CANORA, SASK.- Things are busy these days as Majestic Raptor Rehab in Canora is looking after a wide variety of injured birds with the goal of “getting them back to where they are healthy and can return to nature.”
Mary Huebert of Majestic Raptor Rehab said Canora Courier readers might be familiar with Gibbs, a young bald eagle who was featured in a 2025 story. Even though he’s been here over a year and is flying once again after suffering broken wing, Gibbs is not ready to return to nature yet.
“Gibbs has been with us for most of his life, and needs to learn to hunt so he can go back to his natural habitat and thrive,” said Huebert.
A falconer who works with Majestic Raptor Rehab, assessed Gibbs as “a fatty with no motivation,” shared Huebert. As a result, they are working Gibbs to lose a bit of weight and get motivated to catch his own dinner.
Kinny is a mature bald eagle, named after Kinistino, Sask., where he was found just a couple of weeks ago. Kinny was unable to fly, and was missing big flight feathers on one wing.
During the Canora Courier visit to Majestic Raptor Rehab on Sept. 9, Huebert was able to release a pair of cedar waxwings, named Pidgey 1 and Pidgey 2 (from Pokemon). Amazingly, these birds were injured when they flew into the windows of two Canora businesses, just days apart in late August and early September. Thanks to a connection made on Facebook, the release was made in the Canora backyard of Oney Pollock, where large numbers of cedars waxwings have been recently observed.
Huebert encourages everyone to make sure their windows have bird markers to help protect birds against similar accidents. “Bird markers should be on the outside of the window, and simply need to break up the reflection of sky and trees,” Huebert. “We just use soap, but some people get creative and use window-safe paints and crayons to create art on their windows.”
Pluto is a juvenile red-tailed hawk discovered at York Lake on Aug. 24. Pluto has since resumed flying and plans are for a release soon back at York Lake. Huebert said they prefer to release birds close to where they were originally found, to make it easier for them to thrive in their natural environment.
Spotted west of Yorkton with a head injury after being hit by a car, Kim, a long-eared owl named after her rescuer, has been at Majestic Raptor Rehab since July 28. Kim is in the process of learning how to hunt mice.
Great horned owls are currently one of the most abundant birds at Majestic Raptor Rehab, with four of them sharing a pen. One is named Weldon, after being found near the village of Weldon, between Prince Albert and Melfort, with head trauma following a collision with a vehicle. The other three, affectionately known as the three stooges, were found uninjured in a nest in Saskatoon after the parent was electrocuted, and were referred to Canora by Living Sky Wildlife.
“They appear to be doing well and will be kept them over winter,” said Huebert. “We will teach them to hunt in spring.”
Possibly the smallest birds at the Canora facility are a group of five barn swallows. Since this is a species at risk, Huebert had to obtain special permission to look after them.
“We are feeding them a diet of mealworms, with feedings every 60 to 90 minutes,” said Huebert. “They will likely be here over the winter, as they’re not ready to hunt yet or for migration.”
One of the most memorable rescues in recent memory came in late August near Lady Lake, thanks to a call from Terry and Sid Galandy.
“On Aug. 21 we received a call for a female osprey whose leg was caught and was hanging upside down by the leg,” said Huebert. “SaskPower had put up this pole and a tray to support the Osprey nest 26 years ago. SaskPower is very supportive in helping with these birds who are drawn to build their nests on or around the power poles.”
Huebert said the problem for the osprey started when an old tarp was used to build the nest.
“Dylan McCormick of Canora, a SaskPower lineman, rescued the female Osprey by bundling her in a blanket and cutting her loose from the badly frayed tarp the birds used in the nest construction. He brought her safely down and handed her to Marilyn Schigol, a volunteer at Majestic Raptor Rehab.”
The osprey was transported to the Canora facility, where Schigol and Shawna Huebert, another volunteer, “worked at removing a mass of tarp strings that held the bird in the nest. Unfortunately the tarp also entangled two hatchlings that died as a result.”
Marilyn Schigol, a volunteer at Majestic Raptor Rehab, received the rescued bird that was transported to Majestic Raptor Rehab Centre and assessed. They found a minor rash, likely from being tangled up in the tarp, but otherwise no injuries. The osprey was treated for the rash with ointment, and released later the same day.
Being involved in this rescue and others like it, “gives us a great feeling,” said Huebert.
Majestic Raptor Rehab continues to look at enhancing their facilities. Lately they have been working on a pond to bring it up to the standards needed to pass inspection, which would allow them to welcome birds that prefer the water.
One of the biggest day-to-day obstacles for the Canora facility is financial. At the time the visit with Canora Courier they were looking after a total 16 of birds, while Huebert was looking at paying for an order of approximately $2,000 for 1,000 mice. “It takes 25 mice per day just to feed the great horned owls.”
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