Power2Give Projects
Power2Give.org Launches with Two Carolina Raptor Center Projects
Power2Give.org, the new Arts and Science Council giving portal, launched on August 29, 2011, with two Carolina Raptor Center projects have already been funded - a Flight Cage for large birds and a new WebCam system. The current project is to fund medicine for red-tailed hawks with asper syndrome.
October begins what we call “Asper season.” This is the time of year when many first-year red-tailed hawks become infected with a very serious fungal infection called Aspergillosis.
The disease is often fatal and causes a devastating infection in their chest and lungs. It makes it hard for birds to take a breath, and if it goes untreated, the birds likely will die. This condition is diagnosed by our veterinarian Dave Scott performing an endoscopic exam. That is where we make a small incision in the body wall and insert and small video camera. By doing this, we can actually see the infection in the bird’s chest.
Once we have made our diagnosis, we can begin treatment. Previously, the treatment was very stressful for the bird and was not always effective. Recently, a new drug has come on the market. It is called voriconazole (VFend TM), and it is the drug of choice for humans when they have the same infection. While this is drug much more effective, it is also very expensive.
A typical treatment of 3 weeks for a hawk will cost $150 ($50 per week). We anticipate needing to treat 10 birds this fall for a total cost of $1,500.
