Why Rehabilitation, Does It Matter?

What a week! Between getting over the holidays and rounding up all of the records that will be included in a report to the federal government, I've had barely time to breathe. I've been sitting on a couple of pictures that I've been dying to post, when it occurred to me that I wanted to address this controversial question that has recently popped up in a fight over the validity of wildlife rehabilitation in the state of North Dakota. Seems that state wildlife agencies believe that the contribution of rehabilitators is insignificant and even at times detrimental to wildlife populations. The outcry against this decision caused reconsideration.. You can read about it in the Grand Forks Herald at http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm?id=100107&section=News

I have many thoughts on this issue, some of which border on the highly emotional "over the top" variety, but I would like to present a couple of cases that arrived this week as evidence for why rehabilitation is so important, both for the animals themselves and for humanity as a whole. It is a lengthy post, but one I hope will be thought provoking.

Example # 1
The evil that men (or women) do

You are looking at a photo of a mourning dove that was admitted at the Miami Science Museum on Wednesday January 7, 2009. What you see protruding from either side of the bird is a blowdart from a blowgun. Unfortunately, I didn't think to snap a picture before I cut off the sharp end and taped it to prevent further injury to the bird or handlers. You can however clearly see that it has been impaled, likely from a person standing over it probably while it was feeding on the ground at a feeder. It was transferred to Pelican Harbor Seabird Station for further care. The dart could not be removed without causing immediate further damage and possible uncontrolled bleeding. Unfortunately it died before surgery could be performed to attempt this delicate procedure.

The woman who discovered this bird, worked tirelessly to find out where to take it. It is not always easy for members of the public to find rehabilitators. After all, there's not a listing in the yellow pages like veterinarians or even pet groomers. Then, after she found the Miami Science Museum, she was faced with the task of capturing the bird. I could not go to the location as I was on the way to an appointment for a recheck on another bird. I offered her the option of bringing it to the vet's office. She agreed but did not come because she could not find the bird. I was now on the way back from the vet's office and I counseled her on where to look for the bird. Finally at around 6pm she called again to tell me she had found it and I was able to arrange with one of our volunteers to receive the bird from her.

Now, imagine this scenario playing out without the rehabilitator. She may have never found the bird, because between the time she saw it and the time I told her to retrieve it and bring it to the vet's office, the bird went and hid. Then if she had in fact found the bird and found no one to help her, she may have attempted to pull the dart out and the bird would have possibly bled to death in front of her.



It would be completely reasonable to say, well the bird would have died quickly rather than in two days. I say however, how would this have affected this person, who by the way was extremely distraught by the cruelty of the individual who had speared this bird? Would she make the effort to save another injured or suffering animal? Because if she did, who would help her anyway? Maybe she would encourage others to do nothing. Or maybe she would continue to try to help, and unknowingly cause the death of a savable animal because of her lack of knowledge.


I say it is not the outcome of this case, but rather what qualities in the human being this little creature brought out. I believe that many or even most of us want to help the helpless, and by feeling that we helped an animal that would have suffered and died a painful death without us, helps us to feel that we can somehow affect a balance for this horrendous act. We were also able to share this story with others as the news media broadcast the photo. Hopefully we were able to spread the word that help is there if they need it, and yes one person can make a difference.

Example #2

There are happy endings
This little hawk is called a sharp shinned hawk. These tiny little bird hunters migrate to our area during the winter months. A concerned citizen found this bird in his back yard unable to fly. it was rescued by the Venom One Response Unit of the Miami Dade Fire Department. They have donated their rescue services this year and become a valuable resource for us during the busiest part of our year. Many thanks always to them for their dedication to saving animals all across Miami Dade County!

We believed that the hawk was suffering from severe head trauma, most likely from a collision with a window, and after less than a month at our facility, it was time for its release back into the wild. The other shots show myself and Lt. Jeff Fobb releasing the bird just outside our facility. Since these birds are migratory, we are allowed to release them in locations of our discretion. The neighborhood of Coconut Grove is comprised of dense canopy and lies within the Atlantic flyway for many migratory birds of prey.


Moments like this are the holy grail of wildlife rehabilitation. Not only do we save the individual, but we contribute to the overall survival of the species by returning an individual that may successfully mate and raise young. To the skeptics and critics of wildlife rehabilitation who claim that a certain percentage of the wildlife population is doomed to die in their first year, I say does that take into account all of the man made obstacles such as cars, windows, buildings, shotguns, and poisons? I see more than enough animals that do not make this comeback from these hazards. So we celebrate these moments of triumph and hope that you will as well, and support wildlife rehabilitation in whatever corner of the world wildlife thrives!