A goose found wandering in Orange County with an arrow lodged in its neck died Wednesday night after undergoing surgery to remove the projectile.
OC Animal Care officials said the bird at first appeared to make it through surgery OK but died a short time later.
"The vet did everything that they could do," said Katie Ingram of OC Animal Care. "We are unsure if it was due to the extent of the injuries or some other complication. We were all hoping for a happy ending for this little guy."
Ingram said there was some difficulty in removing the arrow because the skin had healed around it.
The Egyptian goose was captured Wednesday after multiple efforts by several people who tried to corral the injured bird over the past week.
First it was the priority of animal control officers, then it became the focus for workers of a nearby car wash who tried to entice it with food, make friends with it.
Their efforts paid off when one of the workers caught the injured animal Wednesday morning.
Abundio Martinez said he built a bond with the goose over the past week. He fed it bread crumbs and it followed him around. It was a bond strong enough to lure the bird into the car wash where he worked and hold it until animal control officers were able to take over.
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Before being corralled, reports were made that a goose was seen with an arrow in its neck near an Anaheim golf course. The goose would eventually make a home near a riverbed along the 91 Freeway, a few feet away from the car wash.
The cause of the bird's injuries were unknown but it appeared to be the victim of animal cruelty, officials said.
It was taken to a nearby veterinarian for treatment and went into surgery in the afternoon Wednesday.
Animal control officers said the goose wasn't native to the area and possibly was someone's pet at some point.
They planned to launch an investigation into the assault and fingerprint the arrow after it was removed from the goose's neck.
Bikers who used a recreational area nearby were appalled that someone could hurt the animal.
"It's sad, really," said Glenn Rolbiecki. "How it happened, nobody knows."
Officials chalked up the goose's ability to survive and near-normal behavior to the arrow not hitting any vital organs. However, they said, it was concerning that the goose was living with an open wound.
Anyone with information about the injured goose may call 714-796-6413.
