SOOC Saturday - Hummer Update

SOOC stands for "Straight out of camera." No editing. Not only is this straight out of the camera with no editing, it's from my cell phone. Not bad for a techincally challenged individual such as myself. Note the man hands that I have, along with my really snazzy men's pj pants that are my Saturday uniform.

This is my little hummingbird. Yes, I know I said I'd call Wildlife Rescue. But yesterday he was doing SO well...loved to drink; bought him some nectar. The whole other plumbing (elimination) end of him was working too. Compared to this one's, Chuck left cow paddies. And I think he has a name now. I have been calling him Humpfrey. My kids are calling him Chuck II or Chuck Jr. You all know that I can't really have any kind of , well anything, thing around without naming him, right? His back is roughly the same color as Chuck I's. HOWEVER--I do believe that he is a she. So Chuck II could work....it could be short for Charlene, right? According to a google of "what do wild hummingbirds eat" I need to find a supply of small insects for him for protein. The whole moistened dry cat food thing didn't work. Wonder if I could just mix some protein powder in his nectar. I know...I can hear you all telling me to call Wildlife Rescue. Can't I just put an old banana in the bottom of his cage to get some fruit fly action? Hmmm.....

This morning when I got up, he was not doing well. Not well at all. He had both little eyes squeezed tightly shut and he was all puffy feathered (see photo). Ted and I were sure he was on his way out. We even talked about how not feeding him and just letting him go might be the most humane thing to do. But I just couldn't. I don't think animals have souls like human beings and I don't believe that All Dogs Go to Heaven, but that seemed like a sad and lonely thing to do. I cuddled him in my hands for about an hour, and then Amy took over. Rather than feeding him every 20 minutes (tho' yesterday, he was flitting around the cage and getting his own nectar when ever he pleased), we put the syringe over his little beak every minute or two. Instead of gulp gulp gulp with the tongue as long as his whole body, he would flick it out just a tiny bit and sip. Then all at once, he seemed to wake up, did the gulpy-gulpy thing and opened one eye. We had to run a few errands so we put some cotton-poly batting and an old sock in a box in the bottom of his cage so he could keep warm and by the time we got home, both eyes were opened. He's hopping around a little now and back to big time gulpy-gulpy. Now, I know that My ADHD Me thinks we have covert agents lurking around and suspect she may be right, so I am throwing myself and my family on your mercy by asking you not to turn us in to the feds for harboring a hummer. The WLR clinic is open only minimal hours during the winter months and I haven't been able to drive there while they are open. Yeah, that's it...I still can't drive....(read that last part out loud with a John Lovitz accent).

Check out Melody's SOOC Mr. Linky and leave some chit-chats for the nice folks over there.

Have a great weekend!