Thursday 6 August 2009

A Bird in the Hand.

I am at a small surgery for August weekdays, no nights and weekends and a lovely group of staff. Well no nights and weekends unless l get a call in like l did last weekend to my old job.
This practice is one of those places where if l go on the motorway it is a big circular trip. No traffic lights but at certain times long tailbacks. Option 2 is straight across a couple of towns with traffic lights but half the distance. I have yet to decide on the best route.

We had a dove in a couple of days ago it had been found collapsed but did try and fly so the decision was made to try and treat it. Yesterday it had a fly round the room till it met the glass on the door then slid down it. The vet decided that it was well enough to be let go, any longer would not do it any good.
A couple of hours later when we had some spare time l took it over the road and threw it towards some bushes to let it live or die as nature would decide. He flew off landed near a bush and walked under to get his breath back.

The aux and l were having a chuckle about it coming back across the road and demanding room and board or something to drink, l got up to get something from the waiting room and stopped dead…. A pigeon was crossing the last steps to the pavement, jumping onto it and walking towards the door. I took a few seconds to realise it was a different species and bird just initially they looked similar. The bird made short work of a bread crust by the door and flew off.

That got the aux. and l reminiscing and she was telling me about a blackbird they had rescued at one of the branch practices she had worked at.
It was very poorly and they carefully nursed it for about 5 days when it was able to fly. She took it to some bushes near the practice, threw it up into the air….. and it exploded in a puff of feathers as the magpie that was nesting in the trees took it out, landed on it and ripped it to bits.
She said he jaw just hung open they did not realise the magpies were there. She wanted to kill the bloody bird for what it had done and also felt very guilty for the end of the poor blackbird. There was nothing she could do except stare in disbelief.

4 comments:

JuliaM said...

Magpies need to eat too! ;)

Roses said...

Knackered racing pigeons always seem to find me for some reason.

They're a bit like my ex boyfriends - eat your food, crap all over you and when you start getting fond of them, they bugger off.

:-)

Vetnurse said...

hehehe Roses next time tell them you are out of birdseed and send them on their way... the boyfriends l mean!.

Yup they do Julia, l had a good chuckle at the story can just see it happening.

dickiebo said...

Death to ALL magpies! There must be 10,000 living in the trees at the bottom of our garden. They terrorise the song-birds, steal their eggs, monopolise our birdbath,....need I go on? lol.