Dremel – It's for the Birds

Phil Cronin, a native Floridian, has always loved bird watching. So when he and his family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 13 years ago, a conversation with a fellow hawk watcher inspired him to put his passion to use.

Cronin started volunteering at the Macbride Raptor Center, an educational clinic where sick and injured birds are nursed to health. Those that heal are released into the wild and those that are permanently injured – and wouldn’t survive on their own – are kept at the center where visitors can learn about their injuries and how to prevent them.

As manager at a True Value Hardware Store in Cedar Rapids, Cronin was familiar with the corded Dremel tool the center used for coping – filing the injured birds’ beaks to prevent overgrowth. But without power in every cage, coping was a long, stressful process for the birds. Volunteers had to catch the birds, box them, carry them inside, cope them, box them again and carry them back outside.

A few months ago, after eyeing cordless tools at work, Cronin called Dremel for help. Dremel responded by donating a Stylus for the center’s use.

“With the Stylus, we’re able to just walk right into the cage, restrain the bird and trim the beak right there,” said Cronin. “There’s no transportation involved so it’s quicker and less stressful, too.”

Volunteers cope each of the center’s resident birds – currently about 25 – twice a year, as well as birds sent from other centers. Cronin said he was pleasantly surprised that the Stylus held its charge – with plenty to spare - through an entire round of coping.

Have a project that showcases the control and flexibility of your Dremel tool? Want to show off your handiwork? E-mail a digital image of your project and a brief summary of how you made the piece (250 word maximum, please!). If we select your project to showcase, we'll send you the new Dremel Stylus!