Nan The Chick

12/06/2024

I am EXHAUSTED! Busiest baby season EVER! 😂

Check out Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue’s video.

22/05/2024

Maui had some infection plaque growing in his throat. He’s one of my special needs babies surrendered because he has a deformed foot and he wasn’t wanted in the gene pool. He’s raised a few foster babies since I’ve had him. I thought for sure it was cancer! But Dr Oence things it’s just an infection in his throat so for once I’m leaving the vet with a smile on my face!

Please donate if you are able. I’m a one woman rescue with no help. This baby season has been brutal and I’m completely tapped out and exhausted. 😩

You can make a donation directly to my vet at Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital of Louisiana under my account (Katrina Perkowska) or Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue by calling (504) 455-6386

Or through the following:
I would prefer donations be sent using my email address and choosing the FRIENDS AND FAMILY option so I don’t get charged a fee. But some people aren’t sure how to send a donation that way so here’s the link.
www.paypal.me/kasiasarkbirdrescue

Venmo -Ark
CashApp $KasiasArk

❤️❤️❤️ Thank You ❤️❤️❤️

22/05/2024

Another baby that will never grow up. Rushed him here as soon as they opened. Fly free, feathered baby! Something ate this darling baby’s entire face. I’ll post the more graphic pics in comments.😞

This was just a baby, he hasn’t even learned to fly. Just a few weeks old.

07/05/2024

PLEASE SHARE!!!

Today is GIVE NOLA DAY!!!

And I’ve been meaning to post this since this morning, but I’ve been slammed with babies and injured coming in.

Tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY!!!🎂

If you are able or willing, PLEASE give a gift that will help Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue. 🥰I am completely tapped out doing my best with what I have. But my supplies are extremely low, especially all the different diets required by different bird species.

Running a rescue without any help is absolutely grueling work sometimes 😩. My breakfast toast is still sitting in the toaster and I forgot all about it. 😂

You can make a donation directly to my vet at Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital of Louisiana under my account (Katrina Perkowska) or Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue by calling (504) 455-6386.

Or through the following:

I would prefer 🥰 donations be sent using my email address ([email protected]), and choosing the FRIENDS AND FAMILY option so I don’t get charged a fee. But some people aren’t sure how to send a donation that way so here’s the link to my donation page on PayPal.
www.paypal.me/kasiasarkbirdrescue

Venmo -Ark
CashApp $KasiasArk

❤️🥰❤️ Thank You ❤️🥰❤️

28/04/2024

This baby crow arrived DOA. Died en route. I’m posting these pics to show what fly strike looks like. This baby was still alive when a fly laid eggs in and around the nostril.

If you ever see this on any living critter, please remove these eggs gently ASAP.

Yes, I will occasionally post pics of a critter that’s passed on if it’s for educational purposes. Most people have no idea what fly strike is or what it looks like. Here it is on a bird. 😞 This is baby #4 that died today. Lost 2 overnight and another one early this morning. My heart just remains broken for these poor babies.

20/04/2024

This is baby starling #14 at Kasia’s Ark.

He/she was looked after by a very nurturing 16 year old who stayed up all night to ensure this baby was OK. 🥰

18/04/2024

PLEASE SHARE and keep your cats INDOORS! Give the new baby wildlife a freaking CHANCE!

We are amending our original post. Please read to the end.

Has your cat ever caught and brought you a bird?

It is a sad sight, but at the end of the day, it was only one bird that your cat killed, right? During nesting season, the circumstances change. That bird that your cat caught could be a mother, and that mother could easily have seven or eight nestlings waiting for her back at the nest, who are all now going to starve. For most songbird species, while the parents take turns feeding their young, the responsibility for incubating the eggs lies solely on the female. It is rare that the male is able to finish raising their young alone.

When songbirds are attacked by native predators such as snakes or hawks, the bird is often able to bounce back from a minor scratch or bite, IF they escape. However, domestic cats are not a native predator, and the odds of surviving any contact with a cat are much more slim. This is because even if the bite or scratch the bird sustained from the cat attack is minor, non-fatal, and the bird isn’t bleeding, that bird will still die three-to-five days later from the toxins in the cat's saliva that were transferred onto the skin. Cats carry pasteurella in their teeth and on their claws, and even the smallest scratch allows that bacteria to enter the bird's body. Once it does, it is 100% fatal without timely medical intervention.

