I had no plans for lunch today, so I just wandered about aimlessly, following my feet, which took me to Sparks Street, where I spotted a tiny little bird in trouble. People kept narrowly missing him because they didn’t see him down there amongst all the feet. There was a man hovering over him, trying to protect him from the hundreds of feet.
First things first. I took a picture.
Then I scooped up the tiny little bird in my hand, kissed him on his tiny little head, and held him against my chest.
The man and I exchanged one of those “Now what?” glances.
“Are you going to the Rideau Centre?” asked the man.
“No,” I said, “Why?”
“I think he might have escaped from a pet store,” said the man, “Maybe you could take him to the pet store there. Maybe they’d take him in.”
“Good idea,” I said, “But I’m going the other way. I’ll take him to the pet store on Bank Street.”
“It could be your good deed for the day,” said the man.
We thanked each other. The man headed east and the tiny little bird and I headed west.
He really was tiny. I held him very gently, with the fingers of my right hand forming a little bird cage around him. Every now and then he would flutter and try to escape, and then I’d kiss his tiny little head again and tell him shhhh.
I took him to one of the few remaining independent pet stores in Ottawa: Pet Circus on Bank, near Cooper. I like that store.
“I found this on Sparks Street,” I said.
“What is it?” asked the man suspiciously.
“A tiny little bird,” I said.
He reacted as if I’d said it was a vial of the avian flu virus.
“No!” he said, his alarm almost tangible, “Don’t bring it in here!”
It was too late. I was already in. He ushered me back outside, where he examined the tiny little bird.
“It’s a wild finch,” he said, “and it probably hasn’t weaned yet or fledged yet. There’s nothing I can do for it here, and probably nothing you can do for it either. The only people that can help you is the Wild Bird Centre on Moony Drive. But they don’t pick up birds, you’d have to deliver him.”
I was on my lunch hour. I had a meeting at 1:30. I didn’t have a car.
“Or,” he said helpfully, “you could take him to a nice park and put him as high up in a tree as you can. Maybe he’ll take his first flight and be just fine.”
So that’s what I did. I took him to Dundonald Park at Somerset and Lyon and found a nice little tree. I opened my hand and he jumped onto my wrist and perched there for a few seconds looking at the tree. Then he hopped onto a branch. I took pictures while he hopped from branch to branch. He looked good. Really good.
And then the tiny little bird flew out of the little tree, way up high into the great big tree nearby. He looked fabulous!
I stopped by the pet store on my way back to the office to update the man. He said maybe the tiny little bird had flown into something on Sparks Street and was dazed and confused, and my intervention gave him enough time to recover without getting stomped or eaten.
I picked up a sandwich and went back to the office. I felt good all afternoon. I still feel good. Maybe this will make up for some of my bad bird karma.
What a delightful experience!
I love you.
You saved a life today by keeping it safe long enough for it to recover. You are a bird harm reduction centre!
You did a wonderful thing today…I am proud to be your sister.
Zoom, the Wood Nymphs are all dancing for you tonight…
I tried to save a baby starling once, but unfortunately it died. but I still felt good for trying. I’m glad your story had a happy ending
Oooh! *hugs* Thank you, thank you!!!!
Good job zoom.
That’s a great story! A really, really great story!
Zoom, there are good news only blogs out there, if they have a monthly linkage thing – a carossel??? ( oh I am woefully lacking in blog lingo!)
THIS story belongs there.
I have a crappy head cold that has found my lungs and this made me feel better
Over the years many birds flew into my mom’s sliding doors (which is why she doesn’t wash them anymore…) and they often just need to be kept warm and calm until they can fly again. My sister and I would build them a box and guard them from cats and other dangers until they felt good enough to fly away. Very few of them actually died.
Isn’t that tiny heart beat a tremendous thing?
my Mom tried to give a hummingbird heart compressions after it slammed into her window but it didn’t work. Bless her heart for trying though. I’ve taken birds to the Wild Bird Centre on Moodie…it’s an amazing place.
Congrats on your success!
Thanks everyone!
Judi – it was for me; I’m glad you enjoyed it too.
Oma – I love you too Mom.
Skylark – I hadn’t thought of it that way, but I love the analogy.
Deb – you would have done the same thing. (Okay maybe you wouldn’t have kissed his tiny little head…but you would have saved his life.)
Woodsy – I would have loved to have seen the wood nymphs dancing!
Valerie – this guy had finchy good looks on his side – I’m not sure I would have been so kindly disposed to a starling. I would definitely NOT have kissed his head. 😉
Susan – thanks for the hugs!
Robin – Thank you too.
Wandering Coyote – I’m glad you liked it.
Mudmama – I think it’s called a blog carousel. I’ve heard of it, but never participated. Congratulations on your cold’s shift.
Heather – that’s an excellent reason for not washing the screen doors anymore. Or the windows. You are a veteran at avian harm reduction.
Bonnie – that’s a great story!
I don’t know how you’ll feel about this but I saved a life this morning as well… there was a wasp staggering around on my doorknob. I took a few photos of it, then it fell to the floor, so I used my hand to guide it onto a newspaper, opened the door and set him free. In the space between apartments it acted like it was stoned or exhausted, but as soon as it was outside it took off like a dart.
You’re a lovely person and this is a lovely story. One day that finch is going to save YOUR life
Gabriel: This is how I feel about that.
XUP: Maybe the finch will take a thorn out of my paw someday.
Good for you, and I know how it makes you feel so good. Once I “saved” a crow. I thought it had a bad wing because it didn’t fly, even when I chased it around the yard and finally threw a towel over it to catch it. I held it in my hands too but it was as big as a small grocery store chicken so I had its wings folded under my hands and my fingers met along its breastbone. I didn’t dare kiss it as I think it would have tried to peck my eyes out, when it wasn’t cawing REALLY loudly. I had transportation and took it to the Bird Centre and they told me is was young and just not fully fledged. Apparently, (and now we all know) young crows have blue eyes. They took it in and I gave them a donation and then I had to endure a week at home with the parents cawing for their lost child. Next time, I will know better. But you did the right thing by getting it off the sidewalk, for sure.
Gabriel, I was just wondering, did you kiss the wasp on his tiny little head?
Job well done! It felt good to read your story and inspired me to look for my own good deed.
Thanks for sharing.
aaawww he’s so cute!! good for you, saving the poor little one. most people these days couldn’t care less about the little guy!! i don’t know if i subscribe to the whole “karma” thing, but i do beleive no good deed goes unnoticed!!
I love birds!
What a great feel-good story. Now I can leave the internet with a feeling of being satisfied.
awww. Zoom you’re so great.
that picture of him/her sitting on the ground breaks my heart. Poor little bird!