Barn owl saved after nine days stranded at local Bunnings (Australian Home Depot)

From Kids News

I got redirected here from Google News, and I'm going to assume this is a legit media source as their logo is an owl. The story is actually written better than most mainstream media stories on owl rescues.

A starving barn owl has been rescued after being trapped inside a Melbourne Bunnings for more than a week.

It may have looked like the ultimate barn home for the owl, whose species tends to nest in the rafters of farm buildings, but after being stuck there for nine days without food, the poor creature had become sick and in need of help.

Wildlife rescuer Nigel Williamson was called into the west Melbourne Bunnings in Tarneit to save the hungry owl.

He said barn owls often became stuck in warehouses and he had saved four barn owls from warehouses across Melbourne in the last two weeks.

Owls enter warehouses after being chased by ravens, often because they’d tried to steal chicks or eggs from ravens’ nests, he said.

Mr Williamson attended the store last Thursday evening at about 7pm and had expected to wait until customers left at 9pm to rescue the bird. His plan was to use a scissor lift to reach the rafters of the Bunnings, where the animal was perched.

But the animal moved to a lower shelf and Mr Williamson was able to capture it before 8pm.

He said the owl had lost more than half of its body weight and may have only survived one more day without food.

“I know these are beautiful creatures but anyone who knows birds can see how sick this owl is,” Mr Williamson said.

“Normally they are bright and looking up but this bird was compromised, it was under 50 per cent its normal body weight. “A bird needs to eat a third of its size every day to survive, and after three days without food it would already have been compromised.”

He said not much could be done to prevent the birds coming inside but suggested if skylights were built into a roof, a section could be removed to help chase the bird out.

Owl rescues weren’t always easy and often depended on the personality of the bird, but Mr Williamson said he was successful most of the time.

He said Bunnings management had “done everything right” and had been in contact with Wildlife Victoria from the beginning.

Before its rescue, Bunnings regional manager Barbara Mclatchie said the Tarneit store had contacted local animal welfare groups to ensure the owl was relocated as soon as possible.

“(We) were in regular contact with Tarneit Bunnings and provided advice to encourage the owl out of the store or to engage a paid animal removal service,” the spokeswoman said.

“Turning off all internal lights, opening all doors and windows, and leading the animal towards external openings with food is often the best option and most stress-free solution for the animal.

“If uninjured, most native animals will make their way out of buildings when provided the opportunity to do so.”

If the animal doesn’t go freely, then it’s time to call in an expert such as Mr Williamson to capture it safely, she said.