Original post – 28 Sep 2025
by Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Hospital
located in Ithaca, New York, US 🇺🇸
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Original text:
Within the walls of our hospital, we see only one of the many steps that a wild animal often goes through from the time it is first found until it is released back to the wild.
In late November 2024, one of our faculty veterinarians was fortunate enough to participate in many of the steps to recovery for a short-eared owl patient. When she was alerted by a family member about an owl on the ground in the front yard of an acquaintance, she drove over to help. She scooped up the short-eared owl that was laying in a ditch next to the road and brought it to the hospital for treatment of its broken wing.
A couple of days later, she repaired the small bone at the tip of the owl’s wing that was fractured into multiple pieces. After several weeks of healing, followed by several more weeks of flight conditioning at Kindred Kingdoms Wildlife Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, Dr. Childs was thrilled to release the bird in the same location where it was found.
In New York State, short-eared owls are listed as endangered. Open grasslands that support populations of the small rodents that these owls hunt are essential for their survival and recovery. The Finger Lakes region, where this owl was found, is an area in NY where short-eared owls tend to concentrate in the winter. Now that it is fall again and migration is underway, we are hoping that this owl is on its way back home to the Finger Lakes!
Link to donate to Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Hospital for those willing and able.
xo owlsintowels
💛🦉
| Species | Common Name | More info |
|---|---|---|
| Asio flammeus | Short-eared Owl | Wiki link |
