“This is a patriot. I love it,” said Audacy host Bob Rose this week of story out of Florida about a nearly 70-year-old man who jumped into alligator-infested waters to save a bald eagle (the national symbol of the U.S. since 1782).
“This is the symbol of America man,” said the man of his rescue.
In a Tuesday Facebook post, the Wildlife Center of Southwest Florida shared a video of “a Good Samaritan,” who it said jumped into water “without hesitation” to help an injured eagle that was struggling. It added that the eagle was then brought to the center, where the staff found “a deep puncture wound in the eagle’s chest,” and performed extensive surgery to repair its injured muscle.
“We’re happy to report the eagle is now in stable condition and showing promising signs of recovery -- much more alert and responsive,” said the center. “Thank you to the rescuer who gave this eagle a second chance at life. Stay tuned for updates as we continue to monitor its healing journey.”
FOX 13 Tampa Bay reported that 69-year-old Doug Hay heard a crash while sitting in his Lakewood Ranch home with his wife. He went out into their backyard to check out what made the noise, he saw an eagle in a 100-yard lake and another circling above.
Hay assumed that the eagles were fighting and that one fell in the lake, which is home to a 7-foot alligator, though he wasn’t too concerned about that. He told FOX 13 that he knows eagles can’t swim, so he took of his shirt and flip flops to save it.
“I’ve been around animals my whole life. I love animals,” Hay explained. In his haste to get in the water, Hay threw his phone on the ground, but his wife quickly picked it up and started filming.
He got a few minor injuries as he had the eagle grab on to his forearm with its talons. Hay admitted that he was pretty tired by the time he made it back to shore. After getting out of the water, Hay monitored the eagle for a few hours before brining it to the Wildlife Center of Southwest Florida in Venice, Fla.
“The eagle is stable. Obviously, the wound is very extensive, it was an open hole close to the thoracic cavity,” said Pam DeFouw, executive director of the Wildlife Center of Southwest Florida, per FOX 13. “Over the next couple of weeks our primary focus is pain management and antibiotics for the infection.”
DeFouw said that Hay’s guess that the birds were fighting is likely correct. She “believes the hole is a talon wound and believes the bird did get into a fight with another eagle,” FOX 13 reported.
“It is pretty brutal how they fight. It’s just part of their survival. It is part of their natural history to do,” she said. Her team also believes the eagle is a male due to its size. Although DeFouw is grateful for Hay’s save, she doesn’t recommend that others try to pull off a similar rescue.
Rose noted that the eagle is expected to go through physical therapy so it can fly again. His team was happy to report on a “Florida man” story, “but a good one.”