The rescue of Sheldon, the chickadee. or: how to go on your vet's nerves.

Hallo meine Lieben,

hope you are all doing fine. As I mentioned on Tuesday, I rescued a little orphaned baby bird on Sunday. I named him Sheldon. Isn't he adorable?

It all started when I went for a walk on Sunday evening. I walked by a bus stop when I realized that there was something weird looking on the sidewalk. And when I came closer I saw that it was a little bird. I expected the bird to fly away but he didn't which worried me of course. So I sat down next to the bird and started talking to him which might be kind of weird but I felt like I had to introduce myself first. I did not know if he was hurt so I tried to inspect him as much as possible but could not see anything weird going on. He just did not move but he opened his eyes and he was chirping and I thought that was a good sign. But I was not sure what to do because I didn't just want to take him away in case the mother is around. I know that baby babies are starting to fly at this time of the year so I thought he tried and something went wrong but maybe the mom would come and help him.  I did not want  to do anything wrong so I called the vet. My normal vet wasn't there plus it was Sunday night so I had to call the emergency vet (luckily I had my phone with me and could look it up online). I talked to the vet's assistant and she said that the mom would probably come to help and that I should put him to a safe place (he was on the sidewalk at a bus stop so not very safe) and then leave him alone for a while but go back and check on him. So I had him next to a bush where it was safe (I did not want a cat to see him) and then went away. 

I was worried and went back after ten minutes but he was still there. So I thought I should give the mother some more time so I went back home to get some water for him. He was clearly exhausted so I thought I drink should help. I gave him drops of water which he seemed to like and then I left him again to give his mom a chance to come to help. I got really really nervous and went back at some point and he was still there. He seemed weaker than before, to weak to eat and he had his eyes closed most of the time. A lot of time had already passed so I decided that mama bird probably would not come and that I needed to do something. So I called the vet again and this time I spoke to the vet himself. I explained my situation and he said that I could either leave him there because it's a wild animal (no way), take him home with me and try to feed him again and see what happens or bring him to the veterinary clinic and get him some help there. The clinic was 45 minutes away (there are not that many options on a Sunday night) but I wanted to vet to have a look at Sheldon because I still wasn't sure if he was hurt and it that case I would not have been of any help. The vet did not sound so happy about my decision because that meant work for him on a Sunday night and he told me again that it would be a long drive for me over there but I was sure. And when I want something then I do it. I told me that I need to hurry and come immediately (don't know why because he was on call the whole night but okay). So I packed Sheldon into a cozy box with 2 fuzzy blankets which I already prepared for him and took him with me. 

I had the box on my lap while I drove to the veterinary clinic which really was at the end of the world (thanks GPS) and I was relieved when I finally got there. I was worried the whole way and might have driven a bit too fast. And of course I talked to my lap the whole time. The assistant opened and told me to fill out a form before even looking at Sheldon. So I did that and provided all information needed. Then she looked at Sheldon and said "tiny" and I was like "yeah, obviously. He is a baby." And then she said to me "Thank you, that's it. We will take care of him". And I thought that this lady clearly does not know me at all and that I would not just go and leave without knowing what was wrong with him. So I asked her if the vet would have a look at Sheldon immediately and she looked really annoyed and called for the doctor. I told her that I want to know if he is okay and asked if I could be there when the doctor treats him. She had an even more annoyed look on her face but agreed and let me enter their holy halls of veterinary care. The doctor was called "Dr. Wolf" which I think is a pretty awesome name for a vet. He treated Sheldon, looked if his wings are fine, if he has any injuries etc. Sheldon seemed to be fine except of that he was exhausted, motherless and in need of food. I felt satisfied because I got what I wanted and the doctor took care of Sheldon. They brought him back to a place where they already had a little sparrow with the same fate and told me that they would let him rest a bit now and then treat him and feed him. And that he would be fine. I asked what would happen to Sheldon afterwards because obviously I was willing to take care of him. The doctor told me that his friend runs a bird sanctuary and that they could nurse him back to health together with the other little bird and so I decided that this would probably be the best option for Sheldon since I am not a professional bird-back-to-health-nurse and that Sheldon would probably prefer to be with other birds instead of two weird cats. So I agreed on that and said Sheldon goodbye. 

Of course I asked the vet if I could call the next morning and ask about Sheldon. The assistant clearly thought that I am stupid and annoying but I did not care. The vet laughed and said that is absolutely fine. But it was obvious that he thought that I am crazy and should leave them alone. I did not care. So I called Monday morning and was relieved to hear that Sheldon had a good night and was already more energized, that he ate and that the bird sanctuary guy just picked him up to take care of him. Maybe I can go and visit him? I am really happy that I was able to provide some help for Sheldon...and of course I will call the bird sanctuary to ask how Sheldon is doing. He has a special place in my heart now. 

Thank you for reading!

Have a good week!