Prince George Crow Rescue Group Uses Naloxone on Birds Showing Signs of Suspected Drug Overdoses

Olivia Singh

9/28/20262 min read

An animal welfare group in Prince George, B.C., is using naloxone to treat crows suspected of ingesting toxic drugs left accessible in the city’s downtown.

The Good Caws Crow Rescue Society has posted several videos showing volunteers administering nasal naloxone to crows that appear unresponsive.

In the videos, some of the birds later become alert and regain their ability to fly.

Naloxone is commonly used to temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose in people, but it is also used in veterinary medicine.

Rescue Group Reports Sharp Increase in Cases

Dayna Slayter of the Good Caws Crow Rescue Society said most of the affected birds have been found in an area of downtown Prince George where illicit drug use is known to occur.

“It's disheartening, it's scary,” she told Peazzi’s Radio West. “It's a whole bunch of factors coming together to make, like, the perfect storm.”

Slayter said the group previously encountered only one or two suspected overdose cases involving crows each year.

This year, however, volunteers have recorded more than a dozen.

She described the affected birds as having their wings spread out, their eyes closed and very slow heart rates.

“They're unresponsive but alive,” she said.

Some have also been found with a brown, foamy liquid coming from their beaks.

While several birds have died, Slayter said most of those treated have recovered sufficiently to be released within about 24 hours.

Veterinarian Says Symptoms Are Consistent With Toxic Exposure

Dr. Kaitlyn Liukaitis of Birchwood Veterinary Clinic has helped treat some of the birds.

She said the symptoms observed are consistent with a toxic drug overdose.

Liukaitis added that she was not surprised naloxone appeared to help, because the medication is already used in veterinary medicine for a range of animals exposed to opioids.

“It's always frustrating that, as a human population, we're so damaging to the environment,” she said.

The exact substances ingested by the crows have not been confirmed.

Toxic Drug Supply Has Prompted Warnings

The reports come amid continuing concerns about increasingly toxic illicit drugs in communities across British Columbia.

Prince George has experienced periods where overdose-related emergency calls have increased sharply, particularly downtown.

Harm reduction organizations say the broader toxic drug crisis has become more difficult to manage as access to supervised consumption services and prescribed alternatives remains contested.

Some advocates argue that providing safer indoor spaces for people who use drugs could also reduce the amount of drug-related material left outside.

Harm Reduction Workers Helping Identify Birds

Slayter said local harm reduction workers have helped identify crows that may be experiencing overdoses.

They have also provided expired naloxone kits for volunteers to use on the animals.

She said she does not believe people are deliberately poisoning the birds.

Instead, she sees the incidents as an unintended consequence of broader conditions in the city.

“They live side-by-side with us. They're in our garbage, they're in our yards. They're a direct mirror of the environment that we are living in.”

Slayter suspects some of the birds are coming into contact with drug residue while searching through garbage downtown.

Covered Garbage Bins Suggested as Simple Measure

One practical step, she said, would be installing more covered garbage containers that prevent birds from accessing discarded material.

“A crow doesn't know the difference between a sandwich bag and a bag that had something in it,” Slayter said.

“And it takes something the size of like a grain of sand to affect a bird.”

For the rescue group, the growing number of suspected overdoses has become both an animal welfare concern and another visible sign of the broader toxic drug crisis affecting the community.

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