I rescued a baby owl.

[Sloppy Mexican]

Awesome stuff OP, thanks for sharing on here

No worries, I’m enjoying telling the story. Really curious to see where this science project goes.

 

[hmt5000]

My fuckin cat catches birds, moles, squirrels and chipmunks and sets them loose ALIVE inside the house. I had a pair of leather gloves set aside in the house specifically for catching wild animals. We finally ended his outside privileges though

I've got chickens that I free range during the day and lock up at night. The mice are all over the coup when it gets dark. My cat will go into the coup and hide before I close it up at night. He knows his shit. I find dead mice in there everywhere afterwards. Apex predator. I miss having rabbits run around the yard but damn that cat is fun to watch stalk shit.

 

[Peach-head]

My fuckin cat catches birds, moles, squirrels and chipmunks and sets them loose ALIVE inside the house. I had a pair of leather gloves set aside in the house specifically for catching wild animals. We finally ended his outside privileges though

I would kill it. But the chaos would be something to behold. The kids would love it.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Morning update on Puppy:

Mama owl was very active this morning. Saw her flying everywhere, obviously on the hunt. Waited about an hour to see if she delivered the goods. Walked over to Puppy’s nest and there were bird feathers everywhere!

This is fantastic news, I was worried mama was not getting it done, but she brought home the bacon this morning!

 

[America 1st]

Never thought an owl would compete with Big Texas steak but @Sloppy Mexican Crootn produced.

 

[RJ2kWJ]

yeah my neighborhood is a bird sanctuary...owls, bald eagles, osprey and giant woodpeckers. My cat takes care of the squirrels tho
View attachment 6055

The look on the cats face of “Yea I did that, you have an opinion on the matter?” Is excellent.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Morning update:

I’m on the road for work today so I unfortunately missed this event, so second hand info from my wife. She’s an early riser and saw mama owl perched on the nest I built, I assume feeding Puppy this morning’s kill.
This is great news as I’m now seeing a consistent pattern of mama coming to the nest, at least every other day. This is huge for Puppy’s development because imprinting on another owl instead of me is critical.
This is where I’m torn. I want Puppy to have some sort of interest in interacting with me, but I don’t want to mess him/her up. I can’t teach Puppy how to hunt, fear humans, find a mate, etc. I’m hopi g there is a happy medium where Puppy might be willing to fly down to a perch and be fed without direct contact.
This confounds me.

 

[CMTiger15]

yeah my neighborhood is a bird sanctuary...owls, bald eagles, osprey and giant woodpeckers. My cat takes care of the squirrels tho
View attachment 6055

Your cat seems like a real asshole.

 

[RHT 3]

You really need to put it back in the nest OP. It will develop normally that way.

We found a baby owl on the ground at a fire station. Called the bird nerds, they said it needs to go back, they put it up in the nest. It was a little older than yours but could not fly.

They are awesome animals for sure.

 

[SoonerMD09]

Morning update:

I’m on the road for work today so I unfortunately missed this event, so second hand info from my wife. She’s an early riser and saw mama owl perched on the nest I built, I assume feeding Puppy this morning’s kill.
This is great news as I’m now seeing a consistent pattern of mama coming to the nest, at least every other day. This is huge for Puppy’s development because imprinting on another owl instead of me is critical.
This is where I’m torn. I want Puppy to have some sort of interest in interacting with me, but I don’t want to mess him/her up. I can’t teach Puppy how to hunt, fear humans, find a mate, etc. I’m hopi g there is a happy medium where Puppy might be willing to fly down to a perch and be fed without direct contact.
This confounds me.

Your desire is a selfish one. The bird will do best with mom.

just swallow hard and let the mom do her work. You did good, OP.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Your desire is a selfish one. The bird will do best with mom.

just swallow hard and let the mom do her work. You did good, OP.

I know I’m doing good. I don’t need the owl police to remind me.

 

[SoonerMD09]

I know I’m doing good. I don’t need the owl police to remind me.

Didn't realize you were so insecure.

Good luck then.

 

[skramer100]

Any update?

 

[tgsio]

How's the baby doing?

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Sorry about the lack of updates guys, been raining like hell here for most of daylight hours. Managed to check on Puppy briefly today, didn’t want to spook mama in case she was about to feed. The quick glimpse I got he was snoozing in his basket not making a peep. I assume that means his belly was full.

Mama was on the lookout and hanging close by. She’s a huge bird and not to be fucked with. I got a good look at her this morning with binoculars and her feet look like they are about the size of my fists.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

You really need to put it back in the nest OP. It will develop normally that way.

We found a baby owl on the ground at a fire station. Called the bird nerds, they said it needs to go back, they put it up in the nest. It was a little older than yours but could not fly.

They are awesome animals for sure.

