In all our years at WAF, we have never seen so many tawny owls. This year, we reached a record-breaking number of tawny owls, with a huge figure of fourteen orphans (not including adult tawnies).
The patients continuously piled in, each tiny owlet orphaned, cold and hungry. Our fantastic team were swept off their feet, providing round-the-clock care to help these owlets grow strong enough to return to the wild.
The owlets were originally paired into groups. To thrive, youngsters benefit hugely from companionship of their own kind, to encourage natural, wild behaviours and prevent them from becoming too familiar with humans.
Each group of owlets were filled with many personalities that were impossible not to love. They were cheeky, curious and adorable. It’s safe to say, these tawnies definitely stole the hearts of everyone here at WAF.
After a while, the owlets grew into fledglings and with this, came a requirement for more space to stretch their wings. Our team decided to assemble each group together and move them to our small flight enclosure. This is a vast, tall enclosure that gave the owlets a chance to practice their flying skills, an important step towards release.
After the move, all fourteen tawnies were grouped together, a magnificent sight to see. Here, they could learn skills and behaviours from one another.
Eventually, after many months, the owlets were released on the 28th July 2026. Our team watched as all owlets (now fully grown owls) soared into the sky to start their new lives.
When you donate you help towards the costs of looking after all the animals here at the hospital.
Could provide medicine for a sick animal
