The Wildlife Recovery Association

[Nothern Saw-whet owl pictured]

The great yellow eyes stared back at my steel blue ones and I felt, at the same time, both glad and sad that the leather gloved fingers of Joe Rogers were wrapped tightly around each talon tipped leg of the beautiful Great Horned Owl. Glad, because they enabled me to get a wonderful view of this powerful predator with no danger to myself. Sad, because this amazing bird that God created will never again be able to fly free in the habitat that God designed it for. You see that owl, like all the other raptors we met that evening had been injured in one way or another and would not be able to survive on their own back in the wild. Before I go any farther however, let me give you a little background.


It was Tuesday, September 18 and we were on our way to the Seven Ponds Nature Center for a program presented by Joe and Barb Rogers, the founders of the Wildlife Recovery Association. The Association is dedicated to taking in injured wildlife, rehabilitating them, and if possible releasing them back into the wild. If they are too badly injured to be released they do their best to make them comfortable for the rest of their lives. At this time all of their patients are birds, raptors to be more specific.


On Tuesday, Mr. Rogers had brought a variety of birds of prey ranging in size from tiny Screech Owls and American Kestrels to a Turkey Vulture and Bald Eagle. The Kestrels were very excitable little fellows who kept flapping their wings for all they were worth and screaming at the tops of their little lungs. Each of the birds that Mr. Rogers uses on his presentations is injured in some that prevents its release. He would never bring a wild bird that can be released back to its natural habitat. Of the birds we met, the most common injury was permanently damaged wings, and a few of them were blind in one eye.
I tremendously enjoyed getting to see these amazing aspects of God’s handiwork up close. Every one of these beautiful birds was created to fit perfectly into its environment. The hawk has powerful stiff feathers to give it strong downward thrust so that it can fly fast enough to catch its prey. The owl’s feathers are much less stiff to enable it to fly silently so that it can stalk its prey.

I thank God for the variety and wisdom that He used in His creation. Also many thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Rogers for sharing their love for wildlife with us. May God bless you in your wonderful work.


~Josh Sauvé