I’d love to put it back up but the nest is about 40 ft up in a live oak. I’ve tried to think of every conceivable way to get up there and the only possibility is to rent a bucket truck, assuming it could even get back to the tree. The lady at the local wildlife center told me to just get it up off the ground to avoid predation and mama would continue to feet and raise, so far that happening, so I’m happy. It has crossed my mind to build a larger platform I could nail higher up in the tree, but that’ll have to be a project for after Mardi Gras.

 

[tgsio]

I’d love to put it back up but the nest is about 40 ft up in a live oak. I’ve tried to think of every conceivable way to get up there and the only possibility is to rent a bucket truck, assuming it could even get back to the tree. The lady at the local wildlife center told me to just get it up off the ground to avoid predation and mama would continue to feet and raise, so far that happening, so I’m happy. It has crossed my mind to build a larger platform I could nail higher up in the tree, but that’ll have to be a project for after Mardi Gras.

Just Tarzan your way up the tree.

 

[UNC71-00]

QUOTE="Sloppy Mexican, post: 36712, member: 1081"]
Sorry about the lack of updates guys, been raining like hell here for most of daylight hours. Managed to check on Puppy briefly today, didn’t want to spook mama in case she was about to feed. The quick glimpse I got he was snoozing in his basket not making a peep. I assume that means his belly was full.

Mama was on the lookout and hanging close by. She’s a huge bird and not to be fucked with. I got a good look at her this morning with binoculars and her feet look like they are about the size of my fists.
View attachment 6544
View attachment 6545
[/QUOTE]

That’s not an owl, that’s a pterodactyl.

 

[RHT 3]

I’d love to put it back up but the nest is about 40 ft up in a live oak. I’ve tried to think of every conceivable way to get up there and the only possibility is to rent a bucket truck, assuming it could even get back to the tree. The lady at the local wildlife center told me to just get it up off the ground to avoid predation and mama would continue to feet and raise, so far that happening, so I’m happy. It has crossed my mind to build a larger platform I could nail higher up in the tree, but that’ll have to be a project for after Mardi Gras.

Bro you ain't got a fire station anywhere nearby ? Find a ladder truck and ask the guys. I would do it in a heart beat. 40 feet ain't shit.

Hell film it and use it as a feel good piece in the local media. They love that shit.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Bro you ain't got a fire station anywhere nearby ? Find a ladder truck and ask the guys. I would do it in a heart beat. 40 feet ain't shit.

Hell film it and use it as a feel good piece in the local media. They love that shit.

Not a bad idea, had not thought of putting my tax dollars to work....

 

[RHT 3]

Not a bad idea, had not thought of putting my tax dollars to work....

Ask the fellas on the ladder truck, tell them to contact the media for some good fire dept PR, set up the " rescue" , film it, show them all the pictures from day one, get yourself on TV, become a hero.

Tighten your shit up man.......

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Ask the fellas on the ladder truck, tell them to contact the media for some good fire dept PR, set up the " rescue" , film it, show them all the pictures from day one, get yourself on TV, become a hero.

Tighten your shit up man.......

Damn bruh, thought my shit was tight til you got itt.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Ask the fellas on the ladder truck, tell them to contact the media for some good fire dept PR, set up the " rescue" , film it, show them all the pictures from day one, get yourself on TV, become a hero.

Tighten your shit up man.......

Well, I’ve done some digging and some begging and local fire dept is sending over a crew to assess the possibility of returning Puppy to the nest! Not sure they have a bucket/ladder that can get close enough to the tree, but they were very cool and are willing to take a look. More updates to follow soon....

 

[RJ2kWJ]

Well, I’ve done some digging and some begging and local fire dept is sending over a crew to assess the possibility of returning Puppy to the nest! Not sure they have a bucket/ladder that can get close enough to the tree, but they were very cool and are willing to take a look. More updates to follow soon....

Awesome. And remember, shirtless firemen pics are more important than owl pics if this goes down.

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Awesome. And remember, shirtless firemen pics are more important than owl pics if this goes down.

Well, good news and bad news.

Bad news first. Fire ladder truck has come and gone, their 100ft ladder could not reach Puppy’s original nest. The guys were super cool and loved that I rescued the little guy. They had a camera guy there taking pics so no telling where that might end up.

Good news is the fire chief called the same local wildlife center I called when I first rescued Puppy and they told me he’s totally fine. They said if he survives for a week then mama has it completely under control.

At this point I don’t think there’s much else I can do except consider building and installing a larger platform for him to move to. Of course, I would run the risk of upsetting mama considering she’s already feeding him at the current location. Status quo sounds good for now.
Props to @RJ2kWJ for the fire truck idea!