An estimated 1.3 to 4 billion birds alone are killed by domestic cats each year in the U.S., adding further decline to species that are already threatened or endangered. We often hear people say, "that's nature,” and that a cat will do what comes natural. However, while those hawks and snakes are native predators, our cats are not. To have a non-native, domestic animal killing federally-protected wild and migratory birds is not natural, and they don't just catch birds, they catch many types of animals.

This nesting season, please consider keeping your cats indoors, or contained in a secure outdoor patio/“catio” to protect the birds in your backyard from facing the same fate. Domestic cats do not hunt out of hunger, unlike wild predators — they also hunt for fun, and often play with their catch for hours. Every animal injured by a cat, even if brought to a wildlife rescue, then costs someone else time, money, and more work.

If you find your cat with a bird, regardless if your cat is currently touching the bird or simply sitting near, the contact has already happened. Even if the bird appears unharmed, it is urgent that you get the bird to SkyWatch or your closest wildlife rehabilitator for the right antibiotics, because the cat has already transferred that pasteurella to the bird. Do not feed the bird, just cover them, keep them warm, and get them to an experienced facility as soon as possible. It is time sensitive.

—

Now, are we saying cats are evil and should be hated or killed? No. They are doing what comes natural and they can't help that they're here. Feral cats exist because of human negligence and abandonment. What we are saying is that if you are a cat owner, please keep your cat inside. That’s it. You don't have control over all the nature issues in the world, but this is one we CAN control. Each of us, on a local level, can improve things. We can control keeping our own cat indoors to be responsible for the local environment, and for the cat's safety, as well.

We are not encouraging any hatred towards cats, in fact the opposite. Encourage friends and family to keep cats indoors. Volunteer at your local cat rescue, they need help. There are more ferals and strays than any city or animal services can deal with, and the cats are homeless. Help cat rescues, their work reduces the feral population. When you help by volunteering and spreading education, maybe more people will keep cats indoors. The root of the issue is that breeding is allowed, then the abandonment of unfixed cats leads to even more breeding. People breeding cats is not helpful, and we feel laws should be amended to restrict breeding while there are so many cats being put down daily who can't find homes. The comments of advice here and there on the thread on how to keep cats away from your yard, is the same advice the Wildlife Resources Commission suggests to people, none of it is lethal, it teaches the predator a lesson and u may have better techniques, so use them, and obviously use common sense, were not saying use a method we suggest taken out of context or taken too far, or in a way that harms cats.

We are not vilinizing cats or trying to make cats look evil. The original picture we used was simply the sad, but actual, reality of the world. We want to encourage people to help stop it by keeping cats indoors. That is the message, and that's all it is — keep cats indoors. Many nations have allowed the cat populations to grow out of control by not keeping it in-check in the first place. We think the laws should catch up to help the issue. In each county, it should be asked why are we allowing so many locals to breed cats for profit, when there are so many on the streets. Yes, cats catch birds, but we need to fix the problem by lowering the number of feral, stray, and homeless cats, not hate cats. Our post was not intented to incite hatred towards cats. All of our volunteers have cats, and strays come onto the SkyWatch property. We spend time, money, and manpower ensuring all birds that are vulnerable to cats or any other predators are secured in predator-proof cages, and the free roaming birds on our property are not at-risk of being killed by cats.

This post might be uncomfortable, but we post about this important educational topic multiple times each summer. What we are explaining is why cats being outside is a problem, and how the solution at the end of the day is all of us. The first step you can take to be part of that solution is to keep your cat indoors, and share with others why they should, too. It's not just better for wildlife, it's also better for them.

15/04/2024

PLEASE SHARE!!!

