I’m struggling to document everything I have been seeing and doing here, there is just so much learning and not enough hours in the day to get it all down sadly.
The past couple of days in particular I want to remember…..
Yesterday a local TV station was coming to OWL to do a piece on the birds. The great horned owl being one of them: this is one of the largest and most dangerous of the owls; you may remember this is the same species of owl that taught me lesson last week. I was told that Chance is a big softie really; once on the glove he may flap, attempt to bite and then see what you are going to do. One of the volunteers who has been there longer than me didn’t feel comfortable getting him, so I offered to go.
I needed to get him onto the glove securely. Attaching the jesses with one hand, as the other is holding a rather large bird, keeping it at a safe distance and under control is not easy. Some of the hooks for the jesses are easier to clip on than the others, and I needed to set the bird back onto the perch to get a better hold. As he adjusted his feet on the perch, his talons caught my finger and sliced it open. There was no malice, my ungloved finger just happened to be in the way as he moved. His talons were as sharp as any knife, I would hate to see the damage he could have done if he meant business. My finger was bleeding quite a bit. As some of you are aware I have or should say had quite an intense Blood Phobia which I have been working with a psychologist to tackle for a number of months. (I should write up those sessions at some point, I ended the therapy a few months ago).
I needed to get the bird safe before worrying about my finger – panic can come later. I stemmed the bleeding from my finger and managed to get the last hook attached. Only once I had safely transported Chance to his kennel, did I allow myself to feel it what was happening. But I did it!
Today a barred owl needed to go the vet for an operation to remove its eye after an injury that sadly it wasn’t recovering from. I offered to go with the bird, I was interested to see another side of the service. It was fascinating to be in the operating room, to see the bird put under the anaesthetic allowing the vet to begin working.
I was told very frankly by the vet, and my more experienced companion who drove me there, if I felt warm, unwell, or feeling faint at any time I was to let them know immediately due to the heat of the room and the gas anaesthesia they use to keep the bird under during the operation.
My role during the operation was to ensure the legs were secure throughout. This meant I had to remain gloved on both hands, keeping hold of the legs and monitor any twitching which would indicate the anaesthetic was too light. Not to mention helping the vet keep both of his eyes!
Due to the nature of the injury and the eye socket of an owl being rather large it wasn’t a straight-forward procedure. This was the first owl the vet had operated on, he was more used to dealing with domestic pets. I was feeling warm and slightly uncomfortable, keeping in mind the advice, I decided to step out and get fresh air before I became a hindrance. Thankfully I had removed one of my thermal base layers prior to leaving OWL, I still however had a warm mid layer on due to the vast majority of my working day being outside. The vet grinned at me saying he “thought it was a matter of time”. I was frustrated, I wanted to last the duration of the op but heck I wouldn’t have dreamt I would willingly have stood in an operating theatre a year ago. After grabbing some air I continued to watch the operation from the door, then one of the nurses had to leave also due to the heat. This made me feel so much better that it wasn’t just me. I went back in and took over from the other technician and remained for the rest of the operation.
Here’s the poor guy……
Barred Owl Post Op
Rousing the owl from the anasthetic. He’s going to have a bit of a headache, the stitches will dissolve in the next few weeks. We will need to bathe and monitor his eye for the next week or so, for the short term he will remain in our intensive care. What a few days!