Owlets given a second chance

SPCA Inspector, Suveshin Naidoo commended Milanzi for taking the time to transport the owls all the way from Blaauwbosch.

June 14, 2019

Tersia Gopi 2 minutes read

Swaying from side-to-side with eyes as big as saucers, four barn owlets were rescued and surrendered to the SPCA for specialised care.

On the morning of June 5, Nkosinathi Milanzi discovered the baby owls on the floor of his workshop in Blaauwbosch.

“I used to see the mother owl fly in at night, but I didn’t know there was a nest of owlets,” said Milanzi.

Milanzi said on that particular morning, he found had four owlets laying on the floor and unfortunately one had already died.

He picked them up, put them in a box and took them to the SPCA that afternoon.

SPCA Inspector, Suveshin Naidoo commended Milanzi for taking the time to transport the owls all the way from Blaauwbosch.

“Milanzi did the right thing by seeking help instead of taking a decision to care for them himself,” said Naidoo.

Naidoo said the birds were going to be taken to the Ncandu Veterinary Clinic and then be given to Sylva Francis, who operates a bird rehabilitation centre.

Unfortunately, Sylva could bot be contacted at the time of going to print, to inquire about the progress of the owlets.

Former bird rehab expert shares advice on owls:

Angus said the problem was that people tried to rehab owls without any knowledge which results in nutritional deficiencies in the owls or imprinting of the owlets on humans.

“If they become imprinted they are non-releasable. It all depends on how young they are when found – if very young, the risk of imprinting is much higher.”

Angus said if the owls are fed incorrectly a common problem was calcium deficiency which resulted in malformation of bones, and could possibly suffer from a condition known as rickets.

What are the risks of imprinting?

Once imprinted, they lose their fear of humans and then become easy victims of superstition or malicious human activities directed towards them, hence the need to avoid that entirely.

Angus advises anyone who encounters owlets to hand them to an expert which specialises in raising owls.
He also encourages anyone who is interested in wildlife first aid to sign up for a Freeme Course.

“Then they can be properly equipped to do the right thing in situations where immediate first aid is needed,” he added

Speaking about another common error people make when it comes to raptors Angus shares the following:

“People also make the mistake of over-feeding a weak raptor when they find it. The first step is always hydration to address any dehydration and then small amounts of food that are easily digested, so that strength can be regained, similarly, overfeeding a weakened owlet can result in the food in the birds crop going rotten and killing the bird, because it is too weak to digest it in the first place.
This condition is called sour crop. You can see why rehabbing a bird of prey is a specialised task fit for only a properly informed / trained (and licensed) person,” he concluded.