Injured swan leaves a lonely mate

June Casagrande

Gay Wassall-Kelly knew something was amiss the minute she noticed

that Pearl the black swan seemed wet -- her normally

impervious-to-water self dripping and hobbling on the sand. But when

Pearl couldn’t carry herself close enough to Kelly’s house on

Saturday night to get to some food, the adoptive mother of Balboa

Peninsula’s two black swans knew it was serious.

“She was laying on the sand, and she was all wet,” Kelly said. “I

knew something was wrong. She started limping. She couldn’t make it

to the feeder. We got the flashlight out. We knew that we had to take

her into the pet hospital.”

Diagnosis: Dog bite.

It’s a common problem on the peninsula. Dog owners taking their

pets out for a walk enjoy seeing Fido haul tail after a couple of

flightless water fowl. It wouldn’t be such a serious problem if swans

had small feet like ducks. But their huge feet hinder their movement

on land in a big way.

It’s also possible that a shark bite caused the badly infected

injury to Pearl’s leg, but because the swans seldom venture near the

open ocean, a dog is the most likely culprit.

“Oh, we probably see it two or three times a week -- people out

there letting their dog chase them,” Kelly said. “We used to say

something, but the way the world is these days ... “

The good news is that Pearl, who is under observation at the

Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center of Orange County in Huntington

Beach, will probably be fine. She is expected home on Sunday. But the

bad thing is that no one knows how to explain that to her mate,

Rupert.

The other half of the locally famous swan couple has in recent

years survived a terrible oil spill and at least one run-in with a

fish hook. But Pearl’s absence may be the wound that cuts the

deepest.

“Rupert cries all night long,” Kelly said. “It’s like a squawk and

a high pitch, and he trolls up and down in front of the houses here.

I know he’s calling for her.”