The journey begins!

In a buzz of excitement this morning as we prepared for Mr 5's very first sports day, the phone rang with our first wildlife rescue.  To say we weren't prepared is an understatement!!!   I'm not sure who was in bigger shock - me, Paul or the poor duck we were taking into care.  The rush was on..... what do we ask the person calling the bird in, what do we need, and what on earth are we supposed to do again??  Funny how even when things are crazy, they still fall into place.

This pacific black had apparently been hit by a car, and had spent the night in a washing basket before we received the call this morning.  The guy who cared for the duck overnight was advised by another agency he was doing the right thing by not giving it food or water so we didn't have a good head start.  With Paul bringing the duck home, it soon became apparent he was quiet... TOO QUIET!  He simply had no interest in fighting nor flying for that matter. I'm so grateful for the Fauna Rescue SA network being a huge support, they talked me through and explained he's most likely dehydrated, in shock and quite possibly got internal injuries.

Over the day he's improved slowly.... he's now drinking, has stood and supported his own weight for some time, even moving around a little.  We are certainly cheering for this little black duck, because we want to be telling you all about his future release!

Ironically the phone rang again a few hours later with a lady asking me to collect a magpie she has flying around her home.  I've passed that one on.... I think for day one I'll stick to one patient at a time LOL