WINTER KILL

Yesterday I was late to exercise class, a very rare occurrence. They say accidents happen within five miles of home but it wasn't me that had an accident. 
En route to town this past week I had been observing 2 immature red tailed hawk siblings enjoying a roadkill deer carcass roadside.  

Smack dab in the middle of the road staring me down, was one of those hawks. Apparently the poor fellow had suffered the same demise as the deer and smacked into a vehicle on the last curve of the county highway.

Of course, I pulled over and put on my flashers. The wind was something fierce and the injured bird's right wing was all distended unnaturally with down feathers just blowing in the wind. His stance didn't change. I had the next town's sign in sight but I knew exactly where you lose cell reception and I was out of range but I tried my phone just in case, no bars. Frustrating to say the least as I know there are just a couple of folks now in our area who do bird rehab and they just happen to live about 10 miles away. Drats, if I left the bird someone would surely plow right over him.

What could I do? I observed a car stopped, observing me at the intersecting county road and I approached the vehicle. An elderly fellow opened his window and I explained I didn't have cell service, did he by chance have a phone to call for some help? Nope, he didn't and wasn't heading that way. OK, it was what it was. Not everybody wants to be involved...

In a way the timing was a double edged sword because there was morning work traffic (translated: seeing 'other' vehicles) so I flagged down the next vehicle, a telephone truck. I asked the driver if he had reception, well luck still wasn't with me as the fellow's cell was at home charging. I said, "You've got to be kidding, a phone company employee with no phone, but could he do me a favor and call these bird rehab folks from the nearby Kwik Trip?" He took down the info and off he went. 


I played direction cop for maybe a half a dozen cars in the next half hour making drivers go into the opposite lane. Finally, I got the injured bird to hop over to the side snow bank out of traffic's way. Whew. 

The phone guy was kind enough to return to let me know he had left a message on the rehab folks's machine. He also said one of the town's road crew had placed a call to the Game Warden/DNR.

 After thanking him, the upcoming town's road truck drove up and filled me in. He said he felt the same way and couldn't leave an animal suffering either and they were waiting for a return call from the Warden. His phone rang and his work cohort said the Warden/DNR wouldn't be out for the bird but to contact the Bird Sanctuary. There you have it. He didn't have leather gloves to approach the bird to capture him but
he said he would keep an eye on the bird and sent me on my way.

Well, I emailed my other friend that helps in animal rehab as soon as I had reception. Later that day after not seeing the hawk upon my return home in my email box was a message stating the 2 contacted friends had indeed picked up the bird about 10 minutes after I left.  

I wish I had a happy ending to the story but it turns out the hawk's right wing was broken in 3 places. To relieve the excruciating pain, the hawk had to be euthanized. Sad, yes but glad he's not suffering any longer than necessary. It's just the way it is out here in the country, sometimes it's Nature and sometimes it's Man that  interferes with life...  Do me a favor next time you hit something,  stop, OK? AND how about a donation for the folks that do animal rehab. They operate on a shoestring...