21-04-2025
Aerial support
Apr. 21—SOAP LAKE — After four days, two veterinary clinics and one tire blowout, a bald eagle has been rescued and receiving care from the Washington State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Pullman.
On April 13, Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry President Shawna Kluge said she received a call from a concerned Soap Lake citizen regarding an eagle on the ground in a field near Carlton, in Okanogan County.
"He had called me at noon and wanted to know if I knew anything about eagle rescues," Kluge said. "Well, I happened to miss that call, so I called him back at three, and he said, 'Hey, you do eagle rescues?' and I said, 'That's kind of a touchy subject.' I have been involved in wildlife rescues, but there's pretty strict protocol, depending on what the wildlife is."
The man explained to Kluge that he had placed what he had assumed was a golden eagle into a carrier because it was flightless, had an obvious wing injury and was making its way towards the highway.
Kluge said she then put in the work to contact PAWS Wildlife Center; a wildlife rehabilitation center located in Snohomish. PAWS contacted the citizen and let Kluge know that the citizen said they would bring the Eagle to Snohomish on Monday morning.
"On Monday morning, I called PAWS to get an update, and they said that they had not received the eagle," Kluge said. "I called the person back and asked them, 'hey, what's going on with the eagle?' And she explained that they did not have a way to get the eagle to PAWS, because PAWS is in Snohomish."
Kluge said she began to feel a little frustrated because she had told the citizen she could coordinate transport.
"The clock was ticking, because it had already been 24 hours since this eagle had been contained," Kluge said. "I was concerned for that, so I had called PAWS back to say, 'hey, look, I'm going to coordinate transport.'"
Kluge said she knew Pioneer Vet Clinic is certified to deal with wildlife. She began to make arrangements to pick up the eagle and bring it to the vet clinic. Kluge said when she arrived to pick up the bird, there were complications between her and the citizen.
"She was concerned," Kluge said. "She said, 'I need to call (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife). I need to do this,' which I understand, but (WDFW) had already told her they couldn't transport all the way. I just said, 'Look, I know that you care. I know that this is hard, I said, but I know what I'm doing. Let me just get the bird where it needs to go.' I got the bird (but) because of the difficulty in the exchange, I did not make it to Pioneer by 6 p.m. when they closed on Monday."
Kluge called the clinic prior to closing and told them she would not be able to make it Monday night. Kluge said Dr. Dick Maier, owner of Pioneer Veterinary Clinic recommended she keep the bird in a quiet, enclosed area and offer it food and water.
Kluge said she then went to the store and bought a $45 filet of salmon to feed the eagle.
"We got to the rescue at about 6:45 p.m.; I defrosted the salmon. Never took the bird out of the carrier, never handled him, got him into our rescue building, cubed up the salmon," Kluge said. "Obviously, I have gloves on and tongs. I was able to safely feed the bird the salmon. He was very appreciative."
Tuesday morning, Kluge drove from Soap Lake to Moses Lake to bring the bird into Pioneer Veterinary Clinic. The clinic did X-rays which showed no fractures of any bones.
Kluge said she left the eagle at the clinic and went back to the Pet Pantry to take care of her other animals. In the afternoon, she called Pioneer back to get an update on the bird. She said the plan had been to deliver the bird to the Pullman WSU vet teaching hospital.
"Dr. Maier said that Pullman would absolutely take the bird. The issue there was transport," Kluge said. "I asked him 'I started this rescue. Would you guys be OK with me finishing this rescue? I am willing to do the transport.' So, he said 'that was totally fine. So, I made arrangements to pick him up Wednesday morning."
Kluge arrived at Pioneer Veterinary Clinic early Wednesday morning to pick up the eagle. But the tire on her car blew out not even 10 miles outside of Moses Lake, she said. Kluge called Les Schwab, and the estimated time to fix her flat tire was about two hours.
However, Kluge explained the eagle rescue story and Les Schwab came out with a new tire, expediting the process to get her back on the road quicker. She said it cost her around $290 for roadside assistance.
"I am very thankful, in a day and age where most people think that everyone wants to milk it for dollars," she said. "I explained to them what was going on, and they made sure to get me on the road quickly. I also had the State Patrol and Sheriff (deputies) stop and make sure I was OK. It was crazy and miraculous how it all worked out."
Kluge then made her way to the WSU campus and successfully delivered the eagle to the animal hospital. The veterinarians told Kluge it was a 2-year-old bald eagle.
"They are hoping to be able to get X-rays and accurate blood work Thursday afternoon, but there is significant injury to the wing," Kluge said. "We know there are no fractures based on Pioneer's X-rays. Pullman is still going to do their own X-rays, as well as blood work. As far as how docile the bird was, she thinks that is evidence of lead toxicity. I guess lead poisoning can make them more docile. Knowing about the lead poisoning, there's good hope that he could be rehabilitated, even if he could not be released. He could be a teaching ambassador."
Kluge said she will continue calling over to Pullman for updates on the bird. She said the rescue was a once-in-a-lifetime experience; however, in total it cost her around $500. The expenses come from the tire blow-out and gas to travel from Soap Lake to Carlton, Moses Lake and Pullman. In total Kluge drove around 600 miles for the eagle rescue. She said she worked around 16-hour days Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to ensure the bird was cared for along with all of the other pets at the rescue.
"The money used to save the bird was supposed to be for moving my cat buildings to the new rescue, but when faced with an animal, especially one as majestic as an eagle that is in danger, I am going to prioritize that," Kluge said.
She said she is hoping the community can help her replenish the funds spent to rescue the bird. Kluge said people can also donate funds to the shelter's PayPal at The Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry, CashApp at $therockbottomrocker or Venmo at therockbottomrocker. Donations can be made out by check directly to the pantry at P.O. Box 1285, Soap Lake, WA 98851.
"The rescue of this bird cost me money I didn't have, but I don't regret it," Kluge said. "I hope that bird recovers, and I am eternally grateful that I was part of the process of his recovery. I just hope he is OK."
To help the Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry replenish funds from eagle rescue:
PayPal The Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry
CashApp $therockbottomrocker
Venmo at therockbottomrocker
Check to P.O. Box 1285, Soap Lake, WA 98851.
