I rescued an immature hawk off the middle of interstate 80 today

[Omaha Steve]

I was running a little early to a meeting this morning. I was just about to exit when I saw what I thought was a very small bird. I pulled over on the shoulder and slowly backed up with my emergency lights on. I pulled up parallel to what I realized was a small raptor. This young bird was in the middle of two lanes of crossing traffic coming off a 3 way intersection. I waited and hoped I could dash out during a break in the 60 MPH traffic. I waited what seemed like forever. I saw a break in traffic. I picked up what I believe was a young red tailed hawk. It was upset to be held in my hands. A short ride to the office. We placed him in a covered box with plenty of space. It didn't appear to be injured, just dazed. I was in the meeting when the humane society picked it up. I'm waiting on a call from raptor recovery to see how the bird is doing.

I rescued a wood chuck 3 years ago from an interstate entrance. I had no gloves on. He was sick. It bit me as I dropped it off. So I had to pay for the test to make sure it wasn't rabid. They had to then put it to sleep. It was worth it. I'd do it again given the same circumstances.

OS

Edit for SP

[FiveGoodMen]

1. What was a childish republican doing in the middle of the freeway?

[myrna minx]

2. Thank you so much for caring. I love posts like this.

:hug:

[seemunkee]

3. Good job

fyi - raptor, not rapture

[Omaha Steve]

12. Long day

Excited and in a rush to post. Everybody knows Blondie is Rapture. :-)

[Skittles]

4. "Rapture Recover'" - friggin' awesome

I rescued a downed sparrowhawk once - the nature center folk theorized he'd gotten confused in a not-common Austin Texas snowstorm, smacked into a highrise and had a concussion. He recovered nicely. :)

[mike_c]

5. raptor....

Just sayin'. And good on ya, my friend!

[SoCalDem]

6. My friend and I found an owl toddling down a sidewalk in front of Key Rexall drugs

We picked him up, wrapped a coat around him and took him to our biology teacher.. it was a block from school.. The teacher checked him over and could not find anything wrong with him..
He took the owl home at the end of the day, and that owl enjoyed many mice from his barn. He stayed there..

[CurtEastPoint]

9. I once found a young owl who had smacked into a building. I picked him up

and held him. He had the most beautiful eyes. He was breathing quickly, then it slowed to what appeared to be normal. He (or she?) flapped his wings and took off. He was so soft and beautiful. I don't know if I helped or not but it was a touch of the divine. Just amazing...

[-..__...]

16. One unhappy owl...

with a happy ending...






Owl rescue... http://reynen.livejournal.com/97704.html

[gorfle]

27. LOL

love the eye peeking out of the box!

[phasma ex machina]

28. +1 An upward peeking eye seems quite a feat for owl eyes optimized to look down. nt

[XemaSab]

31. Brilliant!

:D

[Uncle Joe]

7. Thanks for your rescue, Omaha Steve.

:thumbsup:

[polichick]

8. Bless you! nt

[Blue-Jay]

10. Damn! You had a small rapture today!

[JohnWxy]

11. very cool. You risked talons and beak. You are a naturalist Steve!

[YankeyMCC]

13. Thank you for your efforts

:Namaste:

[Joe Chi Minh]

14. Well done, Steve!

[ddeclue]

15. YAY!

:applause:

[Cleita]

17. That was so kind of you.

The poor thing must have been terrified. He was probably just learning to fly. It's awfully late in the year for young birds so his parents probably hatched a late one.

[kestrel91316]

18. Was it by any chance a.........kestrel??

[enlightenment]

20. So, is 'Kes' your favorite film?

I've always wanted to ask . . .

come to think of it, have I asked before? If so, please forgive my CRS!

[endless october]

19. thanks for this thread.

makes me feel better about humanity.

a couple years back. i blocked a road with my car to help a panicking possum mom find her babies after she got rolled in the road.

a few of the babies were killed, but most weren't. they climbed right back on her once i guided them over to her. after the last living baby was back with mom, she scurried off with them.

luckily, i live in a relatively low traffic area, so i didn't have to block many cars from the road.

[enlightenment]

21. That's lovely, Steve.

Thank you for making the effort. Please let us know how he/she is doing.

[Omaha Steve]

35. As of last night, the recovery center doesn't have possession

The bird was still at the Humane Society. I'm hoping they send a picture once they take possession.

[Ignis]

22. Please don't ever stop...

...being SO AWESOME! :hug:

[TuxedoKat]

23. Good for you.

Quite often I am rescuing turtles from getting hit and brought an injured one to turtle rescue.

Last year I brought a baby squirrel that fell or was pushed out of his tree to small animal rehab.

[SammyWinstonJack]

24. K&R!

[nashville_brook]

25. right on! raptors are beautiful creatures. what a wonderful way to start your day.

[malaise]

26. You're a good man

Omaha Steve.

[XemaSab]

29. Good for you

I hope your young friend is okay.

(I got bit by a gopher a few years ago, and the county public health did the test for free. :P )

[flvegan]

30. Nice job!

[Justitia]

32. You are my hero! Birds of prey are so majestic & beautiful. Thank you for being so caring! nt

[csziggy]

33. A couple of weeks ago I 'rescued' a young turkey vulture

There was a heavy rain storm and in the middle of it I saw a black thing huddled on the grass below the house. When I went out, I realized it was a vulture, but it did not move. Even when I poked it, it just blinked an eye. I am no longer agile enough to try to handle a large bird, especially one with a sharp beak, so I called the local wildlife rescue group.

While I was waiting for them to come, the rain stopped and the crows started harassing the vulture. It had moved some but was still huddled and not trying to stand. So I took a large box out and put over him. By the time the rescue people got here, he had recovered enough to vomit - that is a great defense, if I were a predator, that would have gotten rid of me!

Later I heard back from the wildlife group - the vulture was young, very thin and loaded with parasites. He was gaining weight and recovering nicely. The wildlife people were very happy since most people will not bother rescuing vultures since they are such unpleasant birds.

[Lugnut]

34. You're a good man, Steve.

I'll thank you on behalf of that young bird.