Just south of the shores of this ancient lake, Evan King brings 15 sick birds to a makeshift animal hospital at the Kern National Wildlife Refuge. Veterinarians with University of California, Davis, have converted a home into a facility capable of treating hundreds of birds infected with a disease known as avian botulism. Inside, veterinarians cradle tiny birds like infants, and feed them water and nutrients through small tubes in their beaks. … [Jamie Sherman, a veterinarian with the Oiled Wildlife Care Network, said she] and her team — which responds to animal emergencies across the state — have treated more than a thousand sick birds at the lake. Of those, they’ve been able to release nearly 700 back into the wild.