Lois Bright of Rotorua knows the right thing to do is not turn a blind eye, so when she spotted a hawk sitting in the middle of State Highway 2 south of Dannevirke she made her husband Grant turn around.
"We think it has a broken wing - Grant just picked it up and wrapped it up in his Swandri," she said.
The bird was responsive, despite its injury, so when they stopped at McDonald's in Dannevirke it fed on meat patties.
Unsure if they should take it to a bird sanctuary that they knew of in Rotorua, they stopped in Waipukurau when they spied the Vet Services Hawke's Bay sign.
When Hawke's Bay Today spoke to them they were waiting for the duty vet to arrive.
It was not a lonely wait, the police and RoadSafe Hawke's Bay had set up a camp for a joint road-safety programme where motorists were offered free food and coffee.
"Lots of kids have had their photo taken with it - it's a friendly little thing."
Mrs Bright said turning a blind eye was never an option.
"We are old school - we all have to look after our native species."
Despite their commendable attempts to rescue it, it had to be put down last night.
