Young adult female RTHA looking for off-display home

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Contact Information
Contact Emma Roth
Phone: 716-569-2345
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Country: United States

Species: Red-tailed Hawk

Is rehabilitation complete?: yes

This animal has potential as a : off-site education animal

This animal is: wild reared

Age: Adult

Reason for entering rehabilitation.:

Soren was found in 2021 emaciated and missing her left hallux talon as a juvenile in Michigan. She was brought into rehab in MI and deemed non-releasable due to the missing talon. She was transferred to rehab near us before coming into our care. Later x-rays showed she had also been shot and has pellets throughout her body. She has had regular lead testing done, and her levels have remained normal, but should be continued to be monitored.

Days in care: 1400

Issues developed while undergoing rehabilitation.:

n/a

Body condition score (5 point scale as defined on https://nagonline.net/3877/body-condition-scoring/): 3.5

Can the animal express species-typical behaviors (e.g. eat appropriate whole foods, climb, perch, groom, dig, fly, swim, ambulate normally for species)?:

Yes, she is fully flighted and enjoys tearing and shredding. She can eat whole foods, groom, and gets around her aviary without issue. Her missing hallux talon does give her some minor balance issues, but nothing she can't work through herself.

Can the animal be handled without negative welfare affects?: yes

This is how the animal currently reacts when a frequent caregiver nears it (e.g. does it modify behavior, show signs of fear, agonism, habituation):

She recognizes care givers and often self-stations as a response to seeing them. She will move towards a caregiver, especially during feeding sessions.

This is how the animal currently reacts when a stranger nears it (e.g. does it modify behavior, show signs of fear, agonism, habituation):

Soren has shown signs of stress and anxiety being on display. She gets very flighty and panicky when strangers, especially groups and young children approach her aviary. She will often fly from end to end of her aviary and sometimes grips the wall. She has a small wound on her cere from flying into the mesh of her aviary. A vet has confirmed there has been no neurological damage from the impact. She does have a scab on her cere that is having trouble healing due to repeating this behavior. She can be distracted during stressful events by throwing food to the ground or placing on perches with a caregiver in the aviary.

This animal is currently house : alone

Will the animal need continuous medical care (e.g. medication)?: no

Physical health welfare assessment: life worth living

Mental/emotional health welfare assessment: life worth living

More Information

Soren is a petite (~1050g) RTHA who came to live with us in August of 2022. Initially believed to be male due to her size, genetic testing has confirmed she is female. She has not adjusted well to being on display at our facility. We have a fairly busy facility with large groups who visit, and this has caused her anxiety and stress. Attempts to help her adapt to this environment have not been successful. She is glove trained and will hop to her caregivers glove and hop to a scale. She sometimes flies off the glove when her jesses are gathered, but other times sits patiently. She has been crate trained in the past, but is not currently willing to crate. When she arrived, we were in a quiet season, and she was able to do glove programs. Her behavior declined when large groups started visiting the next spring, and has never fully recovered. We believe she has potential as a program bird if she is off-display when not on a program. She is smart, curious, and a wonderful bird, we are just not the right place for her, and are hoping to find her a more fitting home.

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