Avian Hospital

Avian Hospital

Birds at the National Aviary receive the highest level of care from our team of dedicated, caring veterinarians. In our Avian Hospital, birds as small as Owl Finches and as large as Andean Condors, as common as a dove and as rare as the Extinct in the Wild Guam Kingfisher, receive care that is specialized for each individual bird’s needs and stage of life.

Dr. Pilar Fish, Senior Director of Zoological Advancement and Veterinary Medicine, and her outstanding team provide the National Aviary’s birds with dedicated prenatal, natal, and preventative care, as well as customized medicine and cutting-edge surgical and emergency treatment.

Each senior and special needs bird has a customized natural habitat designed for their preferences and with helpful aids such as ramps. The National Aviary staff prioritizes every bird’s comfort and daily well-being for these birds who play an important role in training the next generation of veterinarians. The mission of our skilled team is always to provide the very best and most thorough treatment and therapies to every bird, young or old.

Dr. Pilar Fish and a vet technician giving an African Penguin a checkup
Andean Condor chick vet check up

Birds are amazing creatures, displaying an incredible diversity in size, behavior, diet, and physical attributes. But, they are also fragile creatures with complex respiratory systems that are prone to infections, delicate bones that fracture easily, and bodies too small for typical veterinary drug doses and surgical equipment. Their unique physiology requires that we be innovative in caring for them, and their care can be costly.

Donate today to help us continue to provide uncompromised care to the National Aviary’s flock.

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National Aviary Teaching Hospital

Our renowned Veterinary Teaching Hospital offers valuable opportunities to students interested in pursuing careers in veterinary medicine, wildlife biology, bird conservation, and environmental education. Through workshops, presentations, and publications, our veterinary expertise and technical advancements not only benefit students but also aid other veterinarians and wildlife rehabilitators worldwide.

We are dedicated to supporting the next generation of professionals through internships that provide training in field research, monitoring techniques, animal care, environmental education, and conservation practices. These experiences have had a profound impact here and in Latin America, South Africa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

An intern feeding a Fairy Blue-bird chick
Interns looking at x-rays alongside a National Aviary veterinarian.

National Aviary Avian Care Center

Our Avian Care Center, sponsored by Your Town Realty, offers a window into what it takes to care for the more than 500 birds and other animals at the National Aviary. Guests can see an array of specialized veterinary tools used for wellness exams, diagnostic screens, vaccinations, and preventative treatments.

Eurasian Eagle-Owl chicks, 2024
Valentino the sloth as a baby sleeping in cozy blankets
Baby Linnaeus’s Two-toed Sloth, Valentino, 2017

As guests walk past the Avian Care Center in The Charity Randall Foundation Eagle Hall, they may even hear a chirp…or two! Each hatching is unique and every chick has its own needs, especially during chickhood. The Avian Care Center provides optimal conditions for chicks to thrive and gives our guests a “birds-eye-view” into each stage of development and care.

Thank You to Avian Care Center Sponsor:

In The News

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The Invisible Clues Animals Leave Behind Are Helping Save Entire Ecosystems (featuring an interview with Dr. Steve Latta) | A-Z Animals

In this article, we speak with Dr. Steven Latta, Director of Conservation and Field Research at The National Aviary. In his own work, he collects eDNA samples from water, leaf litter, feathers, egg shells, and other substrates to identify species presence.

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Why Animals in Cold Climates Are Bigger: The Science Behind Bergmann’s Rule (featuring an interview with Bob Mulvihill) | A-Z Animals

“Large animals can conserve heat more efficiently than smaller animals in cold climates,” explains Bob Mulvihill, Lead Ornithologist for the National Aviary.

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Penguins To Hold ‘Penguins Pledge Night’ Presented by U. S. Steel | Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins Pledge will also raise funds and call attention to the National Aviary in Pittsburgh and their conservation leadership with African Penguins.

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Record Number of Peregrine Falcons Counted in Allegheny County | National Today

Conservation efforts have helped the raptor species rebound in the region.

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Why Are There No Birds in My Birdhouse? I Asked Expert Bob Mulvihill Who Told Me How to Attract Birds to Any Birdhouse | Gardening Know How

To help ensure your birdhouses are as appealing to birds as possible, [we] asked a National Aviary Ornithologist Bob Mulvihill for the most common reasons why houses remain vacant and how to make houses more attractive to garden birds.

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