Tangled Update:

On February 8, 2011 our Great Horned Owl from our January blog titled “Tangled” went to Eye Care for Animals to get an eye exam from Dr. Collins, an animal eye expert. He found a small corneal lesion on her right eye (her good eye), but believed that it does not cause her any vision problems. Her left eye (the eye that was damaged when she came in) showed some retinal scarring and signs of a cataract that was miraculously almost completely dissolved. She has a positive response to light in her left eye, which is a very good sign!
Dr. Collins finished up with a fluorescein stain to check for small scratches to the cornea and an inner eye pressure test on both eyes. After both tests were finished Dr. Collins give his approval that the eye is not causing her any pain and that he didn’t see why she could not be released considering the conditions of the eye currently.

That is music to all our ears! All she needs to do is to continue to grow in new feathers down her leg before she can be released into the bitter Wisconsin weather!

Guest Blogger M.F.

Don't worry about our brave owl friend who's been through so much being released back into the cold. Great Horned Owls stick around all year long and are designed to handle the cold. Plus - February is a month for romance when it comes to these Owls, perhaps someone out there will be overjoyed upon her return...

Notice: Today’s Groundhog Day event has been cancelled

Groundhog Day is today and everyone is wondering, where’s Waldo?

He’ll be snoozing in his favorite log; he’s heard about the blizzard outside and has chosen to sleep in today. I think it’s safe to say that he will not see his shadow even if he does emerge for breakfast; or lunch. No shadow means an early spring!

We have regrettably cancelled the planned education programming and celebrations at the Elks Lodge due to today's winter storm.

The celebration of Groundhog Day arose from a variety of traditions, including some religious, some seasonal and most importantly, observational. It gradually became a time when both people as well as animals emerged from their winter slumber to welcome the strengthening sunshine, only to return in wait for the actual coming of spring. Groundhog Day is now held annually on February 2nd which also happens to be the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. The most important thing is that the observance of this day gives those of us in colder climates an excuse to celebrate, breaking up the monotony that leads to spring fever.

We Wisconsinites will have to settle for the next Packers match-up to lift our spirits instead. Waldo and his fellow animal ambassadors have been hosting pep-rallies for our selfless volunteers who come in on game days. In addition to predicting an early spring Waldo also predicts that his favorite team, the Packers, will win Sunday’s game 35-21. He’ll be sound asleep in his favorite log for most of it, but we’ll tell him who won when he wakes up.

Daphne, as quarterback, is a force to be reckoned with



Slither is all over the ball!



Jewel always picks the role of half-back



Waldo waits for the hike...



and tackles the ball to the ground!



While Pecan is busy preparing for the celebration party!

What Woodchucks do on Wednesday

 

What to do on a Wednesday...Wednesday, February 2nd...well go see Waldo come out of his burrow of course. Waldo, Wildlife In Need's famous woodchuck who predicts the weather, will be coming out of his burrow at 11:00am on February 2nd at the Elk's Lodge. WINC has teamed up with the Ground Hog Club to celebrate this whimsical holiday by having Waldo pop out of his burrow in front of school children, the Ground Hog Club and anyone else who would like to attend to see Waldo tell us whether we will have six more weeks of Winter or an early Spring.

Waldo is a three year old woodchuck who came to the Center as an imprint. He was found in a campground and taken in by some RV campers for the summer. When they learned they could not keep Waldo, he was brought to the Center so that we could "wild him up" but our efforts were unsuccessful. Waldo then joined the educational staff and ventures out to many venues to teach the importance of leaving the wildlife in the wild.

Preceding Waldo's prediction will be an educational program featuring all the other educational animal ambassadors from the Center at 10:00am. Come and join all of Waldo's friends as we all try to awaken from our winter burrows and celebrate Ground Hog's Day at the Elk's Lodge on Spring Dale Road in Waukesha.

Guest Blogger L.K.

Waldo predicting the weather, Groundhog Day 2010