Bald Eagle Rescued By Oklahoma Family Released 4 Months Later

Tuesday, February 26th 2019, 6:28 pm

By: Clayton Cummins

A bald eagle has been released back into the wild after spending nearly four months in rehab.

The bald eagle was taken to the WildCare Founation in Noble on October 29. A family found the bird in a pond north of Lindsay nearly unresponsive.

The Burns Family contacted the game warden before the bald eagle was taken to WildCare.

“It was really breathtaking,” said Stanley Burns in a November 5 interview with News 9. “When I got a hold of him, I had no idea how strong the birds can be. It was all a big guy like me could hold onto as bad of shape as he was in.”

A crowd of nearly 100 people gathered as the eagle was released back into the wild Tuesday at Wiley Post Lake in Wayne.

"We've called nearly weekly checking on her progress because we keep seeing her mates," said Burns. "The other ones are down there just wondering when she's going to get well and come home."

Veterinarians believe the bald eagle may have suffered some sort of head trauma. An X-ray revealed no bones were broken.

While in rehab, the bald eagle learned new foods, feeding techniques and built up muscle for the big day.

"We do get eagles in from time to time at WildCare but not every day do we get to release them back out," said Rondi Large, Director of the WildCare Foundation. "So, today was a very special moment to be able to give this bird her freedom back."

The bald eagle has been named after Joan Wiley, the benefactor of the Kirkpatrick Foundation.

"To be able to put the time and resources into them and give them their freedom back and their life back the way it was meant to be in the wild, it is an awesome pleasure to be able to work with these animals," said Large.

Click here for more information and how you can donate to the WildCare Foundation.