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HOW I CAME UPON MY CORVIDS My crows found me. I went into my backyard to feed my Mastiffs, and I saw this black thing under the rabbit hutch. I was thinking "Oh, no. A dead crow." and I didn't want to deal with it. But it was a live crow that was wounded. So I took him to the animal emergency hospital to get him help. For some reason, they kept skipping my name, so I ended up spending an hour with this crow and bonding with him. He let me pet him, and didn't seem to be afraid of me. They didn't fix his wing correctly, so I went to another doctor who had to amputate his wing. When I called Wildlife Rehabilitators, they told me that if a crow couldn't fly when turned into them, that they would euthanize it. I decided to keep him, and named him "Crow". He was a beautiful bird (he just passed away last year of pneumonia after I had him for 5 years). Crows are social creatures, so I posted my name and number at all the emergency vets near me, that if they found an injured crow, I would take it and rehabilitate it. A week later, I got a call from a vet about a wounded crow. He had been hit by a car. He, too, had to have an amputated wing! So now, I had two adult crows with one wing. I built them ramps in their original cage, so they could climb to their perch. Then my vet called me about a baby crow with Avian Pox. I treated him, he became imprinted on me, and I named him "Ricky". The owner of a pet store next to my vet was a veterinarian technician, and she told me about another baby crow that had fallen out of a tree. I named her "Moses" (at first I thought she was a he, but she began to act very prissy like a "she". She too had avian pox, and had to have a foot amputated, and became imprinted on me. Then the guy at the vacuum store, not knowing that I had crows, said he had a pet crow with a broken wing, and he felt sorry for it because it was home all alone all day. I said I would take him, and that's how I got "Jack" (who has since laid eggs, and is a She!). One day, I came home and my postman was out front. He knew that I had crows and he asked if one of my crows was across the street in the vacant lot. It wasn't mine; but someone had her as a pet, and trimmed her tail and wings so weirdly that she couldn't fly. I took her to my vet, and she had parasites, so I couldn't integrate her right away with my other crows. She ended up being in a cage by herself for 6 months or more, and became very attached to me. Finally I was able to put her in with the other crows. I named her "Postal" in honor of the postman. All of my crows play catch with toys; and all of them say "crow" except Speedbump. Postal says "crow" and "hello". Than I found out about Corvid Ranch, and I really wanted a raven. These ravens are not indigenous to the United States, therefore are legal to own, because they originate in Africa. That's how I got Edgar. One Saturday morning, I got a call from a Raptor rehabilitator that she had a baby raven that had fallen off the Home Depot sign, and would I like to take care of him until he could be released. I had met her when I took Moses to get her talons clipped, and mentioned that I have rehabilitated crows, and if any were brought in, I would be glad to take care of them. That's how I got "Homeboy". He was just a nestling, and couldn't use his legs. I took him to my Avian doctor, and she thought he might have hurt his back, and that's why he was having trouble with his legs. I took care of him for 2 1/2 weeks, feeding and checking on him every couple of hours, and making sure that he tried to use his legs. I started to massage his feet, and found that he was better able to grip with them after I massaged them. Two days later the rehabilitator called me to bring him in to look at him. When I got there, they told me they were going to keep him to evaluate him. I reluctantly left him, and told them that if the rehab was too much for them, I would come back and take care of him. He was very healthy otherwise, and had a great appetite. He really wanted to live. They called me the next day, and told me that they had decided to euthanize him, even acknowledging that no one wants to take an injury like Homeboy's and make an educational bird out of them. That's what I DO! But because I'm not yet licensed, they wouldn't give him to me. Rest in Peace, my blue-eyed prince. Know that someone loved you very much. Thankfully, the same Saturday, late in the evening about 7:30, a fledgling raven came to my front window and pecked on the glass. I watched him a moment amused, but he kept gently pecking at the glass. I let Edgar out to talk to him through the window, and Edgar said "Hello" to him :) His parents were nowhere around, so I went out and gently approached him, and brought him in. I took him to my Avian vet, who is the best :), and she was amazed at how mellow he was. He had thrown up a baby bird's bones, and his pupils were dilated, so it was suspect that he had flown into a window and knocked himself cuckoo. "Duncan" is still with me, and will be used for educating the public about corvids. Rest in Peace, "Crow", my handsome prince, and my dear, sweet "Homeboy". |