Chihuly Cooper’s Hawk
March 2, 2022
This Cooper’s Hawk got trapped in the Chihuly Glasshouse last week and was rescued by one of their gardeners. His injuries were minor, and he regained his flight very quickly. However, our rehabilitators noticed the bird’s clotting time was abnormally long when taking a blood sample. This was a strong indicator that he was suffering from anticoagulant rodenticide poisoning. Raptors, and other rodent-eating wildlife, can ingest rats with poison in their system and die themselves. An accidental entry into the Chihuly facility may have saved this young hawk’s life. He is currently receiving treatment for the suspected poisoning and has another 3 weeks of daily medications before he can return to the wild.
If you would like to learn more about rodenticides in raptors, check out the Urban Raptor Conservancy’s website.