Birds of a Feather . . .

 

The bluebirds above are being rehabbed by Lucky and Sabrina Garvin who established “Second Chance for Wildlife Rescue” in 2000 after working with another local animal rescue group for several years. Lucky Garvin is an ER doctor at Lewis Gale Medical Center and also a regular contributing columnist for this newspaper.

Lucky and wife Sabrina perform a special brand of magic in their corner of the world – taking care of wild creatures whose lives are often hanging by a thread and restoring them not only to life but to eventual freedom in most cases.

Behind Lucky’s more public persona, Sabrina has been toiling and sacrificing in order to keep up with the animal rescue facility they maintain adjacent to their home. Lucky explains, “We have a large sun-filled room with its own kitchen for preparing diets as well as a separate entrance for rescuers to bring in the animals. We have 13 acres of land, and many juveniles are released here.”

It is hard to imagine how someone who might otherwise be considering retirement is locked into a regimen that is not for the faint of heart: “A typical day with baby birds starts about 6:30 a.m., with the last feeding around 8:30 p.m.,” said Sabrina.  Baby songbirds (hatchlings) require feedings every 20 to 30 minutes.  As the birds grow the feedings are spread to 45 minutes to 1 hour. Then, the animals are moved to outside caging.”

The couple handles thousands of phone calls per year which requires identifying the animals that need to come in or be left alone, scheduling volunteers and calling other rehabbers.

For more information or to make a donation contact  the  Garvins at [email protected] or call  540-798-9836.

 

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