A First Bite at the New Home
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I got a call from the hotline about two baby great horned owls that had left their nest prematurely. This alone was nothing new, as we're getting new orphans in almost daily this time of year. The only problem was they were near Parker, Arizona, which is on the western edge of the state. Luckily, we have several people on the R&T team that will drive extended distances to rescue and transport injured animals, so I called the number and spoke to a young man who said his uncle had the owls and would be caring for them. I politely told him that unless his uncle was a licensed rehabilitator, that not only was that illegal, but the successful outcome was doubtful, as baby owls needed very special care and handling. He said he?d contact his uncle and I should call him back in the morning. OK, I had some breathing room on that one.
Everybody gets fluids
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About the same time, I began to intercept e-mail traffic about two more baby GHOs
down near the town of Elfrida in the southeastern end of Arizona. A gentleman named
Ed Henley had been watching a family of owls for some time and was telling Liberty
volunteer Craig Fisher that the mother had been killed by a car on Saturday. This
was in the opposite direction from the Parker owls, but again, the situation was
concerning but not overtly critical. Mr. Henley was asked to watch for signs of
abandonment and to keep us posted.
Little Brother
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By early the next morning, the situation in Elfrida had deteriorated. Another gentleman,
Glen Klinglee from USFW, got involved and was in contact with Christie Van Cleve,
longtime raptor rehabber and friend of Liberty who now lives near Sierra Vista.
Glen confirmed that the parent that died on Saturday was the only one left since
the other parent had been killed a couple of weeks earlier. They were officially
orphans now, and absent help, they were certainly doomed. I called Christie and
she said that she?d go up and investigate if needed, and I said I?d call her back
when I found out more details. Then I got a call from the man in Parker who said
he?d retrieved the owls from his uncle and would hold them until transport arrived.
Big Brother
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When I got to Liberty, I called a couple of our long-distance R&T people, and Carl
Price said he?d head to Parker. Great, I had one down and one to go! I then called
Mr. Henley and he said that a lady had picked up the babies and was taking them
to Liberty. I called Christie to confirm it was her, and she said she in fact had
them! A squad of forest-fire fighters had been contacted and showed up with a ladder
and successfully got the little guys into custody. Christie then took them to her
place and fed them but she couldn?t take them all the way up to Phoenix. I then
called Megan Mosby, Liberty?s Managing Director, who called Robert Mesta, another
longtime friend of Liberty who now works in Tucson. He agreed to pick them up from
Christie near Benson and drive them to Marana, just above Tucson. I then contacted
our star long-distance R&T volunteer, Alan Spencer, who said he would pick them
up from Robert and bring them to me in Ahwatukee for a short overnight and the final
leg of their journey the next morning.
I Think I?m Gonna Like It Here
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And guess what? It all worked out as planned. Four baby owls arrived at Liberty
after being saved by a sizeable team of rescuers, transported over 420 miles across
the whole state of Arizona by five more people who cared enough to help.
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