One Lucky Duck
This little duck had a hellish few days thanks to discarded fishing gear in Narrabeen Lake. Luckily some kind locals managed to catch her after 3 days of trying.
She was presented to Pittwater Animal Hospital covered in ferns and a towel. (It had been a dramatic rescue.) The duck had a hook lodged deep down her throat with line attached that was pulling the corner of her mouth. The line was then wrapped quite tightly around her right wing with the float hanging free.
While the duck was conscious we cut the fishing line and unwound the line around her wing. Following the fishing line down her throat the hook was lodged in her oesophagus. To pull it out could really harm her.
The duck was given a gaseous anaesthetic and it took some time to grasp the hook. Luckily, in fact miraculously with some manipulation we managed to twist the hook out without tearing the oesophagus.
A few minutes later she was sitting up in her cage and ready to be released back into the lake.
