Tuesday 10 February 2015

HOOTS MON* ...

.. "It's a braw bricht moonlicht nicht the nicht."


EYES WIDE SHUT: Fred being placed back in 
his Achica box after a feed


 IT WAS freezing cold but the night sky was illuminated by a full, bright moon in a star-studded sky.
 I had been following a big log-carrying lorry towards the Scottish Borders and was driving with extreme caution due to black ice when I noticed something fluffy, swirling around by the lorry's downdraft as we approached Catcleugh Reservoir just north of Otterburn.
 Ever curious - even at 2am - I slowed down and then reversed quarter of a mile until I found what I was looking for ... there, sitting blinking in the middle of the road was a Tawny owl looking slightly dazed and confused.
 As I walked towards the little fellow I half expected him to flap his wings and vanish but he sat there and allowed me to pick him up. His only response was to dig his talons around my fingers as though he was seeking some sort of comfort or reassurance that he was safe. Well that's what I thought anyway.
 I phoned ahead to he-who-should-be-obeyed-but-rarely-is to tell him to expect another guest and then told the story. Hubby is always peeved these little adventures happen when he's not around and so tried to remain unimpressed with my find when I arrived home.
TIRED & UNEMOTIONAL: Fred looks fed-up
with life
 After a quick check on Google I found an old Achica box and fashioned it in to the sort of home a tawny Owl would feel comfortable in and then put him in an outhouse for what remained of the night.
 The following morning I called an animal helpline but it was so busy I decided to try and sort out my feathered companion myself, via picking up information on the 'net.
 Surprisingly, my new best friend was uber calm making me wonder if he was, perhaps, still dazed and confused. He allowed me to pick him up, this time I was wearing red gloves so when he dug in his talons the experience was not as painful as it had been the night before.
 He didn't flap his wings and he allowed me to stroke his feathers.
 I called a friend of mine who keeps birds of prey and he suggested I try feeding the bird with day old chicks and let me have three which I set about chopping and skinning. Not a pleasant task and as it turned out, the owl could not be tempted by the bloody morsels.
 After consulting another owl website I managed to persuade him to take a couple of spoonfuls of catfood but it was obvious he needed specialist help.
 Within half an hour of calling the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (suggested via Twitter by some friends) a wonderful lady arrived in her SSPCA van and inspected Fred; he was named by my daughter.
 The lady, obviously far more experienced at handling owls than me, spread out his wings out and felt around his body and concluded that nothing seemd broken. He was, she said, very boney and underweight suggesting he might just be weak, stressed and in shock which would explain his apathetic appearance.
 She placed him gently in an appropriate owl-carrying box and said he would be cared for in a wildelife centre in Alloa, Clackmannashire until he gets better. She did say she'd let me know of his progress and, of course, I shall pass on any news to you via this blog.
 The SSPCA does a grand job so if you have any pennies to spare you can donate here as they help all sorts of creatures in distress.

* Hoots Mon: Was in the pop charts in 1958 and you can download now for those of you who want to take a trip down Memory Lane










3 comments:

  1. Hoots Mon?
    Never heard of it.
    Checked it out on Spotify.
    Not everything from 1958 is worth remembering.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice read, thank you.
    By the way, Barn Owls are on the way back:
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/earthnews/9010284/Barn-owls-make-a-comeback.html

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  3. Well done you. I don't know if I'd have driven back at that time of night. He's a beautiful big thing, I hope he recovers quickly.

    ReplyDelete