A BIRD enthusiast from Prestatyn was reunited with his pet crow Fagin after the bird had gone missing for six days.
29-year-old Joseph Greenwood, who recently started his own bird rescue group Helping Hard Corvid Rescue, was “absolutely devastated” when Fagin panicked and flew out of his back garden last week.
Having established a bond with the crow over a number of years, this was the second time in the last month that Fagin had flown away, with Mr Greenwood warning people that it was vital he was found and returned as he “won't survive long term on his own in the wild”.
After delivering more than 4,000 posters by hand with his sister, Mr Greenwood was slowly losing hope of his “boy” returning.
With his sister Catherine, they walked around Prestatyn for hours on end asking passers-by if they had spotted Fagin, who has a distinctive bald patch on its head.
However, help in finding him came from an unlikely place.
Mr Greenwood received a message from a tree surgeon in Dyserth, who believed that Fagin may be in his mother’s garden.
“I went to check out this bird with not much hope of it being Fagin, and at this point my wife was starting to lose hope - she is normally very optimistic.
“To say I was in low spirits was an understatement.”
After arriving at the house, Joseph was informed the bird was in the garden, and went to investigate.
“I saw from a distance that the bird saw us and had run in to a bush, so I cautiously approached still with the thought it might not be Fagin,” said Joseph.
“As I got to the bush I bent down and called his name ‘Fagin, come on Fagin’ - a little head popped out though the undergrowth and a little voice called out ‘hello’ in a husky voice.
“At this point I knew it was my boy, yet he approached me with caution as I did to him previously.
“I stood there in complete disbelief feeling stumped for words - I said ‘Fagin’ again, he stepped forward and puffed his feathers out with his wings open, trotted towards me and jumped on my lap calling to me with the occasional ‘hello’.”
Despite not being in the best condition after six days in the wild, Joseph said the crow was receiving some “much needed TLC” and a trip to his favourite vet.
MORE: Prestatyn man appeals for donations to fund bird rescue group
Mr Greenwood added: “I can’t thank Dom [the tree surgeon] enough who also offered Fagin some mealworms that he gobbled up before we left.
“Thank you to Dom and his family for reaching out and thank you to all my friends and family who helped me search for Fagin, thank you again to Hayden Perham for making me posters through his fantastic business, Perham Prints in Rhyl.”
For more on Helping Hard Corvid Rescue, go to: www.facebook.com/groups/1129098854310088.
To make a donation yourself, visit: www.gofundme.com/f/helping-hand-corvid-rescue.
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