Our Raptor Hospital recently admitted a young Eastern Screech Owl who seemed perfectly healthy, but had been found grounded inside a cat enclosure. That clue led our team to suspect the owl had an unfortunate encounter with a cat. Cat saliva carries bacteria that can harm small wildlife, so our team immediately started preventative antibiotics and close observation.
We soon discovered a wound forming on the owl’s face. A full exam revealed that the injury was on the cere, the soft tissue above the beak where the nostrils are, and part of the bone was exposed.
Our team quickly got to work, applying a Duoderm wound dressing to protect the bone, keep the area moist, and promote healthy skin growth. After several weeks of treatment and antibiotics, this little owl made a complete recovery and was released back into the wild at the end of September!
What’s that thing??
Not sure if this is a quote for the Screech Owl or a question about the Duoderm, so I’ll cover the Duoderm. Otherwise, disregard! 😜
Duoderm is a bandage meant for helping to heal wounds with drainage. It has a waterproof outer layer, a foam cushioning layer, and a matrix that forms a gel maintaining good moisture levels at the wound to promote healing and comfort. Product info page at that link with some fancier details.
Lol. Thanks for the information. I should have used quotes, I was talking about the darling’s expression!
I thought that was your intent, but I piqued my own interest thinking it may be the duoderm since that’s a new thing for us to look at.
Now we’ve gotten the best of both possibilities!
🫶
Thank you!
I can only take credit for sharing the story. I have visited Carolina Raptor Center though and it was an amazing place with very lovely people working there.
