Blue Ridge Wildlife Center Patient of the Week: Black Vulture

Curious how we fix a broken bird leg?

This first year Black Vulture was brought into care last week by a humane law enforcement officer with Loudoun County Animal Services after being found down along the road.

During examination, it was found that this bird’s right tibiotarsus (one of the leg bones) was fractured, likely from a vehicle interaction.

An external fixator was placed to stabilize the break, and it will be removed in a staged process over the next 4 weeks. With these pins in place, the patient is able to bear weight on the leg while the fracture heals!

Currently, this vulture is resting comfortably on pain medication and antibiotics and has a good prognosis. Despite a significant injury, this young vulture has remained alert and sassy throughout care!

Did you know…

Each year, vultures save BILLIONS of dollars in human health costs!

They help protect human health by cleaning up carcasses left in the environment. Their powerful stomach acid destroys zoonotic pathogens like rabies, botulism, and anthrax.

Vultures are public health heroes!

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