{"id":132712,"date":"2025-11-14T09:35:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T09:35:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/132712\/"},"modified":"2025-11-14T09:35:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T09:35:11","slug":"kayaker-pulls-injured-animal-from-pile-of-sludge-and-rushes-her-to-safety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/132712\/","title":{"rendered":"Kayaker Pulls Injured Animal From Pile Of Sludge And Rushes Her To Safety"},"content":{"rendered":"

In early November, a pelican in Iowa found herself in a very sticky situation. Perhaps hoping for a quick break from patrolling the Des Moines River for food, she sat down in debris piled up under a pedestrian bridge.<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the pelican\u2019s lower half got stuck in the sludge of the debris pile. Despite flapping her wings and wiggling back and forth, she could not get out on her own.<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

Luckily, Des Moines residents crossing the bridge noticed the bird in distress and called Iowa Bird Rehabilitation (IBR)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThroughout the day, we received several calls,\u201d Jenni Boonjakuakul, founder and director of IBR, told The Dodo. \u201cWe always ask for photos to confirm we\u2019re talking about the same bird.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sure enough, concerned locals sent in many pictures of the same pelican, caught in the gunk.<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

Though Boonjakuakul hasn\u2019t seen birds caught in debris like this before, it\u2019s not entirely surprising to her.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen river levels drop this time of year, we often see these \u2018log and trash jams\u2019 form,\u201d she said. \u201cThey can definitely become hazards for wildlife.\u201d<\/p>\n

IBR reached out to its experienced volunteers for help \u2014 specifically to Rickie, who asked that we not use her last name. She has extensive kayaking experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been kayaking recreationally for about 10 years,\u201d Rickie told The Dodo. \u201cSince volunteering, I purchased a hardshell kayak to not risk any punctures from debris or birds.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the past two years, Rickie has rescued geese, ducks and swans, but this was the first call about a pelican. When she got the call around 4:30 p.m., she rushed to the bridge to meet another IBR volunteer.<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t know if she could fly, so I didn\u2019t want to approach too quickly and scare her,\u201d Rickie said. \u201cI also didn\u2019t want to approach too [slowly] and miss my chance. She was just out of reach of my net when she started to try and get away, and at that point, it became very clear how bad of shape she was in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rickie expertly netted the panicked pelican and pulled her safely into the kayak.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt took me a few minutes after getting her into my kayak to get her positioned safely,\u201d Rickie said. \u201cI was able to secure her in the shell of my kayak, and I put my legs over top of her to keep her from moving around too much.\u201d<\/p>\n

As they paddled back to shore, against the current, the bird gave in to exhaustion.<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

\u201cBirds rescued from situations like this are usually completely worn out by the time we get to them,\u201d Boonjakuakal said. She estimated the pelican had been stuck since the previous night or early that morning.<\/p>\n

At IBR\u2019s clinic, the veterinary team discovered both of the bird\u2019s legs were fractured. Scared and tired, the pelican didn\u2019t have an appetite. Boonjakuakal said they hand-fed her to make sure she got nutrients.<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

They also set her up with splints, a wheelchair and a new name: Shrimp.<\/p>\n

After two tough days at IBR, Shrimp\u2019s condition improved dramatically.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe relaxed, began trusting us and then started picking up fish from her dish all by herself,\u201d Boonjakuakal said. \u201cThat\u2019s always a big moment for us, when a bird finally feels safe enough to eat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Staff have also seen Shrimp\u2019s personality come to life.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s sweet and calm, but not afraid to snap if you get too close,\u201d Boonjakuakal said. \u201cHer brown eyes are bright and curious; she watches us closely as we clean or bring fresh water.\u201d<\/p>\n

Iowa Bird Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

Though Shrimp isn\u2019t out of the woods yet, Boonjakuakal is hopeful the feisty bird will be able to walk again once her legs have healed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t mind the feistiness,\u201d Boonjakuakal said. \u201cStaying a bit wild is a good thing. It tells us she\u2019s feeling stronger, and that\u2019s exactly what we want.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you’d like to support Iowa Bird Rehabilitation, you can donate to their efforts via their website<\/a>.\u00a0\"Carpenter<\/a>Carpenter Refuses To Leave Deer Trapped In Ravine, So She Builds A Stairway Out”He knew we were there to help him.”<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In early November, a pelican in Iowa found herself in a very sticky situation. Perhaps hoping for a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":132713,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[9544,85,46,20623,62414,82911,9893,141,2865,9542,82912,70954,386,58457],"class_list":{"0":"post-132712","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-daily-dodo","9":"tag-il","10":"tag-israel","11":"tag-kayak","12":"tag-pelican","13":"tag-pelican-rescue","14":"tag-sarah-ashley","15":"tag-science","16":"tag-standard","17":"tag-the-dodo","18":"tag-wild-bird-rescue","19":"tag-wild-birds","20":"tag-wildlife","21":"tag-wildlife-rescue"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132712\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/132713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=132712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=132712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}