This is becoming a weekly thing. Rushing here with another bird to have them PTS. This fledgling crow was hanging from a branch by the leg. 😞A Good Samaritan climbed the tree and had to cut off the branch this baby was attached to. The culprit? HUMAN HAIR! He hung there long enough to twist his poor leg out of its socket and turn it completely backwards, and the hair kept wrapping itself tighter and tighter around his foot and toes until if severed the the foot and his struggle broke several bones.

PLEASE DO NOT THROW HUMAN HAIR OUT OF YOUR BRUSH OUTSIDE!!! Birds will use it to line their nests and you are looking at the direct result. This baby is barely a month old and once more, I had to make the decision to end his suffering because these injuries are too severe to fix.

I don’t know what I’d do without my amazing vets here at Avian and Exotic Animal Hospital of Louisiana. My avian vet since I rescued my very first baby bird 20 years ago. Never too busy for me to drop off a poor critter suffering so much, they need to be PTS right away. Some rehabbers PTS themselves, but I personally cannot take a life, so I depend on my vet to end their pain.

It’s been a rough start to this year’s baby season.

15/04/2024

After the last feeding, last shot, and last medication for the day is given, this is what’s left at the end of today…

1) Baby starling and sparrow formula.
2) Baby finch formula.
3) Pain meds for pigeon with head trauma.
4) Formula for my scissor-beak chicken, Ewa, she’s strictly tube fed 3-4 times a day.
5) Antibiotic for a duck attacked by dog that was on the way. She didn’t make it.
6) Lactated Ringers for the dehydrated baby mallard someone kept in a box for 2 days without heat, food or water. Died in my hand.
7) Vitamin water and pain meds mixed together for pigeon with head trauma.
8 ) Baby sparrow feeding syringe.
9) Ivermectin pour on (it’s put on the skin) for mites on pigeon with head trauma.
10) Syringe used to drain fluid from neighbor’s hen’s abdomen.
11) Baby finch tube feeding syringe.
12) Antibiotic for neighbir’s hen with water belly.
13) Syringe used to inject that antibiotic.

A few pics of this past week’s rescues as well. Y’all, I’ve been so BUSY!

15/04/2024

THIS makes me so happy! A successful renesting of babies!!! I always try my best to reunite babies and fledglings with the parents, and only take them in if there are no other options. This made my day!

12/04/2024

Just got this poor baby from Slidell. Rushed him here to end his suffering ASAP. I’m just numb at this point and functioning on autopilot.

I know it needs to be done, but I can’t handle the pain it leaves in my heart.

Fly free, feathered baby!

12/04/2024

PLEASE SHARE and wish me luck. This is my newest baby and he’s the smallest.

11/04/2024

PLEASE SHARE!!!

This sweet baby was found on Tchopitoulas St. in New Orleans on April 9th. I really would like to reunite him with his owner if he was indeed lost and not intentionally set free. Proof of ownership required. He has a leg band. He is currently with me at Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue. He came in completely starved, exhausted and infested with mites. He’s been treated for the mites, checked over to ensure he had no injuries, and is safe, warm, and recovering from his scary ordeal in the outside world.

If this is your baby, please text me (504)723-3601.

10/04/2024

I’m hunkered down with the birds hoping we get through this storm safe and sound. Several of them are uneasy.

Got babies to feed every 20 minutes so they’ll keep me distracted.

After this storm passes, I’ll be flooded with calls about displaced and almost drowned and aspirated babies. Baby season is in full swing.

PLEASE keep an eye out for baby and young wildlife that may have lost their homes or been displaced during this storm! Some may need help and you’ll be their only hope.

I love storms! There’s something very calming about them. I’m just not a fan of the destruction they bring.

27/03/2024

Another one I had to bring in for euthanasia. This is a sweet hummer with a badly broken wing.

19/03/2024

Saying goodbye. I couldn’t fix Dana .😞 The only way she could keep herself upright was in the tub, and even then she could barely keep herself afloat.

I took the long way here. Gave her a gentle ride, had music playing and sang soothing songs to her. She let me rub her bill without pulling away, and she quacked at me.

