trixie part 3

Trixie is doing Ok.
 I re-splinted her legs with ladies foam curlers, paper bandage tape and paper twist ties.
 She is adjusting. She can fly and can land as you can see (the first photo on her playgym). It will help strengthen her feet by gripping. I take her splints off occasionally to clean her legs, massage her legs and to put clean rollers/bandages on.
 I am still tube feeding her 20cc in the morning for extra nutrition but she may not need it since she will eat seed/pellets on her own (so long as I am there!). She will not eat all alone. She likes when I hold the bowl and tap the inside of the bowl. The same with the water. My finger must look like a beak dipping in the bowl.
As you can see I put a soft shelf for her in the second picture. She will fly up there herself and rest on it like a hammock. In the evening I give her a drop of liquid calcium for her growing bones. She loves when I take her out of the cage and cuddle her. When my "visitor" birds go home I will then bring her upstairs to join the flock. Right now she is still on quarantine. I have seen no more lice so that business is done.
It's very hot today, when it cools off later I will take her outside for fresh air and ambient sun.
I am feeling hopeful. She most likely will always be handicapped but so long as she can get around, balance and stand I think she will be fine.

dive #965 & 966 Aug 30 2015/dive #967 & 968 Sept 7 2015

dive #965 Aug 30 2015
My first dive back from Andros. All aboard Easy Diver we heading to our fav place to dive at Foley Cove . (More specifically "calf's cove)" to check out the photosynthesis of bubbling green algae. We had Fred, Chris, Pete, Andy, Lyndia and Myanna and John from froggies. Even John did a dive. The water was remarkable y warm at 65F at the surface.
dive#966 Aug 30 2015
What a difference in temperature at various locations. We anchored this dive off of naked man beach. BTW there were at least 3 ballickly men sunbathing on the rocks. The temp at 30 feet was 50F. It was clearer viz but God awful cold.


dive #967 Sept 7 2015
You would never know the summer was on it's way out by the heat and amount of boaters/beachers today. It had to be in the mid90'sF
We had Fred, Chris, Pete, Kate and her two students, and Jackie.We headed over to Foley. The water temp was 63F. The viz was poor. I did see quite a few large rock gunnels. Jackie said she saw a torpedo ray. I checked out Anna K's grave marker near the point under ledge at 25-30F. It was quite nice. The water temp at this depth was dramatic and COLD!
dive #968 Sept 7 2015 We stayed anchored in the same spot-which worked well for me. Kate was busy with her students. I checked along the wall looking for critters.I stayed shallow so I could enjoy the warmer water.Hopefully we will have a few more of these nice summery days.

Trixie part 2

Poor Trixie.
She was having such a hard time getting around. I spent time searching for ideas for different methods of splinting her legs but none of them worked. So I freed her legs in hopes she would adjust to her handicap. Unfortunately her 'good leg' was turning out and she would just flop about. My husband thought I was fussing about her too much that it was harmful to her well-being so I let her be last night.
In the morning I washed her, fed her and took her outside for sunshine. Her freed legs looked worse. She was crying and fussing about.I couldn't stand it and thought about what I should do. She was messing about in the carefresh and most of it would land in her food and water.I thought the carefresh would help her not slip but it did the opposite.
 So I bought some nonslip rubber liner and lined her cage plus I put a nubby towel down. I took a sistal perch and I sewed a layer of craft foam and soft mesh screen to it making  a soft shelf so she could get used to perching. I rolled towels around the edging so she could rest as well.
I then took a ladies foam curler rollers plus paper tape and made a new soft leg splint for her. She could now balance on one leg now. She seemed so much more comfortable like this. So far this seems like the best thing for her now. When I put her on the soft shelf perch she didn't cry but appeared to be (finally) comfortable. I am hopeful.

