I accidently stepped on a fallen bird today

reply to post by cosmo0207


Yes exactly. The fact that I saw this poor little helpess bird suffer just tore right through my heart. And the fact that I caused it to suffer made it feel 10 times worse..

reply to post by ZikhaN


I once ran over a gopher and was mortified that I could feel my car hit it and run over it.... I reversed ( in a different direction...) to see if it was ok... but not enough apparently... and ran over it a second time.... it was dead for sure the second time at least....


*Edit to add-
I am NOT saying that I think you should have stepped on it again, I meant that I can relate to how you are feeling because I have had something *somewhat* similar to me.

reply to post by cosmo0207


lol sorry if that me chuckle a bit xD even though this kinda stuff is just horrible. I'll definitely be more weary from now on !

edt- Also thanks so much everyone for ur replies ! You make me feel so much better!

Originally posted by darbur
if you killed it the proper thing to do would be to bring it home and cook it
happy eating

Me believes you be a might bit evil! : LoL.:>)


Meant only as humor not posting to call you an evil, being.

reply to post by gabby2011

Oddly enough satron, I do feel guilty killing bugs,and have even let some live. lol

I go through this process of mind thought,that tells me they didn't as to be born a bug,and they fight to survive just like we do, and what right do I have to decide they should have less right to live than I do?

Then my brain does a 180 and says ,well if you don't kill them they will take over the place,at which point,they get squashed.

LOL...I didn't even want to address that post, but I will now. I'm the same way you start out, I guess I have an almost buddhist view on the situation.

Humanity has effectively removed itself from the natural cycle of things, so I go out of my way to let other things live to carry on their own cycle. When bugs or spiders get into the house, they are escorted outside if it's something I really don't want around.

If I find ants, I usually let them be about their business and do a better job of cleaning up. I'm not too worried about any of them taking over as I'll better clean up what mess I left to attract them, and let the cycle deal with them otherwise.

So far I haven't run into too much that I take as enough of a threat to want to take preemptive action against. I try to watch out where I walk, and try to encourage others not to overreact to various critters that usually actually do us services by way of keeping actual pests under control and cleaning up, etc.

Not sure exactly how we can come into this wonderful natural world and feel we can succeed at (or be better off for) trying to sanitize and de-naturalize it. I could be wrong here, but I'm under the impression that societies that make a point of living in harmony with nature tend to have more satisfaction and spiritual well-being in their lives.

reply to post by ellieN


Well if you kill something it is commonly held it is ok if you eat it.

This is the cycle of life and instantly validates the death by feeding life.

What other animals in nature would have done to this bird pale in comparison.

Not that I agree it should have been eaten just saying that this isn't an evil statement.

This will sound weird okay.....

Perhaps you had a spiritual contract to be the one who helped this animal to pass on from life?

I think carrying some guiilt would be appropriate if you had been hunting the bird to kill it, but in this scenario we need to get used to the concept that we play a role in this world whether we like it or not... as what you experienced is no different to running over a Hare/Cat/Dog that runs out in front of you while you drive.

You did not seek it out to hurt it, so stop carrying the guilt.

Originally posted by Jinglelord
reply to post by ellieN

 

Well if you kill something it is commonly held it is ok if you eat it.

This is the cycle of life and instantly validates the death by feeding life.

What other animals in nature would have done to this bird pale in comparison.

Not that I agree it should have been eaten just saying that this isn't an evil statement.

This is what some parents do that own poultry. They tell their child if they kill it they have to eat it. It teaches the child about the cycle of life and to be careful with living creatures. I don't know if I could carry that out, but I understand the lesson.

Originally posted by Jinglelord
reply to post by ellieN

 

Well if you kill something it is commonly held it is ok if you eat it.

This is the cycle of life and instantly validates the death by feeding life.

What other animals in nature would have done to this bird pale in comparison.

Not that I agree it should have been eaten just saying that this isn't an evil statement.

Sorry..I only meant that as a joke to him...The way he stated it was a bit humorous. Will go back and correct that.
I did accidently kill the moth, but I would not have wanted to eat it. Although, I know that is done in other countries to eat spiders and worms, etc. Sorry if it offended you.

reply to post by ellieN


You're not going to offend me no worries. You never know around here with so many cultures interacting on this board who understands what. Thats why we need to use the little emoticons. When I read the first comment about eating it I laughed then I figured someone would misinterpret so I was expecting it and didn't catch the joke... sorry

reply to post by ZikhaN

I commend you in your morals and compassion. For some people(I'm sensitive like this to), consequences of an animal accidents are harder.
First take into consideration that it was an accident. We all have them from time to time. Give yourself time to grieve, and understand the feeling of guilt and that it was beyond your power.

Birds are fragile, esp., small birds. Small hollow bones, for example and air sacs instead of lungs-would can be easy damaged if the body is crushed. More often than not nature steps in, while the animal's body goes into shock, causing them to pass away.

You state you were walking home;
..walking, I would have looked for a box, or container where the bird would be more comfortable, place in a safe area away from the elements, but if the bird does feel better it can come out of the box, as the animal is in shock and may proceed to flip and hurt itself more. If no container is available, would have tried to place the bird away from the sidewalk or street but to a safer area. Keep in mind a hurt animal, will try to defend itself, if it has enough energy to do so often with adrenaline.

Whereas, working in the Veterinary field, my options would have been more open. For those not in the field, of course, trying to help a wild, feral or even someones hurt pet becomes more of a challenge.

At night, if the area you live had a close, or if you had a car to use you could travel to an Emergency Veterinary clinic-keep in mind it also depends on the clinics rules to if they would treat the animal for free, it being wild and all. That, as such, presents a bigger issue.
If it was daytime, I had a car to travel with and a human shelter, more specifically a wildlife clinic(usually run by your local county or state) and or call a wildlife center and see if their are employees or volunteers in your area that can come by and take the bird for help, With my experience of wildlife clinics/centers, they will not turn down a hurt bird.

Remember to give yourself time to heal. Rainbow bridge will comfort the bird now.

It's the time of year that young birds are jumping out of the nest, most even before they can fly. I posted yesterday about how my cats are catching all these young birds that are jumping around on the ground.

Truth is, a lot of these birds won't survive. It will take some days before they can fly... if they are lucky then the mother will keep feeding them on the ground, but most will be caught and eaten by other animals. A bird on the ground has little chances on survival. Some species can fly almost right away and when you find them on the ground it means there is something wrong with it.

Don't feel guilty about what happened, you didn't do it on purpose and not everyone can put an animal out of it's missery. I know I can't.... I would just pick it up and place it somewhere safe, hoping it will recover, but most of the animals I cared for like that have died within hours or days only to make me realize I made them suffer longer then nececary.

btw, I know what you mean by seeing a 'glare' in their eyes... I saw that many times when I was sort of talking to injured birds, it's as if they somehow understand what you are saying... quite amazing thing.

reply to post by dreamingawake


Well, it wasn't on a sidewalk. If it was on pavement, I think I would have taken notice of it before getting too close.

I was walking on a small grassfield surrounded by a bunch of trees, with a tiny thin path passing through it. It was dark at night, so considering I was walking like normal, I didn't really think of watching my step =( Poor birdie, I still feel horrible=(

But thanks a lot for your input, you guys help me a lot!

reply to post by GypsK


Yes exactly. When I saw the glare in its half shut eyes, I felt a certain amount of connection, as it was forgiving me. Wheather I'm way out there doesn't really matter, as it made me feel better atleast. I wished for the poor little bird to find some sort of peace, that it would go to the birds paradise or something where it could rest =(