When I woke up and head downstairs at 8, taking breakfast with me, I was in a cleaning mood. However rather cleaning right of the bat like most days, a man with a crow arrived. We took the crow, he filled out the recovery card, and we peered into the box to get an idea of his condition before moving him from one box to a bigger one. Normally crows are considered feisty but this guy was way too relaxed and barely moved at all. Sadly he passed away later. We believe this may have been due to West Nile Virus due to the bird barely showing any neurological control but the possibilities may be endless and we currently cannot legally exam the bird until our songbird protocol is sent in and approved. The good news is, this said protocol is making big progress! All charts associated with the different birds and their common information (such as clutch size) in each family are finished but now we have to list any details beneath these remaining families before they are considered complete. I finished the charts and am now working on adding enrichment ideas for each family based on the birds. I also am attempting to add any missing information that I can find and possibly even extend some information currently present. Hoping to do what I can before the rehabber I was working on this with returns from vacation. This way all that will need to be done is editing/evaluating the protocol and boom, ready to send for approval. Then that means we can rehabilitate songbirds! Yay!
This protocol work happened later on the in evening. As for the morning, after the crow, this was spent vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping majority of the rooms while the other intern cleaned windows, checked out bathrooms, and worked on other things I do not remember. He started the mopping but since I was in a big cleaning mood I did not mind taking over whatsoever. I started my day off with some Advocare Spark so needless to say I had a TON of energy to work with. Spark also helped me relax, feel energized, and overall cleared out the cobwebs in my head so that I could focus better. This said focusing capability allowed me to give the most clear, clean-cut tours today. In other words I felt they were some of my best and I did not get nervous except for once in the beginning of a tour that included AT LEAST 20-30 people.
I mean I may be exaggerating because I did not do a head count but needles to say there was a long line of people. I mean it reminded me of an assembly line at an amusement park. Not THAT drastic but I had to yell and progressively walk every one through all the birds of prey outside. Overall it worked out and everyone was pleased, which made me very happy! No one felt left out, thanked me a ton, and I managed to catch up anyone towards the back of the line that did not get the chance to see some of our beginning birds (due to arriving late). I still had some one on one time with people in the group as well which helped as well. Not sure how much donations were earned today but both of us interns gave awesome tours and I kept seeing the money pile build more and more. If anyone out there donates and ever reads this; THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Due to us being a non-profit organization, meaning we receive no funds from the government whatsoever, every penny helps!
Which reminds me, if anyone out there uses good search or is willing to help generate revenue without actually paying out of their own pocket - try using said search engine mentioned before (Good Search). For more information on good search and how to become involved please read the paragraph below that is in green.
An innovative way to support the center from wherever you live is through GoodSearch. And the best part is there’s no additional cost to you!
Just signup at Goodsearch.com and become a supporter of the Northwoods Wildlife Center. From there you can help raise money for the center through several avenues:
• GoodSearch: Search the Internet and donate about a penny for nearly all searches.
• GoodShop: Shop at approximately 2,800 participating stores and a percentage of what you spend will be donated to the NWC at no cost to you.
• GoodDining: eat at any of the 10,000 participating restaurants around the country and a percentage of what you spend will go to the NWC – again at no cost to you.
• GoodSurveys: When you complete an online survey, GoodSearch will donate $1 to the NWC
• And more.
I know that many of you would like to give more. This is one way that you can help. You will feel great knowing how much have been able to contribute to the NWC through your everyday online searches and purchases.
We currently have 266 supporters through GoodSearch and our goal for this year is 1000. I know we can accomplish that easily with your help!
Spread the word - You can help by becoming a member of GoodSearch and also encouraging a family member or friend to also join.
If you would like more information about this program, please feel free to contact the director of the NWC for more details.
Besides giving tours the day was comprised of the usual phone call job. Most of the calls today seemed to involve birds more then anything which made things easier going for me personally. Both of us interns also teamed up and cleaned out Hortense's (Turkey Vulture) enclosure. It was covered in feathers and kind of getting smelly but the education director seemed impressed of our work which was a good way of saying that we did a fine job! We thought it looked better inside too; not messy!
At the very end of the day I took Rory the Broad-winged Hawk out of his enclosure and brought him inside to show a tour group. The assistant education director went to Critter Corner at the Chamber of Commerce today with Candy the Cornsnake and a particular group that met her there decided to come over to the center. We brought the bird out for them! A good 10 or so minutes was spent staring at Rory in amazement and appreciation. Though panting due to the heat, I am sure Rory enjoyed the attention! He's a big sweetheart and very chatty for a bird which is why I love him. Sometimes he responds when you're talking to him if that helps explain his personality more.
Speaking of Critter Corner, this is a 2 hour event where we take animals (birds, turtles, snakes, etc) to the Chamber of Commerce. This gives us the chance to talk to anyone who comes in about our center while also giving people both the chance to see the particular animal up close in person and to figure out what they could do in their day (tours at our center!). I have not had the chance to do Critter Corner yet but will be attending one next Friday!!! Kind of excited and nervous at the same; may even end up in the newspaper if I am lucky. So far another intern and I are the only two who have not been in the paper yet when it comes to the interns. Using my ninja skills again I guess! haha :)
Once we closed, Rory got the chance to sun bathe outside for a little while. He also got the chance to listen to the sounds of nature by both sun bathing, listening to the birds and wind, and watching the trees. He seemed to enjoy this a lot more then just watching the cars on the road! Once he was put back in his outdoor enclosure I returned inside and ended up helping the intern and assistant director clean Hortense's window with window cleaner. After this was taken care of of us two interns head back to the rehabilitation side to help out. I fed inside raccoons, cleaned their cages, cleaned the Raccoon Isolation Room, and then made eggs for later feeding. The other education intern fed outside and again, not sure what else, while other the rehab interns either left to take a Crow (that survived) and a Chipping Sparrow nestling to REGI in Antigo or fed the baby Red Squirrels.
After the eggs were done I ended up back upstairs and actually fell asleep for a good while. Not sure how long because the nap was unexpected but worth it. I was woke up by an intern asking if I could watch phone and wondered if I wanted Wendy's though there wasn't a Wendy's so we got Burger King instead. Glad I was woken up honestly but otherwise I may have slept the rest of my day away and then would have been up all night!!! Plus I got Burger King; yum.
Since then, as said, the evening was spent on protocols and finally typing this blog post up. I sadly do not have any pictures from today though I wish I had one of the large group! Instead, so there's something, I will post up a picture I took of Rory when I first arrived here. It is kind of poor quality and I hope to take more pictures of the residents in the future. Keep forgetting of course!
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| Rory (Broad-winged Hawk) |
Signed up with Goodsearch!
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