18/09/2026
This. This is what people don't see. I try and keep things lighthearted as much as possible because nobody wants to see doom and gloom. There's enough of it in this world.
This is the reality of rescue. It's an important part of rescue and something that everyone should be aware of. Yes, it's not very nice. It's sadly one of those things that does happen frequently.
It doesn't matter how hard you try or what you do, if an animal needs to come in, they aren't going to be in the best condition.
Yesterday, I had a squab admitted. I did the initial assessment, put them back into the carrier and less than 30 minutes later, they had passed away.
This morning, I had two patients admitted before noon and one of them has passed away already. I did everything right, did the initial assessment and then popped them into the ICU as their condition was critical. Before I got a chance to do any further treatment or take action, they were gone.
The amount of pox, canker and injuries this year has been astronomical.
If you need an animal needing help, please contain it and contact a rescue immediately. helpwildife.co.uk is a fantastic website for finding rescues near you. 💚
My first admission of the day was sadly not a successful one. 💔
I don’t always share the pigeons who come into rescue and ultimately have to be euthanised. But I do think it’s important to show this side of rescue too because rescue isn’t always about the happy endings.
As you know, I’ve taken a little bit of time out recently. Partly because I’m full and feeling overwhelmed, but also because I’ve had a number of pigeons come into my care who, after assessment, I simply haven’t been able to save.
Sometimes I know I can’t fix what is wrong. Other times, I may technically be able to fix the physical problem, but the quality of life afterwards would not be good enough. And that is something I have to consider very carefully with every single bird.
This little one initially looked like a beautiful young pigeon who had simply fledged a little too early. You might look at him and think, “He just needs some food and a safe place to grow.”
But once I assessed him properly, it became clear that there was so much more going on.
His crop was horrendously split, but he was also suffering from severe flystrike. There were hundreds and hundreds of maggots within the different layers of the damaged crop and deep inside the wound.
I have repaired many split crops over the years, so the fact that his crop was damaged wasn’t, in itself, what made this case hopeless. The problem was the extent of the flystrike and the sheer number of maggots buried deep within the tissue.
The likelihood of being able to remove every single one was incredibly slim. Any remaining maggots would have continued to damage him from the inside and ultimately would have slowly killed him.
That would not have been a kind or ethical outcome.
So I made the decision to end his suffering. I have just taken him down to Downland Vets.
It’s never an easy decision. Even when you know it is the right one.
And this is one of the hardest parts of rescue, looking beyond the fact that you desperately want to save a bird and being honest about whether saving them is actually in their best interests.
Not every pigeon that comes through my door gets a happy ending. Sometimes rescue means treatment, rehabilitation and release.
And sometimes rescue means recognising when there is nothing more we can ethically do and making sure that bird does not suffer any longer than necessary.
That side of rescue isn’t pretty. It isn’t the side that gets shared as often. But it is just as much a part of what rescue is. ❤️
Fly free, little one, I’m sorry you couldn’t be saved 💔
