Red-Shouldered Hawk With Neurological Issues From Poisoning

The following story about a red-shouldered hawk was shared with us by Clinic For The Rehabilitation Of Wildlife in Florida.

This adult, 389-gram (about 13.7 ounces) red-shouldered hawk was admitted from Fort Myers, Florida, to the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) on October 15, 2024. The hawk was found weak and unresponsive in the finder’s yard.

Upon initial examination by the veterinary team, the hawk presented with severe neurologic symptoms and suspected rodenticide poisoning. Rodenticides poison not only small rodents but also harm wildlife like this hawk, causing severe neurological damage and dehydration.

The hawk received supportive care consisting of subcutaneous fluids, intravenous catheter for intravenous fluids, blood work, and artificial tears due to no palpebral reflex shown.

In addition to the supportive care, the hawk was also placed on a re-feeding plan of 2–5% body weight tube feeds at three times a day of EmerAid IC Carnivore due to the nutrient content this patient needed to recover. The patient’s neurologic mentation rendered them unable to eat on their own.

As the patient’s neurologic symptoms slowly recovered, the hawk was able to show appropriate mentation to transition from the liquid EmerAid diet to a whole prey diet. After eight days in care and gaining weight to be 433 grams (about 15.3 ounces), the hawk was ready to move to an outdoor flight enclosure prior to release.