I was walking back from drama class for the school play. I crossed the same street and passed two trees and the black fire hydrant. The one I usually see by the synagogue. Then I saw the pigeon. I tried not to look. Luckily I failed because suddenly it moved. When I saw the “dead” body open its eyes, as if it knew me, I felt dead white inside. I paused to say “Moooooooom! It’s alive! Mom wait!”
I knew it was wounded and dying. Its head was tucked under its legs. There was a big hole in its chest. I saw a drop of blood fall. I began to cry. Mom put it near curb away from traffic. Then I said, “THAT’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH!” So Mom put it in a nice little corner on the steps of the synagogue. I said “No!!!!! No no no nooooooooooohymn!” Plop, plop, his blood dropping echoed in my heart. Mom spotted a small clean box! We scrambled and put it in the box.
Mom said, “Charlotte, we’re hailing a cab and taking this pigeon to Animal General.” Animal General has been the veterinary hospital where we brought out cats for years. Then I heard her say, “I hope they take pigeons.”
When we got there the head of the hospital took the pigeon into the emergency room. My mother was surprised when they took the box off the counter. She thought they’d be angered or offended and because they might think a pigeon wasn’t good enough for a veterinarian hospital. But instead it was the exact opposite. This place took care of pigeons. The head of the hospital, Karen, told me something that cheered me up. She said, “You know you can’t save everyone, but don’t stop trying.”
Karen turned to my mom and said, “Aren’t you Ambrose’s mother?” I answered the question, “Yes!” I thought, has our old cat Ambrose’s spirit helped us (and the pigeon) by putting that thought in her mind? Karen showed us all of the little pigeon-patients. They were in cages in a special room. Two of them injured their legs, one had a neck brace, and another had beautiful feathers in front but the feathers on its bottom were plucked! They were keeping the pigeon until his feather grew back.
It’s sad that pigeons are mistreated. At Animal General it was different. The owner donated all kinds of technology to take care of the pigeons. They even let them were specialized retainers or neck braces. The talk with Karen at Animal General made me feel like thinking. I hope you think of pigeons as deserving citizens of New York like me and the people at Animal General.