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“I can’t imagine having half my face ripped off and then going about business as usual,” is how Dayna Slater expresses her admiration for a crow that has warded off capture for several weeks.
“That bird is a boss.”
Slater is the founder of Good Caws Crow Rescue in Prince George, B.C., and the crow in question is Riven, who first came onto Slater’s radar in early March.
Riven — a word that means split or ruptured — caught the attention of some volunteers when they noticed the bottom half of her beak was dangling off her face, leading to fears she would be unable to feed and groom herself.
Watch groups were formed with Slater and others trying to lure Riven to them with food in the hopes she could be repaired and rehabilitated.
But, “it came very obvious that she caught onto us [and] she just wasn’t having us,” Slater told CBC Radio West host Sarah Penton this week. “So we decided to take a step back and monitor her from a distance.”
Radio West10:20Update on Riven, the crow in Prince George with half her beak broken
Dayna Slater is the founder of Good Caws Rescue Society in Prince George. She says Riven avoided capture and seems to be doing just fine on her own.
The broken beak is still dangling and will likely soon fall off, Slater said, but recent videos show that Riven has learned to adapt by using the nub as a scoop and then leaning to the side in order for food to go down.
Her feather condition is also “beautiful,” Slater said, “so either she’s figured out preening or her family is preening her for her.”
A raven in the care of Good Caws Crow Rescue in Prince George, B.C. has started saying his own name — and imitating the sneeze of the rescue’s founder.
That, Slater said, is key because preening allows feathers to stay in good condition for both waterproofing and flight.
She said the rescue will continue to keep an eye on Riven to make sure she remains in good condition, particularly when the transition to fall and winter comes, but in the meantime Slater’s happy to have seen a good outcome without the need for intervention.
“That bird blows my mind because people would be in, you know, multiple doctors appointments, painkillers, rehab, counselling appointments for years,” Slater said. ” And she just walked this off.”