And now, the GUILT. Yes, I KNOW I can’t save them all. I know she was suffering and the best thing to do is end their pain. I know I did all I could when I gave her pain meds and Toxiban, hoping this was just something she ingested and the charcoal would neutralize the toxin. I KNOW this was the right thing to do when I spent the past two nights listening to her falling on her back and thrashing around. I couldn’t WAIT for the vet to open. Telling myself she was suffering and it’s my duty to do the right thing.

But on the way here, we really connected. We locked eyes. And I wanted to keep her. So even though I know I did the right thing, this feeling won’t go away. The lump in my throat is starting to hurt. THIS one was special…

As was the last.
And the one before that.
Every single one I’ve brought here for their final journey from the time I started Kasia's Ark Bird Rescue, was the most special at that moment and they knew it because I did all I could to tell them that with my heart and my soul. Sleep peacefully, sweet girl.

15/03/2024

13/03/2024

Been on the road ALL day on bird rescue missions. Get back to New Orleans, pull into the driveway and all the cowbirds fly off of my feeders into the tree. I got out of the car, looked to see if I needed to refill the feeders, and I see a bird just sitting in the feeder, not moving. I start walking to the feeder asking, “Do you need help?” She was just sitting there all poofy in the bird feeder, eyes closed. Bad sign.

I just picked her right up. No visible injuries, she flies fine, but keeps falling asleep constantly. NOT a good sign. One pic shows head lopsided. Will treat for head injury and see how she is tomorrow. Once she recovers, I’ll release her back to her flock.

They literally fall into my arms from the sky. LITERALLY! This has happened time and time again over the years. She could have landed in all the other neighbors’ yards and I’d never have found her. But she chose MY bird feeders.

12/03/2024

Rushed here to get the poor Pekin duck that was attacked by a fox put to sleep. It was BAD. The idiot owner left her under the house to suffer instead of at least putting her in a box. She was covered in ants. It was BAD! The poor baby was DOA at the vet. Now I get to bury her before I even get a chance to help her. She was last year’s Easter present!😡🤬

I won’t post pics. But thanks to amazing people making donations, I was able to get more food for Hadley. She has to have special food because she’s missing her top beak, and she’s picky.😁

12/03/2024

Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue has adopted out 11 birds, ducks and chickens in the past 24 hours. I’ve been BUSY.

Tomorrow, I go out of town again to go pick up another owner surrender. It never ends. There are NO breaks. We need more local bird rescues as I’m already exhausted and baby season has just started. I haven’t gotten my first baby of the year just yet other than a baby Muscovy duck 2 weeks ago that had severe neurological issues, couldn’t self feed and sadly died the next day.

Donations are desperately needed. If you are able or willing, donations can be made through the following:

www.paypal.me/kasiasarkbirdrescue

Venmo -Ark
CashApp $KasiasArk

Thank you!!! ❤️❤️❤️

I’ll post pics of this sweet baby as soon as I pick him up.

12/02/2024

Great! Just what I need!
🙄🙄🙄

10/02/2024

Get BIRDS, they said. It’ll be FUN, they said…

I went to use the bathroom. Was gone maybe a minute and a half. Was working on my article when nature called.

I just can’t today…🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

28/04/2023

PLEASE SHARE!!!

EMERGENCY TRANSPORT NEEDED TONIGHT FROM HOUMA, LA TO KENNER, LA!!!

This sweet handsome boy needs to be gone by TONIGHT, or his fate is sealed, and it’s NOT a good one. There’s a wonderful home waiting for him in Kenner, but she doesn’t have a car and mine isn’t working, otherwise I’d do it. This baby deserves a good life as a pet where he is loved and happy.

If you or someone you know who loves animals and thinks they all deserve a chance, can give this baby a ride, PLEASE contact me by text ONLY since I’m not on here much. I’m currently swamped with babies so I’m only jumping on here to post this. (504)723-3601 and I’ll give you the details.

THANK YOU!!!

25/04/2023

PLEASE SHARE!!!

Had to bring in a beautiful adult cedar waxwing. Caught by a cat, severe injuries, bones sticking out of his side, right leg broken at the joint so just dangling. He needs to be PTS. His injuries are too severe.

