This was Joe a day or two after I found him standing in the middle of a busy road near my house. I made my husband stop so I could rescue him from the center line. There were no other crows around and he was very weak. He was just a fledgling and couldn’t feed himself or fly. I had to hand feed him. This photo was taken in my office. He had to be fed every hour or so or he’d die, and I couldn’t leave him at home. So I carried him back and forth to work until he started eating on his own. My boss is a softie when it comes to animals, and has had to deal with several different kinds over the past 7 years I’ve been employed here. It’s just a given when it comes to me.
Anyway, Joe recognized me as his “mother” and would “dance” coo, and “talk” to me. I eventually moved him outdoors into a very large pen (6 feet tall by about 12’ long, about 8 feet wide) so he could fly. I was prepping him for his eventual freedom. I got him used to all kinds of foods (including grub worms and crickets – and I DON’T like bugs – so this was a huge sacrifice on my part). I researched his dietary needs, and got him used to eating out of paper wrappings – like from McDonalds, and out of Styrofoam containers too – since Crows are scavengers and opportunists.
I began turning him out of the cage while I was home to protect him. He had no fear of anything, not even his natural predators (like humans, dogs, cats). So I had to keep rescuing him. Even when turned out, he would fly up to me, perch on my hand, and allow me to walk him back to his pen (which he really loved). I also brought him “toys” since crows love shiny objects. He had a big hollowed out stump that he hid his toys in. He’d fly up to me, take the toy, admire it, drop it in his stump, and then fly back for another toy. He liked me to scratch his neck and would close his eyes and mimic me, saying “ahhhhhh…” It was pretty funny to see and hear!
Anyway, I guess I’ve had him about a year or so. Crows are illegal to keep because they are considered migratory birds. But, I figured I would get away with a fine if someone ever turned me in, because it was clear that Joe was well taken care of. Hell, he had a fountain in his pen during the summer so he could bathe in the spray. You can sell crows on the black market, especially tame ones like Joe for about $1500. But I could never do that to him. At the local feed store there is a crow named Annie who was rescued about 20 years ago. She sits in a large parrot cage all day. Crows are highly intelligent birds; can you imagine a worse fate for a wild creature with intelligence? Even well fed and cared for – to lose your freedom and stagnate inside a cramped cage where you can’t even fly… well I feel sorry for her. I never wanted that for my Joe, and I’ve had several people try to buy him from me.
So, that’s the basic Joe story. Here’s a photo of him I took during our snow in January. It’s not a great pic – he was “talking”.
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