Hastings vets, mechanic combine to rescue hawk from car grille

A driver turned up at a Hastings vet last week, with a hawk jammed tight in the grille of her car, after the pair accidentally collided.

The bird was stuck, spreadeagle in the grille, including around the radiator, but was remarkably still alive.

The rescue mission became so complicated, re-inforcements from the mechanics workshop were required.

Hastings vet nurse Nadine Hook told RNZ's Checkpoint a member of the public had arrived at the clinic shaken, after they accidentally hit the hawk, while out on a test drive.

To get the hawk out of the car's grille, a team of the vets administered light sedation, so they could work safely and gently.

"We could fold the wings back up and get them back inside, so that if the bird was to freak out, it wouldn't injure itself further," Hook said.

"We just did that by where the little cracks were. We just pushed them up and moved them in, so we could wedge it and wiggle it back in."

Once the bird's wings were safely folded back into place, the team then made a plan on how to free the bird from the radiator and the surrounding panels.

Both the upper and lower access points to the engine bay were sealed, so there was no safe way to reach the hawk.

Hook said her rescue team and the driver decided to take the car back to the workshop, where she was test-driving it from.

"They were actually really lovely and they said that they would need to replace that grille anyway.

"They just grabbed out the wirecutters and just started cutting into it."

Once the grille was cut open, the hawk could be pulled out to safety.

"I just reached in and carefully pulled him out, watching out for his feet," Hook said. "He was quite sedated, but he looked quite relieved.

"It was quite hot in the engine bay. His feet were up against the radiator, so it was quite warm in there for him."

Hook said the hawk was then taken back to the clinic for a full assessment and kept overnight to be monitored.

Luckily, the hawk sustained no major injuries.

"[In the morning], I pulled back the towel to have a peek, and he was very angry and ready to go.

"Wild creatures act wild, so it's good to see them and their natural personalities coming out."

Before the hawk was released, he was given some long-acting pain relief and a final check over.

"As soon as I unwrapped the towel, he flew up, and he went round and round and round, and took off."

Hook didn't expect the rescue to have such a successful outcome.

"Birds are quite prone to passing away due to shock," she said. "Even if you get them through whatever experience they've had, often the shock will upset them and then they'll just pass away.

"He was really lucky to have made it through everything that he went through."

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