Sudbury·Video

Trumpeter swan rescued, but injuries mean he can never fly again

Lively’s Wild at Heart animal refuge centre has a rare visitor in its care — a trumpeter swan.

Bird found with broken wing, will not return to the wild

A trumpeter swan is being cared for at the Wild at Heart Refuge Centre in Greater Sudbury. (Jenifer Norwell/CBC)
Lively's Wild at Heart Refuge Centre is hosting a trumpeter swan that was living in a wetland near the smelter in the small community of Falconbridge.

Lively’s Wild at Heart animal refuge centre has a rare visitor in its care — a trumpeter swan.

Gloria Morissette, the animal care manager at the Sudbury area centre, said the swan was found in a wetland area in Falconbridge.

“He couldn’t take off with his parents [because] he had a double break on his wing,” she said. “He had a break at the elbow and the wrist and it didn’t heal properly.”

The swan was rescued and brought to the Walden Animal Hospital to be treated.

As for the break in his wings, it was too late for veterinarians to help.

“Birds wings ... calcify. The breaks heal themselves very quickly,” she said. “[But] by the time we got [to] them, they were considered an old break.”

That means the swan won’t fly again, and he won’t be released into the wild.

“The good news is he’s found a permanent home out in Saskatchewan,” Morissette said. “He’s going to be transferred as soon as the permits come through.”

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