Trixie

Last saturday, Jody from the Cape Ann wildlife rehab called me to home a disabled baby pigeon. I was hesitant since I just came back from vacation and have been inundated with birdy boarders. With that being said, 99.9% of disabled pigeons end up getting euthanasia.I don't mind having a handicapped bird so long as they can feed themselves and not sit in their own poop. (As you know I already have a beakless pigeon.)
This splay leg baby has it's challenges.
 I took her to my vet right away thinking and hoping the legs could be corrected with surgery. But unfortunately the doctor said the prognosis was poor and did not recommend surgery. Her gram stains were normal but I noticed feather lice crawling on me so she got a drop of ivermectin and sevin powder dusted in her cage. Gross.
 The vet  did recommend supplements and calcium drops that may help her. She was doubtful the splint would help since her leg was so out of joint and the ligaments stretched.She is about 5 weeks old. She still has baby fuzz on her head and cries. She can lift off the ground by flying and can eat a little seed/pellets on her own. Although I have been soft tube feeding her in the morning  20 ml liquid combo of kaytee exact and "recover" formula (harrisons) for that extra nutrition.. I had lined the walls and ceiling of her cage with a soft screen mesh so she doesn't injure her wings when she flaps. The bottom of the cage is covered with carefresh ( soft cardboard mulch) (or a towel)
I've been taking her outside in the morning for morning sunshine and fresh air in a mini-cage.
I have been trying all kinds and methods of wrapping and splinting her legs so she can stand.I used paper surgical tape, paper twist ties and I even bought foam (ladies hair)rollers to cushion her legs.However, She would manage to kick them off, tumble and cry. I would wash her legs and rub vitamin E on the joints since they looks irritated. It has been more than frustrating because the reality is her legs will never be corrected so I either prop her up with splints for the rest of her life or let her adjust naturally to her handicap with her one bad leg facing straight behind her. It's a hard choice to make. I took her splints off tonight and placed her in a tiny basket. Hopefully she will be comfortable and she will be OK.
One day at a time.

Andros island part 3

*photos above are done by Alex Shure   copyright

A bird boarding client of mine (who has a blue fronted pionus) told me she and her husband had sailed and anchored at Small Hope bay a few years ago. She remembered the beautiful harbor and the unique batik fabric that is sold here at the island.
And I remember the sharks. (chuckle!)
Lots of them.
Just about every dive we did there were sharks present.
Mostly Caribbean reef sharks.
On our last wall dive the dive master spotted a large hammer head shark at the ledge. I didn't see it but I wished I had.
Midweek Alex, Patrick and I did the shark feeding dive. Robo and a young kid name Ethan (who reminded me of my nephew Joey) snorkled at the surface.
If you want one sure way to get sharks in the area throw a couple snorklers in the water-never mind the chumsicle.
The sharks were very VERY  interested in those two snorklers.
All of us divers positioned ourselves in a semi circle at 60 feet..and watched.
As you can see in the first photo *above, that is yours truly watching the sharks above circling the snorklers above.
I've got to say that Robo and Ethan had major cojones.
 I counted thirteen sharks circling the surface and every once in awhile one brave shark would get all" jerky" and dash out and grab their fins.
Holy crap!
Once the chumsicle was lowered down the sharks lost interest in them and began chewing up the block-o-fish. * as you can see in the second photo.
My husband did not do this dive. It's not his 'thing".  I,on the other hand, love stuff like this. I thought it was "wicked pissah!"
The dive master collected a few teeth that the sharks lost in the frenzy and gave me one.
Not only were there sharks present but giant groupers! I hadn't seen big groupers like this in over a decade.Wow!
I didn't want this dive trip to end.
On our last evening a pod of dolphins entered the bay. I ran out with the kids to check it out. I wanted to jump in the water and follow them but sensibility told me not to just in case they had babies with them.
It was such a gift to see them.
It was as if they were saying, "goodbye! Come back and see us again!"
hmmmmmm....

