Florida man Doug Hay risked his personal life to rescue a drowning bald eagle.
The 69-year-old and his spouse, who reside in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, had been of their lounge once they heard one thing crash into the lake behind their home, WTVT in Tampa Bay, Florida, reported April 22.
Seeing one eagle within the water and one other circling above, Hay realized the 2 doubtless had been preventing.
He instantly shed his shirt and sandals and jumped into the water to rescue the drowning chook, which had landed proper in the course of the lake.
“I threw my telephone to the bottom, too, and my spouse picked the telephone up and began videoing it,” Hay mentioned.
Essentially the most patriotic video you will note all day.
70 12 months outdated man rescues a bald eagle in a lake in Florida.
— Ian Jaeger (@IanJaeger29) April 29, 2025
“I wasn’t too involved concerning the gator,” he mentioned, referring to the 7-foot alligator that lived within the lake.
Throughout the rescue, the eagle had grabbed onto Hay’s forearm with its talons, however he sustained solely minor accidents.
The lengthy swim, nevertheless, was a extra urgent concern.
“I barely made it to shore as a result of I used to be fairly drained,” he mentioned.
Hay mentioned his spouse, Diana, was swearing at him through the rescue, urging him to not do it, in accordance with WSVN in Miami.
“That may be in my head the remainder of my life if I couldn’t save this chook. I needed to do it,” Hay mentioned. “Simply wished to get to the eagle and put it aside. It’s our nationwide image. It’s freedom. It’s America.”
As soon as ashore, a trapper helped deal with the chook, which was taken to the Wildlife Middle of Southwest Florida in Venice.
Pam DeFouw, the middle’s govt director, mentioned the eagle had an open gap close to its thoracic cavity — a wound from the opposite eagle’s talon.
“It’s fairly brutal how they struggle. It’s simply a part of their survival. It’s a part of their pure historical past to do,” DeFouw mentioned.
Regardless of this, DeFouw mentioned the eagle, doubtless a male, was steady and can be administered antibiotics over the subsequent weeks till it was prepared for rehabilitation flights.
DeFouw cautioned concerning the risks of rescuing wild animals.
“The important thing factor is security first. When you injure your self, you received’t be capable to rescue the animal anyway,” she mentioned. “Doug did a really courageous factor. Is it one thing we’d advocate for another person? Most likely not. He did save the lifetime of that chook, so that’s positively to be recommended.”
The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act of 1940 forbids individuals in most circumstances from even touching the chook.
It’s unlawful to “take, possess, promote, buy, barter, supply to promote, buy or barter, transport, export or import, at any time or any method, any bald eagle … [or any golden eagle], alive or lifeless, or any half (together with feathers), nest, or egg thereof,” the legislation reads.
Penalties can quantity to a $100,000 high-quality, a 12 months in jail, and a felony conviction.
This text appeared initially on The Western Journal.
