A couple of years ago someone brought a little baby bluebird into my shop. They had found it on the ground all by itself, with no sign of its parents or where it had come from. It seemed as if it could not possibly survive, but I didn't see any injuries. I called around and finally found a rehabber who would take it the next day if I could get it through the night. With her instructions, we started on an unforgettable adventure.
It was magical holding it. It felt so fragile.
The little thing was so pathetic - scared and weak; John and I, of course, fell completely and hopelessly in love with it.
She told me to soften dog food in water, and give it tiny bites every 30 minutes until night. (every 30 minutes?!!) OK, it was a bluebird, so every 30 minutes it was. We made it a nice bed in a box and kept it in the closet, with the door cracked so we could hear it. By the morning, it would open its mouth up and cry when I would open the door. We were completely enthralled.
It made it through the night, with tiny feedings of its dog food baby cereal...and I thought I was done with midnight feedings long ago. It was swallowing well, and its legs were much stronger.
It was a little spunkier later that day, when we turned it over to the rehabber. Happily, it thrived in her care and was released back into the wild.
These wildlife rescue people will have a special place at the rainbow bridge...This is hard work, and they deserve a lot of credit.
4 comments:
What a sweet little baby! That had to be quite the experience for as long as it lasted. Lucky you, Birdlady!! I guess we don't give to birds credit enough for all the work they do to keep their babies going. Wonderful story and shots, thanks for sharing your story.
It was amazing! Can't wish it would happen again, because of course I want them all safe in the nest till time to fledge, but it was very cool.
Oh Birdlady! What an enchanting story! Those are the sweetest pictures -- baby bluebirds are just so darn cute! Hmmm...imagine if that sweet little thing 'imprinted' to you...and flew to you where ever you went? I'm so glad you posted this!
Well done. It's great to hear that it eventually was released into the wild. Well done, you did a great job.
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