Bird Rescue

As I mentioned before, our cats have been on a rampage with the bird population. I feel sorry for the little birds, and the cats are a big reason why we don't have a bird feeder. That would be like leading lambs (or birds) to the slaughter. Plus, the cats like to torture them before they kill them, it's so heartless.

The other day, I went out and saw our cat sitting in the sun, relaxing, but for some reason her paw was extended. As I got closer, I noticed she was holding down a bird. I shooed her away and retrieved the bird, which as a tiny songbird, maybe a finch. Cute and yellow. He wasn't dead, at least not yet.

In the past, I've rescued birds from the cats and they ended up dying within an hour or two, but I figured it was worth a try. I put him in a box with towel and covered him, and left him in a warm corner. He was closing his eyes as I left him, so I figured his time had come. At least he could be comfortable in his final moments.

Well, when I went back an hour later, he was alert and perky. Maybe there was hope. I told the kids dressed and we drove over to VINS, where they have a wonderful service of taking hurt birds and trying to heal them.

When the woman opened the box, the little guy took off and flew across the room, which I took to be a good sign. They also informed me that it was probably a warbler, not a finch. They had to look it up in a book, however, and even then, they weren't completely sure.

I'm glad there was some hope, and we left feeling the warm glow of doing a good deed. They said we could call back and check in on the bird, but that's probably pushing it a bit.

Thanks for reading, and thanks to Joan Kocur for the pic.