X-rays at PAWS found metal fragments in a bald eagle’s face, helping explain a severe bill injury.
WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. — A bald eagle being treated at the PAWS Wildlife Rehabilitation Center was shot in the face at some point, leaving it with a serious bill injury, according to the animal welfare group.
PAWS said the eagle was transferred from the Whatcom Humane Society Wildlife Rehabilitation Center at the end of March after staff noticed a bill malocclusion, meaning the top and bottom parts of the bill were not lining up correctly.
After the bird arrived, PAWS said its wildlife team took X-rays and found metal fragments lodged at the back of the eagle’s mandibles.
The group said those fragments caused the bill to become misaligned.
In the wild, PAWS said that kind of injury can be fatal because the bill can keep growing in a way that makes it hard for a bird to eat and preen.
To treat the eagle, staff carefully reshaped the bill with a Dremel tool and fitted the bird with specialized headgear designed to help correct the alignment over time.
So far, PAWS said the eagle is responding well to treatment.
The group said it is optimistic the bird may still be able to return to the wild.
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