A young eagle was set free in Williams Lake today, Sept. 24, after one month of rehabilitation.
The eagle was rescued on the shore of the lake in late August after Ross and Beverly Cawley noticed it in their yard along South Lakeside Drive.
"It didn’t seem to want to fly away,” Ross said in an interview with the Tribune.
Guessing the eagle needed help, the Cawleys got in touch with Sue Burton, a local volunteer with Second Chance Wildlife Rescue, but they lost sight of the eagle before anything could be done.
The eagle returned the following day, and Ross said he was able to walk right up to it.
“He was in pretty bad shape,” Ross said about the bird, “I’d never seen an animal like that before.”
When he tried to catch it, the eagle couldn’t manage to fly further than the nearby shore. Ross was able to catch up to the bird and secure it in a laundry basket. The bird was later transferred to a dog kennel with Burton’s help and was sent to a recovery centre in Vancouver.
Ross’ guess is the bird was starving. Perhaps, he said, the bird never learned to hunt. Whatever the case, Ross said the bird seems strong now, despite its release this morning seeming somewhat “anti-climactic.”
The bird took its time when released, but: “when he did take off to fly, he didn’t have any issues,” Ross said.
