A GREAT HORNED OWL REACTED OVERWHELMINGLY WHEN SHE SAW HER RESCUER AFTER MANY DAYS!
You might have heard a lot of heart-warming rescue stories about dogs, cats, tigers but have you ever heard the one about an OWL? Yeh, this rescue story revolves around an owl and her bewildering life. Ever wondered why an owl represents wisdom? Well, this true story will tell you why. An owl gets rescued by a man. Her savior takes her to a shelter where she recovers quickly. And after many days when her rescuer comes to meet her. Well, then she does something unbelievable!
Gigi- An Owl
Gigi an owl was in a very bad condition when she got admitted to the Wild at Heart Rescue center. This voiceless bird was inflicted with a severe injury in the head. It seemed as if someone had smashed her head against a wall or any other hard object. The staff of rescue center had cured many dogs and cats but they had never given a treatment to an owl before that too in such a pathetic condition.
Bleeding Profusely
The man who brought her to the rescue center urged the vet to see her immediately as she was bleeding profusely. Though she could not speak, her shrieks soaked in pain alone made their heart tremble. They took up her responsibility and did everything in their power to heal her wound. Unfortunately, that was not the only problem they had to deal with.
Wild At Heart Rescue Center
The Wild at Heart Rescue center is located in Mississippi. The organization gives shelter to homeless animals and also provides medical treatment to them. It is a prestigious institution that has provided homes to several homeless animals and the counting is still on.
All Bad
Nothing was right with this animal. The owl had parasites all over her body. And along with that, she was having blood so low that the bird was on the verge of catching pneumonia. Clearly, the bird did not have a sound past. She must have gone through a lot and the cause of injury was just a part of it.
Only Worsening
What worse was the fact that she already had lost a pound. The shelter was skeptical if she would be able to survive the other night. Gigi is a great horned owl and these species usually have a weight of 2-5 pounds. So, losing even a pound is detrimental for their lives.
Standoffish
Gigi feared going close to people as she still was in the trauma. She would prefer staying all alone. Not only that, initially, Gigi refused to eat let alone taking medicines. It took them a few days to gain her trust and soon the lonesome Gigi became a chirpy bird.
That One Person
Gigi got love and care from everyone in the center. But the one person that cared for her the most was Douglas Pojeky. He was renowned as “The Bird Whisperer” in his surroundings. The man instantly struck a rapport with her. He was deeply moved by her condition and so did everything he could to get her back to shape.
Douglas Pojeky
Douglas is the president of Wild At Heart Rescue in Vancleave, Mississippi. He has been serving the organization for many years now. The man had a good bond with everyone but the connection with Gigi was a little stronger.
Day And Night
When everyone around had given up their hope on her, he was the one who decided to go ahead with his instinct. The man spent his day and night caring for the ailed owl. The selfless act of the man gradually began to show the result.
Budding Friendship
The bird too had opened up with him. She would like to spend most of her time with Douglas. The news of their amazing friendship reached every nook and cranny of the shelter. After months of pain and apathy, Gigi had finally found love and care.
Never Ever
Founder of Wild at Heart, Missy Dubuisson stated, “In all my years of working with birds of prey, I have never seen someone with such a bond with these magnificent birds.”
Getting Well
Gradually, Gigi began to show signs of improvement thanks to Doug and his confidence in her. Initially, it was difficult for her to pick the food from the ground and was hand fed. But now the bird was nursed back to health and was capable of grabbing food without anyone’s help.
Unbelievable
Missy Dubuisson explained, “This bird was one of the most critical we have ever taken care of. The fact that this bird has lived is beyond comprehension.” It was nothing short of a miracle for the center’s people. It was indeed a miracle. A miracle of love.
Back To Town
Doug basically belonged to Michigan. He was staying in Mississippi all alone without his family. That is also one of the reasons why he had developed a sense of affection for her. She had become her family. From morning’s breakfast to evening’s dinner, he would stick around her.
Family Time
The man went back to Michigan, his home to spend some time with his family. The man was very happy and excited. On the other side, Gigi once again began to isolate herself from everyone. She even stopped going out of her chamber. The owl was slowly slithering back to her former self.
Major Missing
Doug was going to spend weeks with his family. It was a long trip and the man had no idea how much his little friend was going to miss him. The man enjoying his holidays had no idea what he was going to witness on coming back to the center.
Coming Back
Weeks passed by and Doug came back to the center. But this time everything was going to be different for him. Gigi who had been missing him big time was extremely happy on seeing Doug and then she did something very strange.
Doug And Gigi
It came as a surprise even for Doug. After he came back, the first thing he did was giving Gigi an examination. The owl infused with joy began to bob her head. Gigi was so happy that she perched on his arm and began to dance on it. This was not it……..
Heartwarming Sight
Gigi gradually climbed up to his chest and did something unbelievable. She embraced the man by putting her head on his shoulder and covered him with his feathers. She was hugging him. It was a very heartwarming sight.
Great Horned Owls
Great horned owls are commonly found in America. These owls can easily be identified thanks to the feather tufts made on the top of their head. This breed is adaptable by nature and is sprawled from suburbia to woods and farmlands. The population usually moves in winter. However, most of them prefer to stay in temperate climes.
Not Her Fault
It was not Gigi’s fault that she took a while to open up with the humans. Animals are usually skeptical about humans. They are afraid of coming into contact with them. For them, they are nothing short of predators. But Douglas has given a befitting reply to all those antiquated notions.
Back To Home
Gigi was having a great time with her new found family but this was not her forever home. She had to go back to where she belonged. She had to go to the jungle. And so the center took her back to the wild sometime after her full recovery.
Smaller Animals
Horned owls feed on any animal smaller than them. The feast includes mice and tiny insects. They are fierce predators by nature. Their palate usually has mammals and birds. Not only that they happen to be nocturnal hunters.
Snakes And Snacks
Owls favorite snack includes snakes. However, they keep themselves away from poisonous snakes. The owls have an advantage over snakes as they can fly in the sky and can easily spot them from there. That is the reason they remain one of the prime predators of snakes.
Bad Eagle
One of the enemies of the horned owl is the bad eagle. You can often see them fighting as they both eat same types of foods and space. No doubt, horned owl are fierce and strong but they are the one who often bites the dust in a battle with a bald eagle.
Always Together
After giving birth, the owls take care of their kids together. They take advantage of their color and keep themselves hidden behind the trees as their color often matches with them.
Don’t Like Fighting
Male owls do not like to fight much and get into one only if that is very important. They confront in two circumstances only. Either in search of a mate or a food. Male owl produces a distinct and loud sound in order to attract a female owl.
Mr. Wisdom
Owls represent wisdom and we have seen that in many pictures and film. You may be wondering why are they called so? Well, the reason is that they are quick and owns an excellent hunting ability. Additionally, they also live quite old. To be precise, a wild owl has a lifespan of 13 years whereas an owl that lives in captivity can live up to 30 years.
Owl With Large Wings
The horned owl has wing sprawling around 2 feet long. No need to say, they are quite big in size but they are not the largest owl. For instance, the great gray owl is larger than the horned owl and so are even more powerful.
Skunks
Who can eat a stinky skunk? Well, horned owl does. Skunk are scared of them the most as they are the only predator of skunks. Yes, it is just the horned owl who eats skunks.
Not Easy To Train
Horned owl is very smart but it does not imply that they can be trained easily. As these birds live all alone in wild and are not used to of obeying commands. So, it may take you a while to get him to listen to you. Gigi without any special training was communicating with Doug which in itself was a big thing.
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