RICHMOND, Va. -- The Wildlife Center of Virginia is commending a Richmond woman for her actions that they say saved the life of a wild duck in the city.
The center says on the evening of February 29th, a driver only named as 'Mary' noticed an adult Mallard duck standing in the middle of oncoming traffic. They say despite her best tries to get the duck to move it remained in the roadway.
"After putting her vehicle in park and turning on the flashers, Mary was able to capture the duck and put her in the safest place she could at the time – the back seat of her car," the Wildlife Center of Virginia wrote in a release. With no wildlife centers open though Mary had to let the duck spend a night in her guest bathroom complete with a tub full of water.
The next day Mary would reach out to the Wildlife Center and bring the duck in for an exam.
"During the intake exam, veterinary staff noted that the Mallard was unusually calm and preening her feathers despite being handled by humans," the center explains. An emergency blood panel was conducted by doctors and found that the Mallard was suffering from clinical lead toxicosis.
How the duck ingested the lead isn't know, but the veterinary team says they suspect she may have eaten a discarded fishing sinker. "Waterfowl like Mallards swallow small pebbles and gravel to help them grind and digest food, and the duck may have mistaken a sinker for a pebble," the center writes.
Currently, the Mallard will remain at the Wildlife Center of Virginia in an outdoor enclosure while veterinary staff continue therapy to remove the lead from her system.
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