Agnew Acres

An adult Bald Eagle is currently in recovery at Tamarack after suffering from lead poisoning. Nicknamed "Hot Sauce" for his fiery personality, this eagle was f...ound in a soy bean field by a local State Game Warden in Lawrence County. Upon admission, the eagle was lethargic and unable to fly. Using our new blood lead test machine we discovered that he had moderate levels of lead toxicity. He was rushed to Dr. Consla for x-rays where we fortunately discovered that there was no lead remaining in his GI tract. The farmer who reported this eagle was sick, mentioned he shot woodchucks and was amazed how quickly the eagles would come to eat them, not realizing this could be fatal to them. Eagles become poisoned when they accidentally ingest lead as they scavenge for food, eating remains of animals shot with lead ammunition, or fish containing a lead sinker or jig. At this time of year, eating shot woodchucks appears to be the largest source. Together with the Game Commission we are engaged in a public education effort to help people understand the source of poisoning and how to prevent it: bury shot remains or switch to non-lead ammo; and if you fish, avoid using lead. Kudos to the PGC for producing a video and flyer on this topic in the last year. While all of our lead poisoned Bald Eagles have a guarded prognosis, we are hopeful for a full recovery. Hot Sauce is currently receiving care by rehabilitation staff several times a day and cage rest. His blood lead levels will be rechecked after several days of treatment. We want to thank everyone involved with this Bald Eagle including Dr. Consla and the team at Conneaut Lake Veterinary Hospital, State Game Warden Gibbs, and all of the Tamarack volunteers who have signed up for extra hours to help with his care. We also want to thank everyone who supported our fund to purchase a new LeadCare machine which allows us to quickly assess blood lead levels in many of our raptors.