COEUR d'ALENE — Jane and Don Veltkamp estimate they have saved thousands of birds throughout their lives.

They added two more to that list Saturday. 

The Veltkamps own and operate Birds of Prey Northwest, a nonprofit based out of St. Maries. One of their focuses is saving, caring for and rehabilitating raptors or birds of prey.

"The mission is twofold: to rescue orphaned and injured adult and baby birds, and then our main mission is to travel with live educational birds," said Jane Veltkamp.

Two 4-week-old bald eagles recently lost their parents in an accident near Ketchum. So, the Veltkamps had them flown to Coeur d'Alene so they could transport them to their rehabilitation facility.

The eagles will remain nameless because the Veltkamps plan to release them into the wild, where another eagle in their care, named Avista, will foster them. 

Avista, Veltkamp said, will care for them as though they were its own. 

"It comes naturally because it is under hormonal control. It doesn't go, 'I don't have a baby. I'm not a parent,'" she said. "Their hormones say, 'I had better feed these babies.'''

The eagles will be fully grown at 6 weeks of age, but will not develop their familiar yellow beak and stark white head until they are 5 years old. According to the Veltkamps, most bald eagles have a 25-year lifespan. But they can live up to 50 years depending on the circumstances. 

The young birds will subsist on about 3 pounds of fish that Avista feeds them until they fully mature. The Veltkamps are careful not to feed them.

"You must not hand-feed a baby bird of prey," Jane said. "They will imprint on humans and think food comes from humans."

As of Saturday, the birds are still too weak to stand. But given time, Jane said, they'll act and behave no differently than had they been raised in the wild.

The Veltkamps' facility houses 50-60 birds that they either take care of or are working to rehabilitate.

"When Jane gets focused on saving a bird and looks for help, there is only one answer, which is yes," said Nate Calvin, one of the pilots who flew the birds to Coeur d'Alene

In December, a windstorm severely damaged their facility. And while there is still a lot of work left to repair it, the Veltkamps refuse to let anything get in the way of their mission.

"Thankfully, with these guys coming in, we've rebuilt to a great degree already," Don Veltkamp said. "We are getting it rebuilt pretty fast." 

Birds of Prey Northwest primarily serves as an educational service for the public, teaching people about raptors and the dangers of hunting them, which is the leading cause of raptor deaths.

The Veltkamps also offer private tours of their facility so people can see the creatures up close. 

For more information about Birds of Prey Northwest, visit their website or call their office at 208-582-0797.

    Jane Veltkamp soothes one of the young birds right after taking it off the plane.
  

    Pilots Mike Bracke and Nate Calvin unload the young eagles from the plane they flew in on.
  

    Jane Veltkamp poses with one of the young eagles.