sheevaa
May 2nd, 2010, 03:09 AM
MILLINGTON, N.J. -- A Canada goose with a hunter's 26-inch arrow sticking out of its chest picked the right place to land.
"This is a smart goose," said Bernard Levine, the retired veterinarian in whose Toms River backyard the wounded bird showed up a few weeks ago. "He happened to come into the yard of a veterinarian that could take care of him."
So Levine, 82, fed the goose, helped capture it, performed lifesaving surgery and transported it to the state's largest bird rehabilitation facility, The Raptor Trust.
All patched up after a three-week stay at The Raptor Trust, the goose was released last week into a stream in a wooded area on the trust's property with Levine witnessing the payoff for his kindness.
Although birders generally praise Levine's efforts, some say saving geese is not an imperative because the birds have long been an overly abundant nuisance, according to Peter Bacinski, director of the Sandy Hook Bird Observatory and a New Jersey Audubon member.
Ponds created in parks, golf courses and corporate properties have attracted geese, which pollute water and grounds with their excrement, stop traffic on roads and take over public parks, Bacinski said.
"A once regal bird has become a pimple on the rump of society," said Bacinski, a birder for 40 years.
But Raptor Trust founder Len Soucy, rejects such negative opinions of geese.
"The diversity on this planet keeps us healthy," Soucy said. "To say that one goose doesn't matter, or one eagle doesn't matter, or one human being doesn't matter, I don't subscribe to that. It all matters."
Levine removed 6 inches of the arrow lodged in the bird's flesh, as well as several pellets from an air rifle.
The goose, which weighed 8 pounds after rescue, weighed 12 pounds at its last weigh-in before it was released. Raptor Trust veterinary technician Kristi Ward said the sex and age of the bird were not determined.
New Jersey wildlife management regulations don't permit hunting waterfowl with arrows like the one removed from the goose. With proper permits, shooting geese is legal during hunting season, which doesn't open to New Jerseyans until September. The goose Levine rescued was shot out of season.
His daughter, Sandy Levine, arranged for the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife to use the net gun. Soon after the surgery, a friend contacted The Raptor Trust, which rehabilitates hundreds of birds of all species each year.
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86/sheevaa/Forum/23287214_240X180.jpg
Source (http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/23287396/detail.html)
Although I'm not fond of geese (they're mean suckers!), they're Canada's bird. I don't consider them to be a pest, I'm glad this one was saved.
"This is a smart goose," said Bernard Levine, the retired veterinarian in whose Toms River backyard the wounded bird showed up a few weeks ago. "He happened to come into the yard of a veterinarian that could take care of him."
So Levine, 82, fed the goose, helped capture it, performed lifesaving surgery and transported it to the state's largest bird rehabilitation facility, The Raptor Trust.
All patched up after a three-week stay at The Raptor Trust, the goose was released last week into a stream in a wooded area on the trust's property with Levine witnessing the payoff for his kindness.
Although birders generally praise Levine's efforts, some say saving geese is not an imperative because the birds have long been an overly abundant nuisance, according to Peter Bacinski, director of the Sandy Hook Bird Observatory and a New Jersey Audubon member.
Ponds created in parks, golf courses and corporate properties have attracted geese, which pollute water and grounds with their excrement, stop traffic on roads and take over public parks, Bacinski said.
"A once regal bird has become a pimple on the rump of society," said Bacinski, a birder for 40 years.
But Raptor Trust founder Len Soucy, rejects such negative opinions of geese.
"The diversity on this planet keeps us healthy," Soucy said. "To say that one goose doesn't matter, or one eagle doesn't matter, or one human being doesn't matter, I don't subscribe to that. It all matters."
Levine removed 6 inches of the arrow lodged in the bird's flesh, as well as several pellets from an air rifle.
The goose, which weighed 8 pounds after rescue, weighed 12 pounds at its last weigh-in before it was released. Raptor Trust veterinary technician Kristi Ward said the sex and age of the bird were not determined.
New Jersey wildlife management regulations don't permit hunting waterfowl with arrows like the one removed from the goose. With proper permits, shooting geese is legal during hunting season, which doesn't open to New Jerseyans until September. The goose Levine rescued was shot out of season.
His daughter, Sandy Levine, arranged for the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife to use the net gun. Soon after the surgery, a friend contacted The Raptor Trust, which rehabilitates hundreds of birds of all species each year.
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86/sheevaa/Forum/23287214_240X180.jpg
Source (http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/23287396/detail.html)
Although I'm not fond of geese (they're mean suckers!), they're Canada's bird. I don't consider them to be a pest, I'm glad this one was saved.