Every year, injured owls are handed to rehabilitation centres, owl centres, vets and SPCAs around the country. These injured owls require treatment.
Some of their ailments relate to motor vehicle collisions, while others are health-related. A number of owls are handed in because they are suffering from an illness called trichomoniasis. This is a fungal growth which is the result of an owl eating pigeons who carry the bacteria.
Over time, the fungus grows in the mouth and sinuses of the owl to the point where the owl is unable to eat and eventually can be seen sitting on the ground or commonly – in the bird bath – in desperate need of medical intervention.
It is at this point that a concerned member of the public picks up the phone and calls one of the above organisations.
Their intention is clear, they want to save the owl’s life. Saving the owl’s life, in reality, is more difficult than just sorting out the ailment. It would be silly to treat the sick bird and then release it into an area where it would starve or be killed by another owl. Owls are territorial.
A successful owl rehabilitation requires that the compromised owl be treated and returned to where it was found as quickly as possible. This practice provides the individual with home-range familiarity in the form of roosting sites and hunting perches, among other things An anthropomorphic analogy may better illustrate this – would a person returning from hospital prefer to go home to convalesce, or into a house that they have never been, in an area they have never seen?
Members of the public should be aware of this. Don’t hand an injured owl to any rehabilitation centre without checking on its progress and insisting that it be released from where it was collected. This is saving the owl’s life.
If you come across an injured owl, you should contact Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital 071 248 1514; Ecosolutions 011 791 7326 or 072 365 9777 or your nearest SPCA.
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