Andros island part 2

 Our adventure started at Fort Lauderdale entering our private charter. It accommodated only 8 passengers which was our entire team! However it turned out we were 100 pounds over loaded. This meant a good amount of luggage couldn't go with us. OMG! I ditched my tool kit, snorkle gear and my husband's entire scuba gear and books. Just about everyone else had to ditch what ever they could so we could get off the ground.
Oh boy!
We were off on an adventure. I've got to say, it was a little scary on this plane. It was little like being on a scary carnival ride  especially when the pilot turned sideways so Alex could get an aerial shot. I almost pooped my pants.
The island of Andros is the largest island in the Bahamas. However, most of the island is inhabitable. It is one big mangrove jungle with "blue holes" (sink holes). I think the lodging we stayed at (Small Hope Bay) is the island's only guest house.
The lodgings were simple but comfortable. I believe if you asked for air conditioning it was provided but only per request. Electricity is at a premium. The Cayman island and Bonaire were both like this 20 years ago as well. We  did have nice big fans blowing on us (which I prefer) at night. The rooms were supplied with  giant jugs of drinking water in our room as well. Since it is a mangrove  jungle island you can expect bugs. The lodge provided skin-so-soft spray to keep the no-see-ums at bay. My husband gets eaten alive. For some reason the bugs love to munch on him. They must like Thai food. So as a precaution I brought "bug off" wipes for him. The bugs pretty much left me alone except this one spot behind my knee.
 Speaking of munching, the food at the lodge was tasty and plentiful. They had vegetarian dishes on the side that worked A OK for me! Some of the guests that stayed at the lodge as well enjoyed the" adult beverages". There were a few "bar flies" that never seemed to move from the bar no matter what time of day. I can not imagine why anyone would want to spend the time getting drunk on vacation. I can understand having "a cocktail" like you would have an ice cream sundae for a "treat". Some people are odd.
The blue holes are one of the interesting features of this island. One afternoon we had a cab take us to a Blue hole that had a cliff. This was "Robos" idea.
I was glad she suggested it. We all jumped off this ledge that was pretty high up into a what looked like a quarry. It was a blast! I jumped off three times. I could've done it all day. I felt like I was 13 years old again swinging off the rope swing at the Mystics (that was illegal)
Another fun thing we did was the shark feeding dive (which I will continue on in the next post)

dive #952-964 Andros island adventure

I don't know how to begin to tell my story of our adventures in Andros Island (Small hope bay) in the Bahamas. There is so much to tell.
Fred and Chris so generously invited both my husband and I to join the team in the filming of the 185 foot wall dive. It was on Fred's "bucket list" to recapture the original dive descent/ascent filming that won him an award at a film festival many years ago.
 And to go on this trip was also on my "bucket list"
And so this trip turned out to be one nonstop BLAST!
I would have to say this was the best trip I've been on..and I've been on some really good ones!
I think, mostly because of the company I was with. We worked well as a team and ALWAYS had funny stories to share in our spare time. I never had time to even look at any of the magazine I brought. If I wasn't diving then I was swimming if I wasn't swimming I was hanging out with our group talking, laughing, making jokes and checking out film footage or we were off to another exciting adventure. We did more adventurous stuff in one week than 99.9% of the general population does in a lifetime.
The main purpose of the this trip was to dive and film the wall. Fred was pretty specific in how he wanted this done all the way to what equipment we would (or would not) be using. I will admit I was a little nervous about going down that deep but we, as a group, talked about so I felt pretty confident after that.
I used a 60cc tank, wore just a backpack (no BCD), one regulator, air/depth guage, six pounds of weight on a weight belt, force fins and a simple one piece black "Ester Williams type of bathing suit.
Chris filmed and directed how and where she wanted us positioned. Alex filmed hovering the wall. My ears for the most part behaved. I "exercised them" prior to the descents. As long as I went down on a easy descent I was OK. I did feel at about (about 135 feet although I refused to look at my depth guage in fear of freaking out) some pressure on the back of my neck and head. I also got a "little loopy" once I reached the ledge. I believe this was what you would called being'narked". I understood what it was so I dealt with it.
The filming for the most part went smoothly. We had only one "three stooges"  incident that all of a sudden we bolted down. I had a hard time clearing my ears at this rate of descent and when I finally did get down to the ledge I got completely narked. The holes on the walls turned into "Clutch cargo' mouths talking to me. Patrick knew something was off with me and kept an eye out.
That was one odd sensation.
We did these deep dives at the crack of dawn. I would study the dive tables to make sure we could dive later in the day. The 2:00 dives seem to work out fine. All these dives had curious reef sharks. That was a bonus (at least for me).
(I will continue on to another post)*