Many have asked me the story of “Bird” the magpie. So here it is, about 5 years ago my then 8-year-old daughter brought home a severely injured baby bird from the schoolyard. It was 3:30 pm when she arrived home from school and I was not to get home until at least 6 pm. When I arrived home, the bald, bleeding, shivering little bird looked close to death.
All that know me know that I have a serious soft spot for birds, I felt that I had to do what ever I could to help. I knew that I had to stop the bleeding and get this little guy warmed up but fast. Now many if not all birds have a real problem with bleeding, as I believe they lack the clotting factors in their blood. I got a heating pad and applied a makeshift band aide with a dab of polysporin under it; it seemed to slow the bleeding. My daughter and her friend had been trying to feed it bread and milk. Not the greatest diet for a newborn bird but my daughter was doing what she thought was best.
After stopping the bleeding and getting him/her warmed up, my priority shifted to feeding. I ran down to the local pet store & purchased some rearing food for birds. I fed that little guy every 2 hours or so for three straight days. I fully understand why feeding these little things can be exhausting, I only had one to feed and the food was in the fridge, I did not have to go out and catch it!
His/her health remained iffy for at least a week; I thought it would die at any minute. Nevertheless, he/she was persistent and I figured I would be as persistent with feeding him/her. Then one day he/she opened its eyes. Well if you don’t know anything about imprinting I suggest you read up on it because it is fascinating. Before I get too far in this story I should mention that I wasn’t sure if I was raising a Sparrow or an Eagle because it was small and as bald as Yule Brenner when it first came in our home. So the weeks passed and the feathers came in. I had a hell of a time keeping him from wandering all over the house.
I have the kind of job that takes me all over Western Canada so he came with me everywhere; I just kept him in the car when I went in to see clients. I began to recognize that we were raising a magpie, a member of the Corvid family, relative to the crow. Very mischievous and intelligent! The months passed and “Bird” started to fly in the house, not my wife’s idea of a good time, so to the garage he had to go. I would go in as often as I could which was quite often. Eventually “Bird” began to fly around the neighborhood but he was constantly being watched by other magpies. “Bird” did not think he was a magpie or a bird for that matter so he would not associate with them, part of the imprinting thing.
Whenever I was outside or in the garage he would land on my shoulder and whisper in my ear, yes it was a very gentle whisper as if he was trying to speak to me. One day “Bird” decided to take a long flight in the neighborhood and did not come when I called. I called him “Bird” because I did not think it was fair to consider a wild bird a pet and from day one I thought he was going to die so “Bird” seemed logical. Anyway, there I was running around the neighborhood calling out “Bird, Bird, Bird…” I must have looked certifiable. Time passed and I decided that it was not fair to keep a wild bird in captivity so I called a wildlife rehabilitation centre just north of Calgary and arranged to bring “Bird” in to be re-introduced into the wild. This I was told was going to be challenging since he had imprinted on me.
We lived about an hour from the centre and “Bird” sat on my shoulder the entire trip whispering in my ear as he had done for so many miles before. When we arrived we brought him into a room filled with other wild, they placed him in a cage and they gave me some time to say goodbye. I called 2 days later to see how he was and they said he was progressing well. I called again a week later and they said he was coming by now and then for food. Then a month later, they said they never see him anymore.
As I write this I must admit, I really miss him! People still talk about him to this day.
All that know me know that I have a serious soft spot for birds, I felt that I had to do what ever I could to help. I knew that I had to stop the bleeding and get this little guy warmed up but fast. Now many if not all birds have a real problem with bleeding, as I believe they lack the clotting factors in their blood. I got a heating pad and applied a makeshift band aide with a dab of polysporin under it; it seemed to slow the bleeding. My daughter and her friend had been trying to feed it bread and milk. Not the greatest diet for a newborn bird but my daughter was doing what she thought was best.
After stopping the bleeding and getting him/her warmed up, my priority shifted to feeding. I ran down to the local pet store & purchased some rearing food for birds. I fed that little guy every 2 hours or so for three straight days. I fully understand why feeding these little things can be exhausting, I only had one to feed and the food was in the fridge, I did not have to go out and catch it!
His/her health remained iffy for at least a week; I thought it would die at any minute. Nevertheless, he/she was persistent and I figured I would be as persistent with feeding him/her. Then one day he/she opened its eyes. Well if you don’t know anything about imprinting I suggest you read up on it because it is fascinating. Before I get too far in this story I should mention that I wasn’t sure if I was raising a Sparrow or an Eagle because it was small and as bald as Yule Brenner when it first came in our home. So the weeks passed and the feathers came in. I had a hell of a time keeping him from wandering all over the house.
I have the kind of job that takes me all over Western Canada so he came with me everywhere; I just kept him in the car when I went in to see clients. I began to recognize that we were raising a magpie, a member of the Corvid family, relative to the crow. Very mischievous and intelligent! The months passed and “Bird” started to fly in the house, not my wife’s idea of a good time, so to the garage he had to go. I would go in as often as I could which was quite often. Eventually “Bird” began to fly around the neighborhood but he was constantly being watched by other magpies. “Bird” did not think he was a magpie or a bird for that matter so he would not associate with them, part of the imprinting thing.
Whenever I was outside or in the garage he would land on my shoulder and whisper in my ear, yes it was a very gentle whisper as if he was trying to speak to me. One day “Bird” decided to take a long flight in the neighborhood and did not come when I called. I called him “Bird” because I did not think it was fair to consider a wild bird a pet and from day one I thought he was going to die so “Bird” seemed logical. Anyway, there I was running around the neighborhood calling out “Bird, Bird, Bird…” I must have looked certifiable. Time passed and I decided that it was not fair to keep a wild bird in captivity so I called a wildlife rehabilitation centre just north of Calgary and arranged to bring “Bird” in to be re-introduced into the wild. This I was told was going to be challenging since he had imprinted on me.
We lived about an hour from the centre and “Bird” sat on my shoulder the entire trip whispering in my ear as he had done for so many miles before. When we arrived we brought him into a room filled with other wild, they placed him in a cage and they gave me some time to say goodbye. I called 2 days later to see how he was and they said he was progressing well. I called again a week later and they said he was coming by now and then for food. Then a month later, they said they never see him anymore.
As I write this I must admit, I really miss him! People still talk about him to this day.
4 comments:
Great story, Dan!
Great story. Well written too!
Bless you for the care you gave "Bird." I loved your story!
nice story Dan
i like this
canadian songwriter and song writer in Canada
Natasha Waterman
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