Back in the summer of 2014, while Susan Hickman was out walking, something caught her eye. Accordingly, she saw found a cracked eggshell on the ground.
While Susan can almost keep walking, she decided to stop and see if there was anything inside.
And what she saw made her surprised.
Susan looked inside, and she found a newborn chick inside. He didn’t have any feathers and his eyes were closed.
She looked around to see if there was a nest nearby but couldn’t find one.
Thinking that if she left the chick there, he wouldn’t survive alone, Susan decided to try to save him.
However, taking care of a baby bird isn’t easy. For the first two weeks, Susan had to feed the bird every 20-30 minutes from sunrise to sunset.
Though it was an exhaustive process, Susan refused to give up. She felt a strong bond with the chick and used a small medicine dropper to make sure he got the nutrition he needed.
The bird was a real fighter, and managed to survive the first day…
… And the next day, too.
Susan soon named him Klinger.
Klinger opened his eyes.
He got feathers…
… and eventually, Klinger grew into a large, stately bird.
Talk about a transformation!
During his recovery, Klinger became an essential part of Susan’s family.
He got lots of love and care and in return, he brought joy into Susan’s life.
Susan was a true animal lover, so she decided to release Klinger back into the wild when he was big enough.
But she also realized that Klinger was domesticated now. This bird was completely unprepared for life in the wild and wouldn’t survive on his own.
So Susan decided that Klinger simply had to stay with her.
And Klinger doesn’t appear to mind one bit.
Find out more about Susan and Klinger’s story in this video:
