While we were returning home from Hartford last Friday, my wife, Cathy, noticed a large hawk-like bird lying lifeless in the middle of the road. It was a busy area with a shopping center on one side of the street. Cathy thought we should get it off the road so that it wouldn’t be run over and over again.

She turned the car around and as we pulled alongside the bird one of its wings fluttered and its eyes were open. As we got out of the car it made a valiant effort to fly. It was able to get off the road, which was fortunate for its survival. At this point I felt that the bird was critically wounded and wouldn’t survive. We felt that we had to at least get the bird to a veterinarian so that it could be humanely euthanized. We couldn’t leave it in the shopping center driveway to die.

Looking at its size (18-24”) and sharp beak and talons justified my apprehension about how to handle and restrain it, should it decide not to remain calm. Despite my safety concerns, I firmly grabbed it behind the head and put it into a fabric grocery bag. The bird remained calm. A pair of heavy leather gloves would have been a blessing at this time.

I kept my grip on its head and neck and placed it on the car floor in front of me, still inside the bag. Its eyes were open the entire time, and I began to think that just maybe it might survive. Cathy called our own veterinarian and the office referred us to a clinic that specializes in birds. It was only 10 minutes away, so off we went.

The trip seemed much longer to me. I had concerns about the hawk deciding to make a go for it, inside the car. Not a good situation if it happened. But it stayed calm the entire trip. I really feel that it put its trust in us.

Upon arriving at the clinic, I carefully closed the cloth bag around the hawk and let go of my grip on its head. “Hawk” performed like a champion. Once inside the clinic, it was taken by a veterinarian, who examined it thoroughly. When she brought it out for us to see, she said that she couldn’t find any broken bones or injuries, other than a little blood in the mouth. The blood, she said, could have come from its last meal.

We were told that the hawk would be kept for a few days and if it survived would then be given to a wildlife rehab facility and eventually released back where we found it.

I called the clinic on Monday to check on “Hawk’s” status and I was told that he is doing well. They think he is male because of its size. The clinic is now looking for a rehab facility. I’d hate to think what might have happened had we not intervened with Mother Nature. All’s well that ends well.