Day 25 - Rehabilitation

I anticipated feeding raccoons this morning but instead I prepared bunny and squirrel trays for our remaining squirrels that have yet to be released and our new 5 bunnies. All 5 of these bunnies were weighed and each seem to be gaining weight. Bunnies are normally realeased when they are 100+ grams. If they are grouped together this means all of them in that group must be at least 100+ for best results. We do not released animals if it is going to rain/storm that day or next few days so animals can find their barrings in their new environment. Three bunnies are in one group; one was 100, one was 80, and one was 84. Once these 80s raise to 95+ then these three should be ready. Cannot wait to release more animals. I hope I am able to help release the three Red Squirrels but we shall see. Speaking of squirrels, I managed to drop the food tray for the outside squirrels in their pre-release cage like I do almost EVERY time I attempt to feed the squirrels outside. After remaking a tray for a squirrel, new addition and whom I call demon squirrel, inside I then went out to find a rehabber.

A lot of maintenance to all the different enclosures has been going on outside due to the facility inspection coming up June 7th. The Eagle Flight Cage has been the biggest repair since the mesh screen stuff for the room has somewhat caved in. I have not worked on this, not physically capable honestly, but I did help in other places. For instance the other day and intern and I fixed a hole in a pre-release squirrel cage and put peat gravel in a recovery cage. Today an intern and I picked up sticks in the fawn yard and did an overhaul of Ethel's cage. Ethel is a Great Horned Owl that is kept wild and is used as a foster parent for any baby owls that could come in. She had raised many young before as a foster and we hope she continues to in the future. She is kind of funny because every time you enter her enclosure she gives you the most irritated expression ever and just hisses at you. Ethel was the first bird I ever caught for exams; though I never got a picture to prove it :(.

Anyway, the intern and I started to scrap at Ethel's perches and walls to get any gunk off that the powerwasher might not be able to. I then raked up any pellets, feces, feathers, etc that made the enclosure potentially smell bad. The other intern shoveled up the stuff while I held the trash bags then we laid out new peat gravel inside her enclosure and smoothed it out. Afterwards I took the trash and tools away except for the rake. The other intern raked at any build up from pine needles/leaves on the roof to get it all off and allow in more light. I threw away the trash and helped out elsewhere by holding a ladder for another intern back in a bird recovery enclosure that needed some work. Somewhere in the middle of everything mentioned above the three of us interns on rehab today organized a walkway by the building a bit. Later I went back to Ethel's enclosure and put new wrap around her ladder. She uses said wrap to climb up to her perches since she can't really fly well.

I recall helping a volunteer find the other two interns and a rehabber when I was finished and then returning to the building to feed raccoons with the others are 12pm. After this we went to lunch; I ended up going to Subway for lunch with one of the rehabbers. We brought it back to the center and she was on her comp while I scurried upstairs to attempt working on this blog. It was between 1pm and 2pm by this time.

At the end of lunch I wondered into the education office where I hung out with a volunteer and our assistant education staff member because I just felt like it. Just chatted mostly until I returned back to the Rehabilitation side. I believe this is when I noticed a container and asked what was new. It ended up being a Blue Spotted Salamander, not a Jefferson's like I previously thought. Though the two are similiar, Jefferson's are not found here in Wisconsin. So it was unfair! (jokingly) but we named it Jefferson to make up for it. We released him in our wetland out back behind the center and then returned inside

I honestly forget what I was doing then but a Great Horned Owl rescue came about so we grabbed a box with a sheet, some gloves, and head out towards Arbor Vitae. The Great Horned Owl fledgling was found in a garage apparently but the mom had not been seen in days. We were not able to find a nest either after walking around searching. So we had to take the owl away. We head back to the center and prepared the owl for transport by calling REGI, getting the recovery card completely filled, etc.

Great Horned Owl (fledgling)

Once this was ready I hunt down the education director who said he would teach me how to glove Rhea our Barred Owl. I had a spare 10-15min before I had to go to REGI so out we went. He showed me the process, told me it would be best to give her time at least everyday, and I successfully gloved her twice. I intend to now attempt to spend an good half hour or better every day with Errol the Great Horned Owl and Rhea the Barred Owl. This way I gain more glove experience with an owl and both become more socialized for others as well. I honestly loved Rhea from the start as well, aside from Errol of course, so it is a pleasure to work with her too.

After the gloving was taken care of I then head out towards REGI with the owl. This, of course, took about 3 hours drive time and out of my day but it is fine. On the way back I head up to Elcho Wisconsin to drop off some brochures from our center at an ice cream shop. Then I was able to head back. As soon as I returned I had roughly 10-15 minutes to spare before I had to help feed the raccoons. This flew by and I did half the dishes while another intern did the other; very grateful for this. Riso talk was hilarious tonight (mainly about poop thanks to the raccoons). Right after dishes were finished I head out towards Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin to let out a fellow coworkers dogs while he was away. This went quick and I was shortly back at the center and thus leaving me here to type up this blog entry.