The price of mice and rats is the same

But the price of shipping has gone up and it has gone up a lot. Next year Northwest Air Cargo won't be servicing Anchorage, so our supplier will have to find another shipper from Minnesota to Anchorage. I'm sure that shipping will go up even more. So the cost of feeding raptors will go up to.

Electricity has gone up, gas has gone up and just about everything else has also. The amount of donations have gone down though and the amount being donated is less also. The economy effects us all, but there are some that can't help it.

One of out motto's is "Because wild birds don't have medical insurance". We take them all. We try until they are ready to leave or there's no chance, but we try. And it doesn't come cheep.

We're always trying to improve the quality of care they receive also. Repairing mews, buying medicine and supplies that we can't get donated. It goes on and on.

Want to help out? There are many ways. You can donate online or send a check. Click here for that.

A new program we have is "Sponsor a Bird". You can sponsor a bird in our rehabilitation clinic. From eagles to pine siskins, we have a program for them. Check out our sponsor page by clicking here. You have the option of donating once or monthly for as little as $25 to $1200 a year.

In return you get access to a subscription to our quarterly newsletter Flight Feather, access to a special species page telling you about the species your sponsoring, access to Rehab Round up ( a letter from Cindy talking about the birds in the clinic), access to a special kids page, a photo of a bird in rehab for the level you picked, and the undying gratitude from our feather friends who need a helping hand.

So if you can, check out the links and make a donation today. If you can't make a donation, please share this post with your friends, maybe they can. Every dollar makes a difference. Right now we have a full clinic and your donation can go right to work. We are a 501(c)3, so it can help on the taxes.

Here's those links again,

One time donation

Sponsor a Bird

Soggy Snowy

The temps have been in the low 80's for the past few days. That might not sound like hot to most of you, but to us it's down right hot. Ghost has been taking it easy (chillin') and staying mainly in the shade of his mew. Before I went into Bird TLC today, I put the nozzle on the hose to mist and gave him a mist down. I don't think he was too happy about it, but it had to feel good.

Lots of different birds lately

This plover is as small as a cotton ball. Since he likes insects we want to make sure he gets back where he belongs. This isn't a species that we get many of at TLC. No one could remember if and when we had last had one in the clinic. He's been a little bit of a challenge to keep eating, but so far is doing well.

This young sand hill crane came to us from the Alaska Sealife Center in Seward. It had been attacked by something and sewn back together by their DVM. Since it's a land bird, they sent it up to us. It's coming along fine so far. It's drawing a lot of attention from the volunteers.

Baby bird season has kept us busy for sure this year, but not just baby birds. Adult birds are effected by things this time of year also.

This tundra swan was sent to us by ConocoPhillips from Kuparuk oil field. It's nest was attacked by a fox and she got pretty beat up defending it. Unfortunately when help arrived, the nest was empty. She was sent to us with careful coordination between them and their contract flight from Prudhoe Bay and Anchorage. Also, thanks to Daryl Miller for helping to pick this one up.

We're up to #19 eagle of the year. Bird TLC has been a busy place so far this summer.

Out of town, moms and signs

Ghost and I went to the Kenai River Festival last week. Thanks to Ken and Judy Marlow for putting us up. Ghost got to spend his first night perched out at the foot of my bed. I didn't feel that he needed to stay in his kennel all night. He did pretty good for his first time. The festival was a blast.

This is baby bird time at TLC. We get loads of baby ducks, magpies, chickadee's, etc. This year we got a mom and its baby. Mom was hit by a car. Someone picked her up and what babies she could and brought them in. Mom has a wing injury. Only one of the babies survived. Tell me that picture doesn't make you say AAWWWW!!!!

We're getting improvements to our property all the time now. People who see it will be able to tell that it belongs to Bird TLC. We have our own sign.

Bad Fishing and other birds

Young guys seem to get in the most trouble, no matter what species they might be. Because of the population of eagles in Alaska, we get to see quite a few.

This guy was sent to us by Liz of U.S.F.& W. in the Kenai NWR. He some how got tangled in tossed fishing gear. What we figure is that he got this treble hook caught under his wing. He reached down with his beak to pull it off. In doing so he got the hook right through his tongue. He had to be down for a few days.

