den: (rescues)
den ([personal profile] den) wrote2004-01-27 07:31 pm

Animal Ambulance

Yesterday afternoon a fellow found an injured galah (the Christmas Present Rifle strikes again) and brought it around to me. I was out all day so he left it here for me. I didn't get the bird because he thought it was cruel to leave it in a box, so he left it perching in a tree on my front lawn. By the time I got home there was no bird in sight, as you would expect from a wild bird. The neighbours found it in their fishpond this morning so they caged it and waited for me to get home.

We transferred the bird to my rescue box, then Brian asked me if I'd seen one of their baby king quail (aka button quail) running around. A little male had escaped from their aviary. At that moment we heard a tiny quail crowing "pee PEE PEE peeeeeee" almost at our feet. A quail about the size of a mouse scuttled out of the front ganden and ran into my back yard, its legs a burr as it ran like a tiny Marvin The Martian. Scruffy saw the bird and his Maltese Terrier genes kicked in. He sat down and watched. Polly looked interested until I said "baddog" which made her hide in the kennel. We chased the bird around the yard - it couldn't fly but boy it could run - until it escaped under the back fence. I was hot, tired and puffed out ([livejournal.com profile] kelloggs2066: that's "buggered" too!).

The galah is at the vet's but I don't like it's chances.

And in peewee news, Peewee#3 which was released last week flew back into the aviary on the farm and demanded someone feed him. H. says it looks like the wild birds rejected him so he's back home having a big sook about the nasty birds and looking for easy food.

[identity profile] tatterdemalion.livejournal.com 2004-01-27 01:29 pm (UTC)(link)
paws crossed for the Galah

*giggles at the quail*

The peewee isnt stupid

[identity profile] weyrdbird.livejournal.com 2004-01-27 03:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Next on Nature:

Wild Quail Tomfoolery!:D]


Smart little quail, knowing how to dodge:)!


Adult children with BB guns

[identity profile] ursuscal.livejournal.com 2004-01-27 04:11 pm (UTC)(link)
I get so sick to death of animals being shot by bored children and adult children with guns, who think it's fun to shoot something alive instead of a paper target. For the record, I love shooting paper targets and making loud, boom-boom noises. But the last time I *had* to shoot something living, it was a horse with guaranteed fatal injuries from an auto accident, and I was sick about it for days.

I think an appropriate punishment for trigger-happy shooters would be to restrain them, naked and spread eagle, front against a tree, then take turns shooting at their tails with a powerful BB gun. Extra bonus points for hitting the jewels. Repeat offenders get restrained *facing* you, heehee. I know... I'm evil...

[identity profile] kelloggs2066.livejournal.com 2004-01-27 04:35 pm (UTC)(link)
Good luck with the Galah. Glad it hadn't wandered too far away.

Hope you can catch that quail!

Scott