Crows poisoned by downtown drug litter

“We’re seeing an increase in birds that are scavenging. They’re looking for packages from food and leftovers that are left down there in the garbage,” she said. “Right now, with the increase in drug use, they can’t tell the difference between the pieces of foil and the baggies for narcotics and food.”

She said nobody is targeting the birds.

“We don’t believe this is intentional in any way, shape or form. It is an unfortunate accident,” Calvert said.

The effects can be severe. Calvert said poisoned birds thrash around, injure themselves, and sometimes stop breathing.

“With the drug intoxication, they’re in sheer panic,” she said. “They don’t understand what’s happening to them. They’re just in a blind panic.”

Calvert said some birds quickly lose consciousness. Most recover and are released, but they wake up confused in a cage.

“When they come out of it, they’re confused. They’re in a cage. They don’t know how they got there. They’re scared,” she said. “These are still wild animals.”

Calvert disagreed with comparisons to springtime, when birds eat fermented berries and seem drunk. She said that behaviour has happened for centuries and just makes the birds relax. Drug poisoning is very different.

“It’s pretty devastating to watch,” she said.

She said the birds recover completely once the drug wears off, which is how the rescue rules out illness.

Calvert said the risk is not limited to crows and gulls. Foxes could also be affected, and she once had to scare a bear away from an encampment while working downtown.

“Any animal that scavenges, literally any that knows that they can find food where there are people, is at risk,” she said.

She also warned that people could be in danger.

“This is something that could affect people’s pets and newcomers to the city that don’t know about these things, Calvert said that more street cleaning downtown would help. She also suggested that reopening St. Vincent for indoor dining, as it was before COVID-19, could make a difference. It was before COVID-19.

The rescue group is also asking people not to try treating sick birds on their own.

“A lot of people’s first response is to give them food and water. Sometimes that’s the worst thing you can do,” Calvert said. “These animals are in shock. They might not be able to swallow. They might aspirate.”

She asked people to call the rescue immediately instead. Calvert said Good Caws is, to her knowledge, the only registered corvid rescue in Canada.

The group is a non-profit with no funding and relies completely on donations. Calvert said local tattoo artists and a printer have helped. She said the group needs volunteers who are willing to do physical work, like cleaning kennels, building, and yard work. She added that it is more than a full-time job, and everyone is a volunteer. time job, and nobody is paid.

Calvert also warned that crows are not pets, and the goal is always release.

“We can’t do that if they become too accustomed to people,” she said.

She said crows clean up roadkill and warn other animals about threats.

“They have their own societies. They have their own family units, laws,” Calvert said. “It’s really incredible to watch them.”

by Dave Branco

Crows poisoned by downtown drug litter

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