He's not feeling good now, but he has to be feeling a lot better than before. He gets to have Bird TLC hospitality until he gets back into shape.

The raven was sent to us from Nome. U.S.F. & W. shipped this raven down who wasn't flying on its own. He has some major leg and foot issues. Dr. Riddle has fixed him up with his version of Nike's for now. This is a young raven, probably this years bird. He's very talkative.

Meet Gus. He's an education bird that came to TLC in 1991 with a broken wing. They figure he was about 2 at the time. It was determined that he wasn't releasable. He has gone through 3 caretakers and several presenters during that time. Now it's my turn to try to present him. Gus and I are in training together with Lisa as my mentor. We'll keep you updated.

A normal day at the flight center

Britt and I went to the flight center on Friday to feed our feathered friends and to get Adolph, a bald eagle and bring him back to the clinic. He's being released on Saturday, yeah!

One of our electrocution birds that we call Gomes had a feather caught on his beak. In the photo at left he looks like he's balancing it on his beak. He can be a goof ball.

Enlarge the owl photo and look at its right eye. The spider isn't actually on his eye, but right in front of it.

The mature bald is Adolph. He has absolutely nothing wrong with him. He just likes to hold his right wing out when he's perched. He flies beautifully. We brought him back to the clinic a few months back and took x-rays, did a full exam to include blood and found no reason for him to be doing that. Since he flies well and is in good health, he gets released.

We had to do some repairs on the netting in one cell. We're taking a rough-legged hawk out next week to get some flight time and maybe start Mouse U in a couple weeks. In another cell a cable had got some slack in it and we needed to tighten that up. That place is getting old and needs some attention.

It was time to take out the trash and head out. As I got to the door I yelled for Britt to get her camera. Mom and young moose were moseying by. So the trash got to wait. One thing you don't do is get between mom and her baby.

Just another day.






Photo Credit: Britt Coon / Bird TLC

Bird TLC on KTVA 11 news

Anchorage Rehab Center Helps Injured Birds Return To The Wild
Lauren Maxwell CBS 11 News
Updated: 06/14/2009 12:31:44 PM AKDT

Did you know that Alaska is home to over half of the wild bird species that live in the entire U.S.? Or that wild birds from around the world migrate to our state every year? It's the reason that Anchorage has a premier treatment center that works to heal wild birds from all over the state.
Anchorage's Bird Treatment and Learning Center is that place. The center is known for working with raptors like eagles, hawks and owls. But it also takes in any bird that's injured, everything from exotic sea birds to tiny song birds.

Director Cindy Palmatier says bird injuries generally fall into three categories: toxins, trauma or starvation. Volunteers work to nurse all kinds of birds back to health at the clinic with the eventual goal of setting them free. But if their scars are more permanent they are trained to become education birds.

Bird T.L.C. presenters go to schools and public events across the state. They take the birds so that people can see them up close, learn about the species and the habitat it takes to support them.

"That they're beneficial and have a niche to fill and the more that we can expose people to that the better. If you can do that with live non-releasable

birds where people can make an emotional connection to a specific bird they may think twice before destroying habitat. People will respect what they understand." says Palmatier.
But while bird TLC would love to show more people the good work they do, they have a problem. The center has no place to bring the public. Bird TLC operates out of a donated warehouse in an industrial area of Anchorage. It's old and crowded and not at all the permanent home that Bird TLC is dreaming of.

That dream rests on a piece of property owned by Bird TLC over looking bird rich Potter's Marsh. It's where they are hoping to build a full fledged rehab and education center, open to the public in an area that is already a popular visitors site.

Palmatier says the eventual plan would be to link the boardwalk put up by Fish and Game at the marsh to the new Bird TLC building and have the two agencies work together on projects. Palmatier says the dream of a permanent facility is still millions of dollars away, money she knows will be tough to raise. But, she says, Bird TLC will keep working to make their vision come true.

If you'd like to learn more about Bird TLC and their programs we have posted a link to their website. You can find it under the links and information section on this page.

To contact the Newsroom, call 907-274-1111.

Click here for video.