This Tundra Swan’s story began with a remarkable collaboration between licensed rehabilitators. With treatment and YOUR help, we’re hopeful it will end with a strong flight and a long, healthy life in the wild.
On March 22nd, local rehabilitator Patrick Comfert, a founder of DCHS’s Wildlife Center program, noticed an adult Tundra Swan alone in a farm field near Stoughton. The swan was lethargic and did not attempt to fly away, clear signs that something was wrong. Patrick contacted the Wildlife Center for help, and volunteer Dylan Hughes jumped into action. While going out to rescue animals is not always possible, this time the resources and timing were right.
When he arrived, Dylan confirmed Patrick’s observations. The swan wasn’t able to evade and fly away, but they were still strong enough to try and outrun the predator trying to rescue them! A quick dash across the field and excellently timed netting, made this rescue a success – the swan was captured!
On arrival at the Wildlife Center, the swan was immediately quarantined to keep staff and all the other patients safe at DCHS. Wildlife Program Manager and licensed rehabilitator Jackie Edmunds completed a physical exam and diagnostics to check for lead toxicity and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, common ailments for this species. But the swan’s high-pitched vocalizations were a giveaway to what was wrong: it’s a symptom of lead toxicity.
The swan’s results came back within minutes on the in-house blood lead level analyzer – it was HIGH, so high that the machine could not give an accurate result. Lead toxicity can cause severe symptoms at very low levels, and the Wildlife Center will treat any patient with lead levels over 10 ug/dl. Treatment to remove these dangerously high lead levels began immediately for the swan, while a blood sample was also sent to the Wisconsin State Lab of Hygiene for an accurate level of toxicity. The result was shocking: a blood lead level greater than 200 ug/dl! This poor swan was in desperate need of rehabilitation and medical treatment to save their life.
Not only was this swan dealing with high lead toxicity, but they were also emaciated, suggesting that the toxicity had become a chronic problem leading to significant weight loss. To add to their list of problems, the swan was positive for a mild variant of avian influenza, too. While treatable with supportive care, it meant strict quarantine for two weeks, making cleaning, feeding, and providing medications a careful process that required a lot of personal protective gear for our team. Licensed rehabilitators, certified veterinary technicians, and UW Wildlife Medicine veterinarians jumped in together to support this swan.
Barely able to stand or walk, the swan needed significant hands-on support. Daily swim time allows a swan to drink, preen their feathers, and more easily move their legs and exercise - a little water aerobics! But this swan’s neurological symptoms were so bad they tipped sideways in the water, requiring staff to stay nearby to ensure their safety. After swimming, staff also completed physical therapy on the ground, helping to support the swan when standing. Licensed rehabilitator and CVT Kayla Salmon says of the progress made in the PT sessions, “It’s an incredible feat to watch. From only being able to stand with support initially to seeing them walking on their own and becoming more vocal – it was wonderful to see the healing progress.”
Despite the swan getting a little more active and responsive, they were not eating well, and their bloodwork was concerning with their level of emaciation. We turned to tube-feeding the swan to ensure they were getting the nutrition they needed to heal. Each day, staff prepared a specialized omnivore critical care formula to support their nutrition and tube-fed the swan twice a day. It took more than 10 days before significant weight gain was noted! In the meantime, staff researched diets and tried to prepare and present food in different ways to encourage the swan to self-feed.
While the swan was receiving physical therapy and nutritional support, the lead toxicity treatment remained vital. Chelation treatment, the process of using medications to bind the lead in the blood and remove it from the body, was administered twice a day for 14 days. As a large-bodied bird, the required chelation medications cost over $40 per day for this life-saving treatment.
With lead so high, the team was anxious to retest the blood lead level after the first two-week round of treatment. It was a joyous revelation to get the result – the lead levels were markedly improved! Since lead can be stored in the bones and organs, the swan was given a week off of chelation treatment to allow any lead to potentially leach out from where it was stored in the body and enter the bloodstream where it could be detected and removed with treatment. The third lead test showed what we expected – the toxicity levels were on the rise again.
While not unexpected, this rise indicated a chronic toxicity that could require many rounds of treatment and an extended stay in rehabilitation – a costly stay expected to reach $3,600. We can’t stop now.
The swan’s rehabilitation journey is just getting started and we need your help. The next phase of treatment is underway, and this feistier swan is back to vocalizing and hissing at staff. They are still too thin and receiving twice daily tube feeding, but they’ve graduated out of quarantine and get to have access to a pool for swimming 24-7. You can help this swan heal and take to the skies again!
DCHS's Wildlife Center has limited staffing and is 100% funded by generous donations made by members of our community. Any additional funds raised will be used to continue the work our Wildlife Center does every day to provide specialized care and treatment to sick, injured, and orphaned native Wisconsin wildlife.
