Owl Adventure

Final Update on Hooters!  Thanks for sharing this journey with me.


Dan,
I'm sorry I don't have better news, but Dr. Shipman and I put Hooter down this evening. I drove him down to Topeka to see the vet as planned.

The humrous bone in the wing was shattered as well as a bad break at the elbow. This is a devastating enough injury that we possibly could have pinned, HOWEVER, when the humorous bone shattered, it severed the radial nerve that gave Hooter all feeling and control of his wing. Even if we managed to repair the bone damage Hooter would have never again flown.

The sad side of wildlife rehabbing is that a non-flighted and fully functioning owl will never be releasable. Dr. Shipman and I made the decision to go ahead and put him down as per state laws and regulations. It's never an easy decision and I'm very sorry.

Know that he was well cared for and died peacefully with a full tummy and no pain. I wish this had a happier ending. If I end up with a baby or releaseable screech owl this year, I would be glad to bring it to Holton for release. I know it's not the same, but it would be something to offer the kids who had their hopes up.

With my sympathy,
Sherri McNary, CWR

Not really school related...but wanted to share this!

Last night, the family was headed up to the Holton High School basketball game to watch my daughter perform in the cheer clinic.  We had just turned onto Hwy 16 going through town and drove east a bit when we heard a loud clunk on the top of my trailblazer.  Darin and I were trying to figure out what had happened, thinking that something had been throw at us etc, or a branch fell off a tree and hit the roof of the vehicle.  We continue driving east when we get to the stop light I thought I heard another sound on the roof.  So we continue to the HHS gym and park about a block away.  I get out of the car and step up so that I can see on the roof when I see what appears to be an animal towards the back of the roof…caught by our luggage rack.  I tell Darin to look, thinking it is a dead bird..when all of a sudden one of the wings starts to flap and Darin says…Ummmm, I think that is a baby owl.  So now we are perplexed as to what to do….I don’t want to leave it suffering on the roof of our car, but we have to get Taygen to the game and really aren’t sure how to go about picking up an owl from the roof of our car. Obviously the baby owl fell from the tree when we drove past.  Darin and I both decide that we hope one of the local vets is inside at the ballgame.

So once at the game, Taygen goes off in search of Dr. Dan Degenhardt or Dr. Parks.  Darin and Taygen find Dan.  He is willing to come and look at see if he can help us.  We find a box to put the animal in and they head out towards the car.  When Darin returns, he tells me that it is a young owl and Dan is sure the wing is broken so he was off to the clinic with the owl to fix the wing and see what can be done.  Later, we find Sarah (Dan’s wife) and ask her to take a picture of it for us when she goes home and checks on the owl.  Thanks Sarah!  So the 1^st picture was taken last night….the owl was in shock from landing on our car and a broken wing…then being at the vet’s clinic with other animals.  So it is lying there with its eye closed…kind of hard to tell. 

This morning, Sarah and Dan send us another photo that shows the owl with its wing taped and feeling much better.  It is now standing on its own and probably headed to an Wildlife Rehab Center. 

Wow…..I mean really who has this happen to them.  What a fun night and a great story to tell.  The kids were so excited about having rescued this owl….but in reality we owe a huge thanks To Dr. Degenhardt.  


UPDATE from Vet:

UPDATE: Hooters just left for Northeast Kansas Wildlife Rescue. His certified rehabilitator said he was a Burrowing Owl and thought he was probably a juvenile, as owls are nesting this time of year and the circumstances of falling from a tree. She will know more about him when she gets him there and she plans on having his fractured wing pinned soon. She said she will keep me updated on his progress and I will pass any news along. Thanks Altenburgs for your act of kindness.

Updated  2-1-2012 at 4:00
Hi Dan,

I looked him over a little more closely, and he is a Western Screech owl and not a burrowing owl. The ear tufts sealed the deal. Sorry about that. He is a first year juvenile and very small. A baby would be a mass of down and would not even have it's eyes open yet. I'm betting this guy is a late fall baby that is not finding enough food to sustain him through the winter. We see a lot of late baby owls fail to thrive. It is also a HE so he is appropriately named.

Hooters is resting quietly. He did take a pinkie mouse and has made a mess with diarrhea. So things on that end are working :) The diareha is most likely from the milk. Owls get their moisture from their food source.

Sherri McNary, CWR
NE KS Wildlife Rescue Group

P.S. Here are some fun facts to pass along to the kids:

Hello all, I am doing everything I can for your owl. Hooter has a broken wing and head injury. I will be visiting with a vet tommorrow evening to see if his wing can be fixed with surgery. The medicine the vet and I gave him has reduced the swelling in his brain. Say a prayer and enjoy these fun facts while you wait for news...

* Hooter is a western screech owl.

* This type of owl is known to try taking prey larger than itself, including cottontail rabbits and Mallards! They are very aggressive especially if defending their nest.

* When threatened, Hooter will stand erect, slick down his body feathers, hold their ear-tufts up, and draw the feathers around his beak forward. This allows him to blend in with the tree branches.

* Like most owls, Hooter mates for life and once babies hatch, his job is to bring food to mom and babies. Where he is a first year juvie, I’m not sure if he has met his mate or not. Let’s hope not – but if so, it is really important that we release him back where he was found!

* Hooter likes to live in open woodlands, along forest streams, suburban areas, and parks. His favorite nesting place is in a cottonwood or big-leaf maple tree.

* Hooter eats mammals, birds, worms, insects and crayfish. Yummy!

* Western Screech Owls can grow to be 7.5-10 in tall and have a wingspan of 22-25 inches long and weigh 100-300 grams (Female owls are always bigger!)