The bald eagle couldn’t close its right eye, and the barred owl’s beak was broken, its skin peeling back from its face. Neither could fly when they were brought earlier this month to a wildlife rescuer in Virginia, and efforts are underway to save them.
Jennifer Riley, a veterinarian at Blue Ridge Wildlife Center in Boyce, Va., said the barred owl was brought to her facility on Feb. 2. A homeless man in Aldie had found the injured owl in the road near a brewery and asked an employee to help. Blue Ridge determined the eagle had suffered head trauma.
Riley said she’s not sure how the owl got hurt, but thinks it might have been attacked by a predator because it had puncture wounds, plus three fractures — to its leg, beak and wing. Experts at Blue Ridge said in a Facebook post that it’s common at this time of year for birds of prey to “engage in territorial displays and attacks, as mating and nesting season is in full swing.”
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Birds’ bones start healing so fast that if they’re not brought in quickly, Riley said, the bone can heal in a “bad position and it can’t be fixed.” She praised how quickly the owl was brought in for care.
She said she’s most concerned about the fracture in the owl’s forearm because it is close to one of its joints, meaning it is less likely to function properly. When injuries in birds are close to joints, it can affect flight and lead to arthritis.
The owl underwent a nearly four-hour surgery that involved putting in an “external fixator in the leg,” reconstructing its beak and bandaging its fractured wing, a Facebook post said.
A day after the surgery, the owl was standing on its hurt leg and was alert — all good signs, but Riley said she’s watching for any signs of infection.
The eagle is also in rough shape.
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Riley said she believes it was either hit by a vehicle or perhaps it was electrocuted by an electrical transformer. It was brought to her facility on Feb. 5 after a farmer found it on his property and called animal control officials in Prince William County.
The eagle had a depression in its skull that caused brain damage, along with a fractured beak.
“It’s had some obvious trauma,” Riley said. The bruise, she said, “suggests the trauma happened days earlier, and by the time you’re that far out, it’s hard to say exactly what happened.”
Riley said she thinks the eagle is an adult female, given its size. Like the majority of adult eagles that are brought to rescue facilities, it also suffered from lead poisoning, likely from eating a deer carcass that had been shot with lead bullets.
Another concern, Riley said, is that the eagle’s behavior is unusual.
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Typically, she said, eagles are strong animals and fearful when close to humans. But Riley said the injured eagle “doesn’t really care we’re here, which is always worrisome.”
“Usually, they try to bite or talon us when we get close,” she said. “That’s their natural defense mechanism but she just sits there. She’s not having the appropriate reactions.”
Riley said she hopes the birds’ health improves so the animals eventually can be released into the wild, but she’s not sure if — or when — that will happen. The birds will be monitored over the next one to two months. If they’re in too much pain that can’t be treated, they will be euthanized. If they can be comfortable around humans and are physically well enough, they could be sent to a licensed wildlife sanctuary or zoo.
In a Facebook post, the wildlife center wrote, “This eagle’s prognosis is guarded at this time, but we will do everything in our power to allow for a full recovery!”
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