Please keep your cats indoors! This is completely preventable. They are destroying our wildlife.

I was hoping he would pass overnight but this morning he was standing up eating and drinking.

It’s been. I stop for over 3 weeks now. Babies mangled so severely that they don’t even make it to me and die on the way.

I haven’t even had a chance to post my first rescue of the year, I’ve been so busy.

I’m in desperate need of supplies and donations. Last year when I lost my rescue, I lost everything that comes with it. Thousands of $$ worth of cages and other supplies.

Kasia's Ark Bird Rescue is mostly in need of first aid items. I need Lactated Ringers, iodine/betadine, gauze, various size syringes and needles for administering lactated ringers to birds that are crashing. So much death. My heart already broken and baby season barely started.

I need cat food (most baby birds eat a cat food based diet), live mealworms, live waxworms and crickets. Enrofloxacin is an antibiotic that has to be given to every bird that’s been in a cat’s mouth because cat saliva kills birds. baby bird formula, containers to turn into makeshift incubators, Rubbermaid clear ones with lids, several heating pads that DO NOT have the auto shut off after two hours, etc.

I’m putting together a list and hoping at least some of these items will be donated.

Monetary donations can be made through the following:

www.paypal.me/kasiasarkbirdrescue

Venmo -Ark
CashApp $KasiasArk

❤️❤️❤️ Thank You ❤️❤️❤️

14/04/2023

Here with Midnight, he got his sutures out from his toe amputation surgery last month.

The lovebirds that were abandoned at a hotel got a checkup since the female had what looked like a tumor. It’s just a fat pad and they both got a clean bill of health, the male is a little underweight but but they’ve been eating Harrison’s pellets since I’ve had them, so he should gain weight. They’re getting adopted.

Muscovy duck came in last month (I haven’t had time to post her) and had spiraled downhill since. Badly broken leg and it healed wrong. She is absolutely TERRIFIED of humans so even if she was a special need pet in a wheelchair, handling her daily is pure torture for her, so the decision was made to have her PTS. She thrashed around every time any human got near her.

I haven’t had time to post any of the rescues yet because I’ve been crazy busy. But there’s a LOT. I’m operating with bare minimum supplies and most of my rescues are scattered all over with several fosters. So I’m driving a LOT with a car that I keep having to borrow because mine is having major issues and I got stranded on top of the Huey P. Long bridge last month so now I’m too afraid to even use it. 🙄

Baby season is in full swing and I’m in desperate need of supplies, feed and formulas. If you can make a donation to help the babies coming in, it’ll be very much appreciated.

You can make a donation directly to my vet at Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital of Louisiana under my account (Katrina Perkowska) or Kasia’s Ark Bird Rescue by calling (504) 455-6386.

Or through the following:
www.paypal.me/kasiasarkbirdrescue

Venmo -Ark
CashApp $KasiasArk

❤️❤️❤️ Thank You ❤️❤️❤️

07/04/2023

PLEASE SHARE!!!

It’s that dreaded time of year again. The reason why a lot of rescues HATE Easter. People wanting to take cute Easter pics of their kids, so they go out and purchase baby chicks, baby ducks and baby bunnies. All for the sake of showing friends and family cute photos, but with absolutely NO REGARD for the little life they’ve bought and without educating themselves about proper care, diet and living requirements for these little innocent babies.

PLEASE do NOT buy your child/grandchild/niece/nephew a chick/duckling/bunny for Easter. Most of them end up dead within a week because kids are allowed to manhandle, play with and pretty much torture them to death. Not a pretty picture you want to associate with Easter?

Well, this is the REALITY we rescues deal with each and every year. people think it’s ok to DUMP these chicks, ducklings and bunnies at parks. You are handing them a death sentence when you to that. These babies do NOT have any survival skills. They do NOT belong in the wild. The “lucky” ones end up in the care of rescues such as myself. And even those come in with severe injuries, broken legs, ripped off wings from predators, and other horrible injuries. Some are close to death from starvation. Some got used to being around your family dog, so they show no fear of dogs.

