This beautiful Great horned owl was found hiding on a farm.
She was terribly skinny when she was rescued and brought to Wild ARC in February. And it was immediately obvious that she had problems with one of her eyes - most likely caused by head trauma.
Wild ARC staff were worried by her quiet and unresponsive behaviour and the deteriorating condition of her eye - when she arrived the iris was misshapen and the eye itself was swollen, however, after a few days the eye had begun to waste away. It was then decided that her best option was to have the eye removed completely.
Following her surgery, her recovery has focused on strengthening her flying muscles.
After numerous tests of her hunting abilities, we know that she will be able to make this transition and survive with one eye in the wild.
Great Horned Owls are very feisty and excellent hunters. They have keen night vision and can swivel their head 180 degrees! Their wide face and feathers also act like a satellite dish to focus sound towards their ears. With all these attributes, they use a “perch-and-pounce” style to hunt small mammals, amphibians, reptiles and even some invertebrates.
This girl is already getting back to her wild personality - she's even trying to bite staff again! She is flying now in Wild ARC’s large flight pen and will be soon ready for release, but she needs your help to cover her medical care and recovery. You can help this majestic lady return to her wild home!