Simon, a wheelchair-bound turkey in Chicago, needs a prosthetic leg. Here's how you can help.
HARVARD (CBS) — Not every house is a home, but for Rehana Mohammed-Smith, hers is a sanctuary for dozens of abused, neglected, and injured birds.
While each bird is a special case, one in particular needs urgent care — Simon, the turkey in a wheelchair.
Located over 60 miles north of Chicago, close to the Wisconsin border in Harvard, Rehana and her husband Joe are co-founders of Georgia's Place Bird Sanctuary. He built the wheelchair himself through trial and error and some PVC pipe.
"I mean, it's a first for us," she said.
Simon was rescued in 2020 after a family who initially had tried to sell him off for Thanksgiving dinner. A woman intervened and brought him to Mohammed-Smith.
"We fell madly in love with him, and the rest is history," she said.
It's been an uphill battle for Simon, starting with having to amputate his toe after an injury wouldn't heal. Since February, he has been battling a bacterial infection in his hock, a soft part of his leg equivalent to a human ankle.
That infection will soon cost him a limb, but they are determined to give him a better life.
Mohammed-Smith has tried nearly everything – different vets, oral and injectable antibiotics, regional limb perfusions, and surgery to implant antibiotic beads in the hock.
Simon receives laser, physical, and massage therapy paired with daily treats. Right now, she does not believe euthanasia is an ethical option.
"He's got such a personality. He wants to live," Mohammed-Smith said.
They don't know how much a prosthetic would cost or even if it would work, but it's worth a shot to help one of the flock's favorites.
"Unfortunately, because there's not a lot of people that would go to these lengths with them," she said.
"Our ultimate goal would be to see him walk again," her husband, Joe, said.
"If everybody got to know a turkey like Simon, they would realize these birds are brilliant. They're so funny. They're intelligent. They're nuts," she said.
Donations can be made to help Simon on Georgia's Place Bird Sanctuary's website and through other links on its Facebook page.
Hatching A Bird Sanctuary
Mohammed-Smith left her 16-year teaching career two years ago to pursue her dream of running the sanctuary full-time.
A dream that first hatched after a class project in 2012.
Students in her science classroom had asked to incubate chicken eggs. Only two of the six eggs hatched, and one survived.
"It was this adorable little black chick, and I was like, this little person is so cute!"
She named the chick George, only to find out later that George was a girl. Some people have purse dogs, and others, like Mohammed-Smith, have lap chickens.
"She was everywhere. She was the biggest part of my life. I brought her to the classroom. All the time, we called it 'bring your chicken to work day,' and it was just me that would bring the chicken," she said.
People often approached Mohammed-Smith and George to ask questions.
"They had no idea that they were so personable. And so yeah, I think she changed some hearts and minds, for sure."
George's royal treatment inspired the sanctuary's name, Georgia's Place Bird Sanctuary.
"I knew I wanted to rescue chickens because she was so cool, you know, and I thought, How can people eat them?" she said.
Soon enough, the sanctuary branched out to pheasants, partridges, quail, doves, and turkeys.
Misunderstood Birds Can Thrive
With a strict diet and a proper environment, birds viewed only for consumption can live longer and more fulfilling lives.
Cornish Cross chickens, for example, are slaughtered as early as 42 days old when raised for meat and live no longer than two years.
However, at Georgia's Bird Sanctuary, with access to sunlight, grass, good food, and love, they have lived triple that life span. Her Cornish Cross, Norman, will be celebrating his 7th birthday this year.
"When they get exercise and attention, and all the things that they're supposed to have, they'll live longer lives," Mohammed-Smith said. Norman, a cornish cross living at her sanctuary, will celebrate his 7th birthday this year.
According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois has over 150,000 wild turkeys. They live in wooded areas and swamps in every county and play an important role in dispersing seeds and consuming insects.