Buy your child a chocolate bunny. Give them a stuffed animal. But DO NOT give living breathing baby chicks, ducks or bunnies unless you are fully committed to caring for them for the next 10-14 years. They are NOT a novelty item, and they are NOT disposable! Teach your children to love and respect all animals. Don’t teach them that it’s OK to go abandon them at the park because they have other ducks there. Parks have predators such as raccoons and they come out at night and rip apart any babies they find.

If you know anyone who did purchase an Easter chick or duckling and they no longer want them, PLEASE contact me at Kasia's Ark Bird Rescue and I’ll find them a forever home. Do NOT dispose of them at parks, by the lake, in the woods, etc.

They deserve better. Set an example and teach your kids that these babies deserve a home where they’ll be loved and cared for the entirety of their life, not just until the novelty wears off and the child gets bored with it. No parent should expect a small child to be fully responsible for a baby animal when they can’t even take care of themselves.

Dumping and abandoning your Easter (or other) pets is illegal and if caught, you can be fined $500 per animal!!!

I’m posting some pics of the ones I’ve rescued over the years.

03/04/2023

Well, the frizzle and the white silkie were nowhere to be found. Rebecca and I tried for over an hour to catch this girl. Talked to the park rangers and found out they have big raccoons on the island that have been killing chickens. We did find a bunch of white feathers by a tree. 😞 A young couple with 2 little girls asked if we needed help. They said they’re good “chicken wranglers” and have pet chickens at home. She outran us all.

When she headed towards the water, I took my phone out of my pocket and told everyone if she goes in the water, I’m going in after her. Well, she went in the water. So I went in after her. 😂😂😂

Rebecca just sent me pics she took of me rescuing this girl. 😂😂😂

02/04/2023

Rescued 4 of the 7 dumped chickens . Don’t have a net. Several people said they’d donate one, but I’ll just get one myself. I caught the 4 with my bare hands and I had to leave because I had made plans for the day with my sailing group. We are taking a tour of Grand Isle to see the recovery since hurricane Ida and letting our doggos have a day at the beach.

I’ll be going back this evening WITH a net to catch the other 3.

People dumping animals at parks or anywhere else should be arrested and fined! All they had to do was Google “bird/chicken/duck rescue New Orleans” and I’m the first one that pops up!

There’s one big girl left and the white frizzle and white silkie. I really want the white one. I’ll keep those pretty girls myself. I’ve been wanting another chicken or 2 since Miracolo is now gone.

31/03/2023

Today is a very emotional day for me.

Malutka would have turned 19 years old today. I lost my precious girl on March 11, 2021 and I miss her terribly!

She was my absolute everything and the one that started it all. She’s the reason Kasia's Ark Bird Rescue exists today.

Malutka was my very best friend. I can’t believe she’s gone.😞

30/03/2023

I’ve debated posting this, as it really upset me a great deal because a bird I was so desperately trying to save ended up dying.

Sunday while I was driving from Avondale to Raceland, to Slidell, etc. picking up birds, I was as also dealing with a psychopath texting and calling me nonstop. He claimed to have a sun conure he just had to get rid of ASAP. I’m posting all the screenshots from our hours long conversation. My nerves were shot dealing with him and the possibility that he did kill his bird. When I stopped responding to his texts, he called me over 30 times. At the end of the day, my nerves were completely SHOT and I was not only physically exhausted from all the running around, but also mentally spent dealing with his abuse.

He was EXTREMELY verbally abusive, so you may not want kids reading these texts.

I’m also showing how many missed calls I had from him.

I have a LOT of female rescuer/rehabber friends on here. Ladies, please be careful out there when going out to pick up rescues. You never know what mental state some of the callers are in and they can be very dangerous. Which is why I wanted him to meet me at the police station. He never showed.

I don’t know why so many people think I’m some sort of animal pickup service and that I get PAID to run a rescue. People couldn’t be more wrong. I’ve spent my last DIME on food for the birds more times than I can count. Rescuers do this out of love they have for the animals. We DO NOT get paid for it!!! We often spend our last $$$ on something one of our animals needs and end up going hungry ourselves. Because that’s just what rescuers do.