wildlife rescue

 Once in a while for me, characters just seem naturals for a second book. That happened in Moon Dust with two, rather unlikely protagonists and yet... were they? They became the heart of Second Chance, likely or not. 

Before I get into their story, this is the only book where I wrote myself and Ranch Boss into a book. Below is the clip where they appear, based on an experience we had with a wildlife rehab center, Chintimini, that we knew about in Corvallis, Oregon-- not the one in this book, but pretty much how it happens in such places where we brought an injured animal for help.

 I created the image above from a photo of our farm creek and the kinds of animals that often get rescued by sites like Chintimini and the fictional one in my book. All the animal photos were ours, which I cut out to make the image. Now, onward to the clip.

When the car drove in the driveway, he went out to meet the couple and direct them to the back. He'd created a temporary examining room out of a floor-less shed. It wasn't as good as what he'd had before the fire; but with a strong light overhead, it would serve.

The couple were older, excited about the bird they were carrying and concerned as to its chances. "Bring it on back," Judd instructed and asked Barrett to bring him a bottle of cortisone from the recently donated refrigerator.

Putting on his gloves, Judd didn't bother with the jacket. The owl that peered at him from the carrier had dilated pupils and seemed completely unaware of its surroundings. Even at that, the gloves were a precaution.

"Be careful. Their beaks and talons are sharp," he warned as the man set the carrier on the table. Barrett stood in the doorway as Judd reached into the carrier and carefully pulled the bird out.

The man gave a nervous laugh. "I got a good look at those talons when I picked him up."

"We were just lucky we saw him," his wife said. "Such a little bird, but he was tough. Stood there right in the road and somehow didn't get hit again."

"It's a barn owl," Judd told them as he pulled the bird's wings out, examining each one for breaks. Everything looked to be intact, which meant concussion and shock were its most likely problems. “It’s a female.” He smiled. “That’s good. They’re tougher in most species. We'll give her this to reduce the swelling and shock." He loaded a syringe with cortisone.

"What do you think her odds are?" the man asked, helping Judd hold the bird.

"I'll know better tomorrow." He picked up the bird and put it in a small cage. "I'll keep her in the house for tonight. If she’s still alive in the morning, I have an arrangement with a veterinarian. We'll see what she thinks."

The couple smiled with relief, left their phone number, and asked to be kept informed as to the bird's condition. When they had gone, Judd picked up the caged bird and carried it back into the house. 

I planned to write about the book, but more on our experience with the injured owl seemed better. Next week for the book.

We had driven from the farm to a nearby town for groceries, when we saw the owl just standing alongside the road. That didn't seem natural but when we returned we looked to see it still there. Getting out of the car, Ranch Boss wrapped it in  heavy blanket.

As soon as we had gotten home, stowed it safely into one of our cat carriers, we called the animal rescue facility, Chintimini in a town about 25 miles from here, where we knew they worked with wild creatures. They said bring it right in to assess its chances. An hour later, they were giving it treatment for shock and had said they felt it would survive, but it had a concussion. Fortunately its wings were unhurt.

After a few weeks, they had called to tell us we could come get it and release it back to where we found it, which we did, being blessed to watch the beautiful bird, as it flew into the night toward harboring trees.

https://chintiminiwildlife.org/ has grown a lot since then with expanded programs, worth checking it out.