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For The Birds: Injured Birds
What Do I With An Injured Bird?
In the Richmond area a hotline is now available for the Animal Rehaber's Klub (A.R.K) at (804) 598-8380. This hotline will be manned starting from 8 AM daily and closing hours will vary by season.
VISIT: www.welcome.to/arkva
Injured Animals:
Be very careful! When approaching an injured animal, remember that they are scared, in pain and do not understand you are there to help. The animal may turn on you in selfdefense and deliver some nasty bites and scratches. Covering the animal's head with a towel may calm it down. If you are going to handle the animal, use a heavy blanket, coat, towel etc. to place over the animal and use thick gloves and coat to protect your hands and arms. Place the animal in a secure box with air holes and never place the animal loose in the automobile.
Caution: If an animal appears sick, such as unsteady on it's feet, unusually calm or irrational, drainage from eyes, nose and/or mouth, do not approach it. This animal could have rabies or other contagious diseases. Do not approach injured deer. Their kick can cause you severe injuries. Call the local animal control officer.
Orphaned - Baby animals that have fallen from the nest or wandered from their mother, or have been abandoned. Be sure an animal is truely orphaned before assisting. Sometimes babies are left alone while the mother is searching for food. Often the adult may simply not be present when you discover such a suspect, but will return within a short period of time. So watch for a several minutes to see if the mother returns to retrieve her young. These youngsters ussually need further rehabilitation in order to survive on their own in the wild. If baby appears very thin, cold, crying, and flies are around it, these are signs that it is orphaned. If you feel that the baby animal is orphaned, place it in a cover box with air holes and keep it in a warm, dark and quiet. Call the A.R.K hotline at (804) 598-8380 for further assistance.
How Can I Help Prevent Bird Injuries?
There are many simple things any individual can do help avoid bird and wildlife injuries:
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DO NOT throw trash from you verhile or along roadsides. Each year many birds are injured (or killed) by motor vehicle collisions, because when trash is thrown from a car window. This litter attracts small rodents and scavengers to the road side, and thus attracts raptors and other predators to the road as well. Please, help keep or roads litter free.
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DO NOT place your Bird Feeders too close to large windows and install siloutees on large windows.
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KEEP CATS INSIDE - or if you have outdoor cats keep them inside during the early morning and late afternoon feeding hours. Especially if you have bird feeders.
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