Injured hawk rescued after being shot twice by pellet gun

A wounded hawk has been taken to an emergency care center after it was found shot twice by a pellet gun in Pasadena. 

One resident of the Sierra Madre neighborhood, Cleo Watts, was alerted of the injured bird on Tuesday, when it was found clearly distressed outside of someone's home. 

"I went to go get the bird and I noticed it was bleeding from its right wing," Watts said. "The vets discovered that he was shot. ... Somebody shot him."

Watts rushed to its rescue, quickly bringing him to the Exotic Animal Vet Clinic, where they discovered that it had suffered two gunshot wounds from what they believe was a pellet gun — once in the wing and once in the left leg. 

Veterinarians say that the hawk, likely between three and five years old, still has a long road to recovery and will remain in the clinic's care until he recovers enough to undergo surgery. 

At that point he will be taken to the Ojai Raptor Center, where he will undergo surgery to remove the pellets and physical therapy before he's released back to the wild. 

Kim Bachar, a wildlife technician at the animal cliic, says that this hawk is one of many that are brought in with similar injuries after being shot by pellet guns. 

"I've seen a lot of these, unfortunately," she said. "Some think that people use them for target practice, or they don't want them in their yards."

Watts says that on top of hurting the bird, it's also a crime and she hopes the person who did it is brought to justice. 

"It's pretty upsetting to know that somebody would do this to an animal," Watts said. "I'm hoping that they'll be caught and suffer the consequences."

Raptors are protected under on both a state and federal level, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Shooting one is a misdemeanor offense and if convicted, could result in a fine up to $1,000 and six months of jail time.