Megan Mosby
Executive Director
Happy Earth Day to all creatures. And, Happy Volunteer Month to all of you who give so much to ensure that the earth and its denizens are all protected.
It gladdens me to see the investment the younger generation appears to have in promoting a healthy environment…supporting a world they will live in–a world in which to raise their families. They are standing up, speaking out and acting wisely to make a difference. They get it! Now we just need to pay heed.
They do, however, have a big job. The job of getting everyone else on board. It is amazing how much of a difference it would make if each one of us would stop for a few minutes, Earth Day, to see what we could do to make a difference. Don’t think for one minute that it wouldn’t make important and needed changes.
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.”
—Jane Goodall
The first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970 to increase public awareness of the multitudinous problems in the environment. As a result, the issues made it to the national political agenda…but it took the efforts of millions of students across the country to make it happen. My own school students were involved, and I am very proud of that!
In a time when things are tribal…divisive…bleak, it only makes sense to me that we join in supporting a “home improvement” mentality…This Ole House could use a helpful hand. Fix it because we can’t flip it…it is all we have.
The earth is truly the thing we all have in common! Comfort it; Cradle it; Celebrate it.
“Like music and art, love of nature is a common language that can transcend political or social boundaries.”
—Jimmy Carter
Also, help support Liberty Wildlife’s mission by joining us at Wine, Whiskey and Wildlife, May 4 from 4 to 7….go towww.libertywidlife.org
This Week @ Liberty – April 23, 2019
Well, the numbers inch up steadily as do the temperatures. At present, we are about 225 intakes ahead of last year on this date which puts us on a trajectory to go over 10,000 for the year. Only time will tell…
April is National Volunteering month, and we’re supremely grateful for all the dedicated people who fight the traffic and show up each week to work their shift. From Hotline to Rescue, from Intake Window to Orphan Care, from Med Services to Daily Care, and from Education to the veterinary doctors and Techs, our volunteers are simply the best…anywhere! I’m sure if they could, the animals for whom we care would add their thanks to the over 350 active volunteers that make up the team that is Liberty Wildlife.
Alexa is the OC Coordinator this year and she had a few of her new team members in for some OJT last week. From hummers to love birds, from starlings to sparrows, the joyful peeping makes this the happiest sounding place at Liberty in the springtime! The OC team seemed to be enjoying the job as each little crop was filled with the appropriate food – for another hour or so!
(Look for six pictures)
A rather large baby RTH (red tail hawk) was brought to the window last week. Another victim of springtime tree trimming, this big girl will be a formidable predator when she grows into her legs and feet. The good news is the gentleman who was working for the trimmers found her and brought her to us. We’re guessing her gender because of her size and we’ll try to follow her as she grows up.
(Look for three pictures)
Several babies joined the ever growing group of owls, hawks, and assorted other birds being cared for by the Med Services team this week. Some of the little owls get to join foster moms while others, due to injuries etc. have to remain inside for a while until the are well enough to go out with their families. Included in this bunch are a raven with an injured leg, a couple of little barn owls including one with a broken leg, several little great horned owls with various issues, and those three little RTH’s that were rescued from a nest on a power pole.
(look for five pictures)
One of the baby owls that arrived was injured in his fall from the nest. A small wing was fractured when it hit the ground but the break was in a good place and Dr. Lamb was able to insert a steel pin in the wing to hold the bones in alignment as healing occurs. Once again, having the X-ray unit adjacent to surgery is a big help in determining the course of treatment. A week later and the little bird is doing well.
(Look for 6 photos)
One of the baby great horned owls presented something unusual. It was noticed that his eyes looked somewhat smaller than normal so a closer exam was called for. Dr. Semick checked the bird’s eyes and discovered a probable case of microphthalmia, which means his eyes are smaller than they should be, probably due to a congenital condition. It remains to be seen whether or not this will compromise his ability to hunt properly. Again, we’ll try to keep track of him and keep you updated.
(Look for 5 photos)
One of our recent Liberty Field Trips was attended by a group of students from Biltmore Prep. The kids got a tour of the facility and enjoyed the activities and learning about Liberty and what we do. Hopefully, there are some budding scientists in the group!
(Look for two pictures)
Last week saw a unique event at Liberty Wildlife. We had two volunteers in the room at the same time, both named “Doctor Tonya”! (OK, so they spelled their first names slightly differently…) Our own Tanya Wyman who is one of our long time veterinarians, and Tonya Ramey who very recently received her Doctorate (PhD) in Ecology were both in Triage last week and I had to get this picture of these two invaluable volunteers.
(Look for one picture)
Posted by Terry Stevens
Operations Director