The first sign of spring is the arrival in large flocks of the migratory robins. As they sit in the tops of the trees morning and evening, singing at the top of their voices, they are a welcome sign that we can expect brighter days.
At Powell River Orphaned Wildlife Society, it is also the start of window strike season. In two days, we had calls for three robins that had knocked themselves out on windows they could not see. For some, this collision is fatal.
For those that survive, it can be a long recovery from a bad concussion. They are given medication for the pain and to bring down swelling, then they are placed in a cage that is big enough for them to stand and take a couple of hops, and kept as quiet as possible for two to three days. This is the dangerous time, when we see what kind of damage the head trauma has caused.
Robins are good patients. They eat the healthy food we offer them; they take well to the small cage they are put in to begin with; then they fly around their large flight cage, exercising and foraging until we are certain they can fly well.
This lovely female was ready to go in less than a week. We took her to a good location, opened the door of her kennel and she blasted off, flying a long way and landing high up in a tree (just in case we thought of catching her!).
