Megan Mosby
Executive Director
OK, there are less than 26 days remaining before our annual Wishes for Wildlife event occurs. But, it isn’t too late for you to take part in this innovative, fun, virtual fundraiser for Liberty Wildlife.
Here are three ways you can be involved in this history making event…our first ever virtual fundraiser:
- It isn’t too late for you to donate an item to the auction. We can use garden items, gift cards, items for ladies and gents, unique, antique and collectibles, services, exercise and kitchen/cooking items…and the like. If you have an item to donate go to https://tinyurl.com/wfw20auction and fill out the form.
- You can buy an individual ticket for only $25 which lets you participate in the program and bid on auction items by providing you with a bidder number.
- Or, you can be bold and host a small gathering of friends and family at your home, in your yard, or at your office…or another place of your choice (limited to the Phoenix metro area, of course). For a mere $500 your “gathering” of ten or fewer will get mixologist instructions on the signature drinks, a “fly-through video of the Liberty Wildlife campus”, the behind-the-scenes look at programming at Liberty Wildlife including staff, volunteers, and wildlife ambassadors, plus a charcuterie platter and two bottles of wine provided by M Catering, and a gift basket treat for each guest, as well as access to Liberty Wildlife’s famous silent auction.
- But wait there’s more! For a limited time, we are offering another bonus option. For just $250 more ($750 total), you will get all of the above, PLUS the best part is that you and your guests will also get a live in-person visit from a Liberty Wildlife Education Volunteer handler and wildlife ambassadors from our education cadre. All this, at your own personal gathering, is a very special pre-Halloween treat!
In addition to all of this fun, each guest/attendee will get to participate in our online costume contest for prizes – just upload selfies in costume to Facebook or Instagram. There will be a “libation pull” that guarantees that each $25 purchaser will get a bottle of some type of beverage worth at least $25, including many that are worth way more than the cost of the ticket. For example, there is a $99 bottle of Napoleon brandy and a $70 bottle of tequila just waiting for the lucky 21 or older guest to pull their numbers.
So not only will you get a peek behind the scenes, vie for cool auction items, but you will also get the good feelings from supporting our first “virtual” event. Your support this year will allow us to help more than 11,000 animals in need.
Here’s all you have to do.
Go to: https://aesaz.co/ELP/LIBERTY20/Tickets and register. Then open the page at 5:30pm on Oct. 24th. No dressing up (unless you want to!), no Lyft or Uber, no babysitter, no driving… all in the comfort of your home or that of your host.
“See” you there.
This Week @ Liberty – September 29, 2020
This last weekend less than twenty animals were brought to our intake window so it appears the 2020 orhan season is officially over. Birds continue to come in, but the mad rush is now a mere trickle which should continue until early next year. As I have said before, this allows us time to catch up on other projects and do things like produce Wishes for Wildlife. We can also devote some time to reviewing the year and planning ahead for 2021 which, despite temperatures which continue to hang in the low three digits, will be on us sooner than we all know. There are two things that everyone needs to attend to right now: Buy tickets for our virtual fund-raiser in October! And keep Liberty in mind for end-of-the-year donations which will be more critical than ever this year.
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No matter what else is going on, Tuesday afternoon “Vet Night” is always a beehive of activity. All new animals are seen by ate least one of the veterinarians, and all previous patients are re-checked for response to current care, improvement, and recommendations as to additional treatment. All new patients are weighed and most older patients have their weight checked to see if they are gaining (usually a good sign) or losing (sometimes an indication of more issues that require attention) weight. At this point, the ones who have responded well might be cleared to “Go outside” which is a large step on the road to eventual release.
Look for 5 pictures
A couple of weeks ago, an agent from AZGFD brought us a first year golden eagle from up north near Flagstaff. The bird was very “down” although no fractures were noted. A blood sample was drawn and tested, the results of which showed a very low red blood cell count. Upon discussing this with Dr. Lamb, it was decided to use one of our own golden eagles, Brie, as a donor for healthy blood in an attempt to stabilize this bird. Dr. Lamb came in on that Friday and with the aid of Jan and Alex, an appropriate amount of blood was taken from Brie and subsequently transfused into the young wild bird. Having a healthy example of a species is extremely helpful when a source of healthy blood is required.
Look for 11 pictures
Last posting I showed the arrival of a Mississippi Kite that came up from St. David. The bird had been the victim of a gun shot (actually several gun shots!) which was confirmed by X-ray. The wing that was damaged is healing and he is responding to treatment as shown by an exam last week by Dr. Wyman. It is hoped that the bird will be released later next month, if it’s not too late for his migration. As happens once in a while, when birds are interrupted in their annual journey, they have to remain with us until the direction of travel reversed itself. We’ll know more in the coming weeks.
Look for 2 pictures
A few weeks ago, a great horned owl arrived with a fractured wing. Dr. Wyckoff installed several stainless steel pins in the wing to hold the bones in place while they healed and last Tuesday it was determined that it was time to remove the metal. Dr. Wyman very carefully extracted the pins from the external fixator which was the next step in the bird’s recovery process. Soon he will go outside and begin therapy to regain his ability to fly as he was designed. This will, we hope, result in another successful release for this lucky bird!
Look for 4 pictures
It’s pretty disheartening to see how many birds we get in that have been shot. Recently it was the Mississippi kite, now it’s a young turkey vulture. This poor bird was peppered with shot, most likely from a shotgun. One pellet even lodged in his face, giving him a nose piercing! After he was shot, he most likely crashed which caused his leg injury. And as unattractive as they might be, they are still protected species which cannot be legally shot. This guy is responding to treatment fairly well so keep your fingers crossed!
Look for 4 pictures
Kyle and Tuk came down from AZGFD on Monday to get a recently captured Swainson’s hawk ready for release. Just as with bald and golden eagles, the bird was hooded, then various body parts were measured and recorded. Finally, a specially designed solar powered GPS transmitter was strapped to the bird’s back. He will be released on Wednesday to take part in a study to track the Swainson’s (and other birds) migration routes and patterns as they head towards South America for the winter. Swainson’s are one of the classically migratory hawks that pass through Arizona on their way to Argentina and winter feeding grounds. The transmitter will allow precise tracking of this bird as it begins its long journey.
Look for 6 pictures
Posted by Terry Stevens
Operations Director
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