"JULIE ANDREWS" came to me in December of the year she was born, 1995, after being hit by a car. She suffered a fractured right leg and a severe concussion. It took a week of hand feeding for her to be strong enough to stand on her leg cast but her eye/beak coordination was off to the point that when she reached for a mouse she missed finding it by a few inches. She eventually learned to compensate and was eating on her own after a couple weeks. JULIE was left with a permanent slight limp and brain damage to where she could fly but refused to go more than a foot or so off the ground for only about 20 feet.
One day, in her ninth year, I went into the flight barn and couldn't find her. Amazingly enough she had flown to the lowest wall perch, about a dozen feet off the ground. She spent a few days up there, receiving her rabbits by air mail (I tossed them up to the platform) She came down eventually but did return there from time to time.
JULIE is now living at the Delaware Valley Raptor Center (see links) in Milford, PA after living at IBR for over 10 years. When I stopped doing educational programs I had to place my school birds. I made the decision to send her to DVRC as they had just lost a golden eagle they'd had for 25 years. I've since visited her and she's doing well although there was a hole in my heart when I put her on the plane to PA. This photo was taken two weeks before she left this facility.
The first Golden eagle I ever held.. thank you Susan and Julie
ReplyDeleteHi Susan, My name is Debbie Garcia. I had the pleasure of meeting (now named Julia) in Ridgefield, NJ on May 22, 2016. She is doing well and she is amazing. My first time seeing a Golden Eagle up close, I am still in awe how big this beautiful girl is. A huge thank you to you and DVPC for saving her so I can have the pleasure of meeting her.
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