Adult Animal Care Volunteer Spotlight: Sarah Cahill

Sarah Cahill is from Brookfield, Connecticut and travels to the Connecticut Audubon Society’s Center at Fairfield twice a week to clean the raptor cages. Cleaning the raptor cages in our Birds of Prey compound is not what you would call a glamour job! It is a difficult, messy but necessary job that is essential to the health and welfare of our birds. A job like this is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach. Sarah has volunteered over 100 hours since she started in March of 2019, cleaning the enclosures (including scrubbing the cages in all kinds of weather), removing any remaining food and changing water bowls. This helps to provide a healthy, sanitary environment for the birds to live in.

We asked Sarah a few questions to describe her experience volunteering at the Connecticut Audubon Society.
CAS: What is your favorite part of working with the birds? Least favorite?
Sarah: “My favorite part of working with the birds is taking them out of their enclosures and being close to them; it is such a cool experience to hold a bird on the glove. Another favorite would be speaking with Center visitors about the birds in the compound. My least favorite part is when a bird soils its cage immediately after being put back in the cleaned enclosure.”

CAS: Can you tell us any special stories that have happened while you are volunteering?
Sarah: “There have been many incidences where I’ve inadvertently sprayed myself with the hose and gotten completely soaked. One day in the summer, I saved a frog from Lucy’s (Barred Owl) water bowl. I felt like a hero that day. Another special time was handling Dante (Turkey Vulture). He jumped off my glove and onto the ground. It was a challenge and an accomplishment trying to get that giant bird back onto my glove.”

All of us at the Center at Fairfield are very thankful to have Sarah as a volunteer and ambassador for our Center. Her dedication to the Connecticut Audubon Society, as reflected in her many hours of hard work and care for our resident birds, is truly a labor of love.