Baby Rabbit w/Leg Splint

Many baby Desert Cottontails are brought to DVWR in the spring for various reasons. Their round tails are dark on top and white underneath resembling a cotton ball and their large ears radiate body heat, cooling them during the hot summer months.

This 10 day old Great Horned Owl baby has just opened his eyes and his first look is of himself.  Young owls bond quickly with the caregiver.  This is not helpful because they must learn to be a wild owl & hunt for themselves. To prevent bonding with humans, we sometimes place a mirror in front of them so they can…

 This time they built and installed feeding stations for the flight pens.  Their hard work included covering the platforms with astro turf and of course some artistic designs on the base!  Much appreciation for the troops hard work and continued efforts at DVWR.  

After a very specialized treatment plan, the eagle recovered and was transported for release.   The eagle flew to a large cottonwood tree looked around for about twenty minutes then took off for parts unknown.  

A bit of history on the raptor — Peregrine Falcons were nearly wiped out from pesticide poisoning in eastern North America during the middle of the 20th century, the Peregrine made a come back through the captive breeding efforts of professional falconers.