Swans a plenty at Stapeley

Throughout the year we see lots of swans and geese admitted to the wildlife hospital.  Many of the swans are brought in as juveniles, particularly at this time of year, and are reported by members of the public as being unable to stand and very weak.  When a bird is showing signs of weakness it may appear that it has problems with its legs but this is often not the case.

A case which I worked on this week was a good example of this.  The cygnet arrived on the 2^nd  December, found by a member of the public, who was concerned the bird could not stand up and instead kept falling forwards.  The cygnet was extremely underweight when he arrived, weighing only 4.3 kg.  There was however a swelling on its wing joint.  On further investigation the x-ray showed that there was no serious damage; it was prescribed oral antibiotics, some pain relief and given plenty of food.

        

The team have kept a close eye on his weight over the past ten days and today he appeared healthy; was walking well and putting on weight.   He had his final check up this morning and the vets were happy to sign off his treatment and release him out onto one of our outdoor pools (pictured above) with all the other waterfowl, which is always nice to see.  The staff will continue to monitor his progress over the coming weeks until we are happy that he is strong enough to be released back to the wild.

Jenna Haslam

Student Placement

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