Purple Finch

In the spring of 2008, I took in a female Purple Finch.  She had flown into a window and broken her wing.  Our veterinarian bandaged the wing and bound it to the bird’s body.  This finch was going to have nothing to do with being wrapped.  Each day, after I had replaced it, the bandage would be in tatters the next morning.  Apparently a lot of sleepless nights went into the deconstruction of her wrap.  I don’t like to handle a bird any more than I absolutely have to, as handling is very stressful for the bird.  Finally, the vet and I decided to just leave her alone and let time heal the wing (hopefully).  She started to try and use her wing after a couple of weeks but was flying rather lopsided.  We thought that clipping a few feathers on the opposite side would force her to “re-balance” and use both wings equally.  This worked well and she was able to be released in early August.