A swan and his future

Will O. arrived at the Baton Rouge Zoo January 30.  When I left, he was in a large enclosure, and was soon to be introduced to his new companion, hopefully mate.  I was so very happy with everything.

At home, I waited, but didn’t hear anything.  Of course, I had visions of him freezing to death because it had been cold, but everyone at Bird TLC assured me that he was fine.  Still, I worried.

By Feb. 5, my regular volunteer day at Bird TLC, I texted and said everyone wanted to know how he was doing.  I received a message back that Will O. had not yet been placed into the pond.

On Feb. 12, I left Anchorage, headed to California.  I was due to embark on a Panama Canal cruise.  Then, surprise, I got a note and photos from Heather, Executive Director, of BTLC.  Will O. was doing fine and there were photos.  Wonderful news.  It certainly made my day.

 

Swim free, my handsome swan, swim free.

Will had been put in the pond and was swimming freely.  I wonder if he remembers being on any lakes in Wasilla swimming around before he ended up in captivity and in a much smaller area.

 

Happy boy swan.  Yay.  How wonderful he looks swimming in a large pond, free, no human coming around to move him or blow dry his feathers, or clean his space.

 

He was also introduced to Roberta, the resident Trumpeter.  By the photos, she is quite large by comparison, but Will is still a youngster, still sporting grey feathers and not full-grown.  We are told she appears interested in him and was chasing him around a bit, perhaps an older woman looking for a younger man? 

Roberta is way larger than Will O., but he'll grow up and turn white, and what a gorgeous couple they will be.

Everyone figures they will be doing just fine.  And I’ll show up in July sometime to check on him.  Maybe there are some little ones in the future?

All of this news, the photos, made me teary again.  How often do you get to be a part of a happy ending?  Not so much, but in this case, I helped do a lot, and it just made my heart burst to see how this ended.  Well, maybe it's not the end.  Maybe I'll have some grandswans???

Dreams do come true, persistence pays off, and Will O. is doing fine.

And now, with a clear mind about Will O., and no more worrying there, I'm off ... headed to a cruise ship with a buffet line named after me.