Baby Owl Found Alone and Injured
A tiny tawny owl, which was found abandoned and injured in a wood in Kings Weston, Bristol, is slowly on the mend after being rescued by a leading animal charity in the South West.
The owl, estimated to be four weeks old, is being cared for by staff at Secret World Wildlife Rescue in East Huntspill, Somerset. The owl is currently being support-fed as part of the charity’s care plan.
The owlet, named Ashleigh, was found sitting alone at the bottom of a tree by a member of the public. This isn’t uncommon among tawny owls, as they are known to come out of their nest away from their parents and then climb back up the tree later.
Initially, the situation was monitored by the charity but when another call came in saying the owl had flies buzzing around it, one of Secret World’s response drivers went to assess the owlet.
The owl was found with dirty feet and covered in faeces, so the charity made the decision to bring it in to Secret World for assessment.
Secret World’s Release Coordinator Jamie Kingscott said: “Once in our hospital room, we discovered Ashleigh had a broken talon which was bleeding. This explains why it was unable to climb back up the tree. There had been no sign of mum or dad at the site, so I’m looking after Ashleigh at our centre.
“At this age it is difficult to determine the sex of an owlet. It can generally be determined by weight when they are older.
“I’m currently support-feeding Ashleigh, but I expect the tawny owl will soon be feeding by itself.
“The next step is to wait until Ashleigh has grown more feathers and is able to fly, and then we will move it away from human contact to our pre-release aviaries.
“It is important that we release animals at a time when they would naturally disperse from their parents, so we will be looking for a suitable release site for Ashleigh to go back to the wild in September.”
In 2017, Secret World Wildlife Rescue rescued 145 birds of prey and owls.
Secret World provides a 365-days a year service to rescue sick, injured or orphaned wildlife. Members of the public who would like advice on how to look after wild animals or would like to report injured wildlife, should call 01278 783 250.
Notes for editors:
About Secret World Wildlife Rescue
- Secret World Wildlife Rescue is one of the South West’s leading wildlife rescue charities (charity number 1097119) based in East Huntspill in Somerset.
- Now in its 25th year, Secret World Wildlife Rescue cares for more than 5,000 sick, injured and orphaned animals each year.
- As well as being a respected source of expertise and a centre of excellence where British wildlife receives the best care, Secret World has an extensive volunteer programme and engages with schools to promote respect for wildlife and the environment, adding further benefits to the local community.
- As Secret World does not receive any government funding, it relies entirely on the generosity of supporters and donors to carry out this important work for British wildlife.
- The charity’s website is www.secretworld.org
