PATIENT:  Bald Eagle, #11-1890

LOCATION OF RESCUE:  Brunswick County, Virginia

CIRCUMSTANCE OF ADMISSION:   Entangled in fishing line/hook

ADMISSION DATE:  August 1, 2011

OUTCOME:  Died August 8, 2011

On Monday August 1, an adult Bald Eagle was spotted on the ground near Lake Gaston in Brunswick County, Virginia.  The eagle’s right foot was entangled in fishing line, and the bird made no attempts to fly away.  After the bird was reported to DGIF, biologist Steve Living contacted a permitted bird rehabilitator in an adjacent county.  The rehabilitator rescued the eagle and brought it to the Wildlife Center the same day.

Dr. Miranda and new veterinary intern Dr. Adam admitted the eagle and peformed a thorough physical exam.  The young adult eagle has severaldark brown feathers interpersed with its white head feathers — so it is likely a young mature adult.  Dr. Miranda was able to cut away the fishing line that was completely entangled around the bird’s right foot — which was preventing it from opening the foot.  Fortunately, the triple-pronged hook had not punctured the pad of the eagle’s foot, though there was a small laceration on the eagle’s other foot.

The Bald Eagle is very thin, though the initial blood work was encouraging.  Dr. Miranda gave fluids to the eagle, as well as an iron injection.  A tube-feeding diet was started on August 2 to slowly introduce easily digestible foods into the eagle’s system.  Dr. Miranda couldn’t feel any fractures, though radiographs will need to be taken once the bird is more stable.

August 5 update

Bald Eagle #11-1890’s prognosis is still guarded — over the past two days, the eagle has been dull and depressed, though it has still been standing.  Dr. Miranda and team are continuing the tube feeding diet and continue to check blood work every few days.  A complete blood count revealed that the eagle is anemic and has mild hypoproteinemia — abnormally low levels of protein in the blood.   The team will continue to offer supportive care throughout the weekend.

August 8 update

Throughout this past weekend, Bald Eagle #11-1890’s condition continued to deteriorate.  On Saturday, the eagle was very quiet and began drooping its head.  On Sunday, the bird was observed laying down in its enclosure.  The veterinary staff created a “donut” ring to support the eagle and to keep its weight off of its keel.  The team continued with supportive care and a tube-feeding diet — very slowly trying to get the eagle’s digestive system up and running again. 

Sadly, the Bald Eagle died overnight.  Dr. Miranda suspects that this is due to the extremely thin condition of the bird — this sort of condition is often difficult for birds to recover from.   The veterinary team will be performing a necropsy on the bird later today.

Your special donation will help the Center to provide state-of-the-art medical care to this Bald Eagle … and to the 2,200+ other patients the Center will admit this year.  Please help!