A father and son had quite of an adventure when they saved an owl from drowning.
In a video uploaded by user Willard van Delft, he and his son were canoeing out in the wilderness when they noticed shuffling movements in a nearby thicket. When they rowed closer to inspect, they saw a barn owl helplessly waiting for help that will not come.
The owl’s wing is trapped and tangled in a gnarly blackberry bush with half its body submerged in the water.
They can’t say if it crashed here while hunting or if the owl was hiding from danger.
The duo carefully moved their boat towards the owl and hoped the already distressed bird won’t get spooked by their presence. The man carefully pulled one of the thorny vines that wrapped around one of the bird’s wings. Not sure of their intentions, the bird quickly struggled after being slightly free.
When the bird realized that it still can’t get off the ground, it laid still once more and gave the man a chance to untangle it from other vines.
Barn owls, however, can find it difficult to fly when their feathers are soaked. So when it tried to finally escape, it just landed in the father and son’s canoe. This gave them a chance to inspect the owl further.
It has a metal ring on one of its legs and has an injured eye on top of its body being drenched with water. The duo believes that if they left the bird amongst the submerged thicket, it might not survive the night.
The only problem is they don’t know how to take care of a bird like this.
The father and son decided to row towards the shore so they could get some help. Along the way, the frightened bird kept on flying off the small boat. It never gets far through. The soaked wings could only afford him a measly height and a short distance to travel. Every time he tried, the man just picks it up from the water and placed it back into the boat where it could be warm and dry.
This is one of those moments where humans wish they could communicate with animals.
If only the owl knew that these people have no ill intentions, it might have sat still and wait for help to arrive.
Fortunately, there’s reception out to where they are. The man called wildlife authorities and shared with them their location.
It didn’t take long before the ambulance arrived.
The duo surrendered the bird to the authorities where it could be properly taken care of.
People encountering injured wildlife is common especially in places where national parks are abundant. While it seems right to approach animals in need, one should also be well-versed in wildlife laws of the country.
Human interference is highly discouraged in some places and people can be fined hefty sums for disruptive actions.
As for this father, he has taught his son a good lesson about living things, and maybe, in this little adventure, he’ll grow up with compassion and kindness.
The father also included some updates at the end of the video especially with regards to the owl’s splendid recovery.
Watch how this father-and-son tandem saved a trapped barn owl from drowning.
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