Bird

Our cat was tormenting a finch this afternoon. S saved the poor creature but its wing is injured and it cannot fly.

Ugh!!  

We put it in a small cage we keep for such situations and I put it in the bathroom in the dark for a couple of hours. Then I tried releasing it. It was energetic and feisty but could clearly not fly or balance itself. So we put it back in the cage.

We went to the pet store and bought some barley seeds. At the time we did not know what type of bird it was.

We came home and put the barley in the cage, and next thing the bird is happily eating it!  That was a really good sign. In fact, it kept eating it for a good long time. Then it got energized and began hopping around and trying to get out of the cage. So pathetic to watch.

The bird, named Sebastian, in a darkened room now with the door closed, hopefully resting. The cat is my bedroom.

Tomorrow I will call a wild bird rehabber and see what we can do. I cannot in good conscience, leave it outdoors, if it cannot fly. S wants to keep it as a pet, which I would not really mind, but I don't think we can keep wild birds as pets.

The rehabber is an hour (!) drive.  I am supper annoyed at my cat for having dumped this headache on me, with all of the job drama going on. I am also mad at myself for having allowed S to talk me into having a cat that likes to go outdoors. 

The earliest I can take the bird in is Jan 1 since I don't have time off tomorrow or Tue. Hopefully it will not be too late.

Update 12/30:

I was able to contact a rehabber who coincidentally had a volunteer in my city. We met outside Petco at 1pm and she took the little finch. He was perky and alert and moving around. If it was not for his wing which looked lopsided, he was very healthy. I am glad he is with the rehab people and will get cared for and I am optimistic for his recovery.