 

[TJHall1]

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

View attachment 6662

 

[PawPower1981]

 

[RJ2kWJ]

Not necessarily. Is veal considered too soon? Or squab? Both are tasty.

Messing with you, you’re doing great.

 

[Sparty1045]

I have a healthy population of screech and great horned owls in my neighborhood that live in the live oaks. They are very cool to watch and listen to. We had a very windy night early this week and one of the new generation from our breeding pair of great horned fell out of the nest.

I was able to build a nest out of a plastic shopping basket and have enjoyed feeding the little fella cubed venison and fresh squirrel meat for the past couple days.

I decided mama would do a better job raising the baby so I strapped the basket nest to a nearby tree so parents could keep feeding it. I’m monitoring closely in case I need to step in further.
View attachment 5285View attachment 5286View attachment 5287

Screech owls are devils

 

[RJ2kWJ]

Screech owls are devils

Right up there with a red-headed woodpecker or a cat in heat. Just annoying as fuck.

 

[UNC71-00]

I love this thread

 

[RHT 3]

Well, good news and bad news.

Bad news first. Fire ladder truck has come and gone, their 100ft ladder could not reach Puppy’s original nest. The guys were super cool and loved that I rescued the little guy. They had a camera guy there taking pics so no telling where that might end up.

Good news is the fire chief called the same local wildlife center I called when I first rescued Puppy and they told me he’s totally fine. They said if he survives for a week then mama has it completely under control.

At this point I don’t think there’s much else I can do except consider building and installing a larger platform for him to move to. Of course, I would run the risk of upsetting mama considering she’s already feeding him at the current location. Status quo sounds good for now.
Props to @RJ2kWJ for the fire truck idea!

View attachment 6651View attachment 6652

Props to who for the fire truck idea ?

I hope that owl falls out and gets eaten by a bobcat......

 

[PawPower1981]

Props to who for the fire truck idea ?

I hope that owl falls out and gets eaten by a bobcat......

 

[TJHall1]

View attachment 6799

Fuckin nailed it

 

[RHT 3]

View attachment 6799

My man Ron Sommons, former FSU great and the best NG we ever had.

Damn I miss those days growing up watching FSU football.

 

[UNC71-00]

yo @Sloppy Mexican how is the owl?

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

yo @Sloppy Mexican how is the owl?

Here’s the honest truth. I’m a Mardi Gras junkie and I’ve been partying my ass off for the past 4 days. Yesterday was especially insane. Sorry for the lack of update. Tomorrow will be wonderful.

I’ve been keeping an eye on Puppy, but I haven’t had any close contact since Super Bowl Sunday. That’s the last time I cleaned out the basket or fed him. Once it was obvious that mama was feeding regularly I backed way off.

Its gonna get down to 21 degrees by tomorrow morning, I hope Puppy stays warm. I’ll try to get some Good pics tomorrow and maybe let the little fella hop around on the ground a little.
Until then, Laissez Les Bon Temps Roullez!

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

Alright folks. Big update today. I had plans to clean out the basket today and let Puppy hop around on the ground a little bit while I worked on the nest. I was waiting for my neighbor to get home from work to take some pics for the board. Unfortunately the rain started so I decided to delay the nest work.
Here’s the great news, I visited the nest earlier today and Puppy has probably doubled in size in the past two weeks. He flapped his wings several times while I was nearby and his flight feathers are coming in nicely.
The biggest update of the day comes from about 5 minutes ago. I looked out my front window and mama was on the nest feeding puppy. This is the first good look we’ve had of her on the basket. She stayed for several minutes feeding and then flew off with what appeared to be a squirrel carcass. Puppy is still squawking so I imagine she will be back with more groceries.
Hopefully more updates and better pics tomorrow when I clean the nest out....

 

[Sloppy Mexican]

After much deliberation I decided to let Puppy out of his basket to stretch his legs and wings. He’s been cooped up not moving around much and if he’s going to be able to fly and become a predator, knowing how to get around on the ground is pretty important. I also noticed a ton of flies hanging around the basket which was a good sign there were some dead critters inside.

When I climbed the ladder I realized just how much Puppy had been eating - and shitting. The basket was full of owl pellets, shit, and a whole squirrel head. No meals being missed.

As I mentioned, Puppy has grown 3x at least in mass since my last pics outside the basket. I guessed at about a 3 ft wingspan, which is a huge step for him as flight feathers look healthy.Good news, he hissed at me, which means imprinting on mama is happening. Once he got on my glove he was totally chilled out.

I put him on the ground while I cleaned the nest. He seemed happy to hop around and flap his wings since he doesn’t have a ton of room to move in the basket.

Once he had a good stretch I put him back in his basket. He went back with no issue. Look at the last pic, you can see his “horns” which are just prominent feathers coming in above his eyes, just prominently displayed feathers and the reason for the species’name