The end of the government shutdown, even in the form of a short-term deal, could be great news for a White Pelican that's been stuck in Waukesha County all month.
The pelican came to the Wildlife in Need Center, in Oconomowoc, the day after Thanksgiving.
A neighbor found him in a backyard. Mandy Feavel, the Wildlife in Need Center's director of animal care, said the bird was badly injured.
"He had an old injury to his left wing," she said. "We discovered he was already starting to develop arthritis in that wing."
Feavel said pelicans typically frequent the Horicon Marsh before flying south for winter.
She said this particular pelican wasn't able to migrate because of the wing injury. It's not likely he'll ever fly again.
So Feavel and the other workers and volunteers in Oconomowoc found a zoo in El Paso, Texas, willing to take him in.
He was healthy enough to be transported there at the beginning of the month.
"The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has to give us approval before we permanently place him somewhere," Feavel said.
But that hasn't been possible while the government has been shut down.
"The sooner we can get him to his new home, the better." — Mandy Feavel, director of animal care at the Wildlife in Need Center
She's hopeful Friday's announcement that the government will reopen for at least three weeks will help the pelican get to his permanent home.
Although she noted there might be many other requests, such as hers, that have piled up at the Fish and Wildlife Service during the government shutdown.
"In case they're a little backlogged, I think we'd be pretty understanding of that," Feavel said. "But we will patiently wait and hope that we can get approval."
"The sooner we can get him to his new home, the better," she said.
Feavel said it typically takes two to three weeks for the Fish and Wildlife Service to approve paperwork like what's needed to send the pelican to Texas.
While he remains in Oconomowoc, the center is asking for donations of money or fish to help cover his meals — which can be pricey.
"Local fishermen have been helping us with his fish," Feavel said. "If we have to purchase all of the fish he's been eating, that would be over $30 a day to feed him."
"That's a large diet expense compared to some of our other (animal) patients, who just need fruits and vegetables that are donated from local grocery stores," she said.
