallen from and it was very high up, I'm surprised it didn't break anything on the way down. With no angry momma in sight, they managed to get the bird in the box and we left immediately to the vet clinic.

At the clinic, they confirmed that it was a hawk. They told us that they would check it out for injuries and fix it up if necessary. So we were happy to hear this and we headed back home. Chris had just experienced his first animal rescue! In the car ride, Ren asked me if I wanted to name my bird and I said "yes, let's name him Tony". Ren said..."I don't get it"...I said "Tony?...Tony Hawk?". Yes, yes, I've got a million of em folks...I'll be here all week. Thank you.


Ren called the clinic yesterday and they said that Tony [the] Hawk was fine, the only thing wrong with him was that he had mites. They reiterated that it was good that we had brought him in, otherwise, he probably would have gotten injured by another animal. They took him to a wildlife sanctuary where he will now be able to learn how to fly in peace. Yay!