Animal Stories from our Critter Chronicle

Reuniting great horned owls

Great horned owls are all around us!

They are large owls, common in Central Texas, and they don’t mind building their nests and caring for their babies right in the middle of a neighborhood. While we raise a lot of wild animals and release them back into the wild, we know that their moms will do an even better job than we will at raising them and teaching them. We always try to reunite animals with their parents when possible. This year, we have had three great horned owl babies come to us that were found on the ground. In all three cases, we received calls from someone in the neighborhood that the mama owl and another baby were spotted in a nearby tree. This is the perfect situation where we might be able to reunite the baby we have with mom.

We wait until the owl is a little older, out of the nest, and strong enough to perch on a tree limb. Then staff go out to the area and place the baby back in the tree where its sibling(s) are hanging out. We ask neighbors to monitor the situation and make sure both babies are being fed and remain healthy and in the tree. We have successfully reunited all three babies with their sibling and mom this year.

Great horned owls are expensive to feed and can imprint on humans more easily than other birds. We love when we give them back to mom and let her do the parenting!

Baffling Beaver

When a beaver is found in a south Austin neighborhood, you know he is in trouble!

This little beaver was reported to Austin Animal Control and brought to us for care in early February. He was cold, lethargic and underweight, but did not have any major injuries. He is putting on weight and enjoying his sunny outdoor enclosure while he regains his strength. He will be released on the Colorado River later this month.

Rowdy Raccoons

Raccoons are very busy little rascals. They are known to have the intelligence of a toddler, which means they require a lot of enrichment so they don’t get into trouble. One of our staff members saw this toy car for free on the side of the road and picked it up for our raccoons. They had so much fun with it! They also love to climb and wrestle in the jeans we convert into hammocks. If you have old jeans (with no holes), you can donate them to us and we’ll put them to good use! You can bring donations during our operating hours.

Voracious Vulture

A black vulture came into us with little chance of survival. He was one of the thinnest birds our staff had ever seen and he had been electrocuted. Even with the odds against him, he was feisty and wanted to eat from the time he arrived. He is slowly gaining weight and his new feathers will grow back over the next several months. He will spend most of his time in one of our outdoor enclosures and then move to a large flight cage to regain his strength.

Tangled Turtle

This river cooter was found on the Lady Bird Lake Hike and Bike trail. He had fishing line hanging out of his mouth and a hook caught inside his throat. Dr. Sue anesthetized him and removed the hook. We are so thankful for caring people that take the time to save these suffering animals so we can help them return to the wild.

New Cages for songbirds!

Two of our new cages have finally arrived and are in the process of being assembled now! Grants from the Elizabeth Crook and Marc Lewis Foundation and the Hershey Foundation made it possible for us to add these new 8’ x 16’ x 8’ cages to our rehabilitation center property. We have been limited to one cage this size and several smaller ones for the past few years, and our songbirds were having to wait their turns to move to outdoor rehabilitation enclosures before release. These new cages will house mockingbirds, blue jays, swallows, martins, and many more! As we continue to take in additional animals each year, caging is a top priority. We were fortunate enough to add a fox cage last year and we will add another multi-use large cage later this year. Grants make the majority of these cages possible, but we also have opportunities to sponsor a cage! We can even attach a plaque with a dedication. If you are interested in sponsoring a cage, please email info@austinwildliferescue.org for more information.