"You just never know when you'll feed them their last peanut": A North Dakota woman's heartfelt journey to rescue and rehabilitate an injured crow finds a heartbreaking conclusion and an important reminder to cherish every moment

Author image for Laurent Shinar
Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Aug 17, 2025 2:00 PM EDT

Crows are clever creatures, there have been more than enough studies and anecdotes for us to know that. And from the same source of knowledge most of us have learned that it might be best not to mess with crows for fear of them turning on us and using their insane memory to eventually bring about our demise. But one woman said "nuts to that" and decided that she would take pity upon an injured crow who she believed to be from a local crow family (yes, that is an incredibly keen observation she had).

And with a little faith and luck the crow came along with her and the two of them embarked upon a journey of healing and heartfelt moments between two animals who rarely get to spend such intimate time together. And while the end of their story is a bittersweet one, it leaves us with the reminder to cherish those around us, love them like you have never loved anything else before and remember that you never know when you'll feed them their last peanut. 
 

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    I came across this adult crow yesterday around noon. I am familiar with him, he's lived in my neighborhood with his family for a few years.
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    I wasn't sure at first if he was sick or injured. He is alert, he was able to grip my finger with his feet, but cannot seem to move his torso area.
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    He spent the rest of Sunday resting in a safe, quiet, dark area in my home. Today, he is still alert. I offered him kitten kibble soaked in water, which he ate immediately, he was hungry! I'm believing that he's likely injured versus sick. I've
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  • Wait, can we take a step back for a moment here. This woman lives next to a family of crows, who she seems to be on decent terms with (already out of the ordinary). Apparently, such good terms that one of them allowed her to pick them up and place them on her hand? Who is this bird-blessed woman?

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    called and messaged a few different numbers in my town with no luck.
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    This brave little guy fought through another day. He was supposed to go to a rehabber today, but she never reached back out to me after I messaged her this morning AND afternoon. I learned that North Dakota does not give out
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    licenses to individuals for wild animal rehabilitation, so it hasn't been easy to find anything. I reached out to a wildlife rescue center in Minnesota who were willing to take him. They were not too optimistic about his survival chances based on his symptoms.
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    3-222
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    On to Mr. Crow.... he's not gained back any use of his legs or torso, though his head moves around to look at what I'm doing. His eyes are always following my movements. Yesterday, he had some mild labored breathing and what sounded like wheezing, so he spent the
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    night with a warm humidifier and today he's breathing normally again. He's not been drinking much, but will eat kibble and eggs that I've soaked in diluted plain pedialyte. He really enjoys eating, he even had the motivation to crack open a shelled peanut! His
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    【s are regular and look normal. I interact/handle him as little as possible. I only clean his soiled bedding, feed him and clean his bottom area of p כ when he needs it. It's hard to fight my urge to hang out with him and keep him company.
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    O
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    I contacted every vet in town, none of them will see a wild bird, not even for euthanasia (if needed). So, I contacted the rescue center in Minnesota, again, they weren't optimistic about recovery since he still hasn't made any improvement in that
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  • Dang seriously? What are poor injured birds mean to do? Also, what is the difference for them to see a domesticated bird or a wild one? You would be hard-pressed to find a vet who would turn down a dog or a cat for being wild. This is straight up speciesism.

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    CLOCKS VINTAGE
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    department even with rest. However, they can provide humane euthanasia. I guess my concern is that his case will be too much effort for such a marginal chance at full recovery and they'll put him down before really giving him a
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    chance. Which, I understand. They have a full plate and limited staff/resources to pour so much into every single animal that they take in. I am currently a stay at home mom for the summer, so I have the time to care for him, but
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    that's all I have. I don't have equipment, meds or a fraction of the knowledge...though, chatgpt has been a godsend! I shouldn't keep him and attempt to rehab him myself....right? He doesn't seem to be in pain. He doesn't seem like
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    he's ready to give up. I guess I'll see how tomorrow goes.
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    3-222
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    He completed 2 rounds of gentle physical therapy. We started with a full foot and leg massage. Next, we did toe extensions and then moved onto leg extensions, and finally bicycle exercises. After that, we did 'winger-sizes'
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    a term I got from watching Big Bear's Jackie and Shadow's nest cam >. Other than lightly retracting his legs (a huge step) he wasn't too responsive. We then finished with a relaxing warm water leg soak.
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    Hi guys. I have some sad news about our girl, she did indeed have west nile and succumbed to it yesterday. The gal that I spoke to said they had been force feeding her and it seemed to be perking her up, but then she started going down
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    hill again and yesterday they found her unresponsive. Apparently they are seeing a lot of crows with west nile right now and they are requesting that anyone who is finding an unusual amount of sick/dead crows report
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    them to your dnr so that they can monitor the situation. I know it's not the outcome we were hoping for. She made a courageous and unusually long fight against it. The staff were aware of her support and popularity
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    and did mention their thanks to everyone who donated and sent kind words. I'm sure with everything they've been seeing in their west nile cases, they did not want to give false hope too early by making public posts, especially when things can suddenly turn
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    sour, which I am now appreciating. The lady I spoke to was very friendly and seemed genuinely sad when she told me the news. Let's hope they soon find a way to treat this horrid disease. In the meantime, give all your crow buddies an extra
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    treat or 2. You just never know when you'll feed them their last peanut.
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