09/05/2026
👏Your responsibility to help an animal does not end with reporting it to a rescue!!👏
STOP with the "someone else will do it" mindset.
Warratyekin is not a rescue organisation, it is a shelter. However, I still help Pigeon Rescue Support Inc and the Victorian pigeon rescues when the need arises. These are usually emergency, time sensitive situations like displaced babies, birds reported at night or birds in critical condition.
Last night, at 10pm I dropped what I was doing and rushed out to Broadmeadows to try and find a bird in critical condition that had been left suffering. This bird had managed to find its way on the steps of a school despite a snapped leg, injured wing and what looked like head trauma. It was clearly attempting to self rescue. The MOP who reported it, presumably one of the teachers, reported it and then left the bird there to die. The rescue wasn't made aware it until almost 10pm, at least 4 WHOLE HOURS after MOP took the photo.
It took me a while to find the location in the picture as it wasn't visible from the street, MOP had not given clear instructions to the location other than the school's address, and the photo with the report was zoomed in so we couldn't make out any landmarks.
I found this poor bird, deceased where MOP had left it. Freezing cold, in the dark, all alone. This bird suffered a slow death unnecessarily. There was a late-closing vet, 1.6km up the road. At bare minimum, MOP should have taken this bird to the vet for humane euthanasia.
This "someone else will do it" mindset costs innocent animals their lives every. Single. Day. And it compounds the stress and burnout of rescuers like myself who are already dealing with so many other things (chronic illness, bills, education, work, families, our own birds). This is one of the main reasons I don't go out rescuing regularly anymore, seeing the sheer cruelty of humans is honestly horrific and it INFURIATES me.
This bird died in pain, cold and alone in the dark because someone was too lazy to help it. I hope that person sees this post and knows that their inaction caused the death of a living breathing animal that came to them for help. Shame on you.
