From Wildlife Care Association of Sacramento
A successful recovery for this barn owl! ❤️
This barn owl came to us stuck in a glue trap...exhausted, terrified, and covered in adhesive that matted his feathers and made it impossible to fly or stay warm. Glue traps are marketed as an easy fix, but they are indiscriminate and incredibly inhumane. Animals don't die quickly. They struggle for hours, sometimes days. Birds especially will thrash in panic trying to escape, often breaking wings or legs in the process.
This owl required multiple careful baths to remove the glue without damaging his delicate feather structure. Feathers aren't just for flight, they provide insulation and the silent movement owls rely on to hunt. Once he was clean, dry, and strong, we flight tested him to be sure he could maneuver and land safely.
We released him back in the exact area where he was found. Why? Because owls have established territories and potentially mates. Releasing him elsewhere could mean displacing him from a partner or a hunting ground he knows well. Returning wildlife home gives them the best possible chance at survival.
His story had a good ending. Many don't.
Please reconsider using glue traps. Small choices can prevent immense suffering.
The baths. The feather care. The monitoring. The flight testing. It's the tiny, meticulous work behind the scenes that makes moments like this possible and that's what our fundraiser Love Is in the Details is all about.
Because love is in the details and today, that love flies free. ❤️
I don't even understand why you would put a glue trap outside?? I'm glad the owl was able to get rescued from that
Perhaps it was thrown out or a partially stuck rodent dragged it out of a building and the owl spotted an "easy meal." That's how they end up eating the poisoned rodents as well. They die outdoors or are weak enough but not dead yet, so they are easing picking for the owls or other predators. They think it is their lucky day, but it's quite the opposite.
If you are going to end and animal, it should be immediate and targeted, or you are just being reckless. We just got a baby red fox in at work, not even old enough to have its eyes open, because some genius was trying to kill a groundhog and stuck a trap down the wrong hole and killed its mom. It gets tough watching all the idiotic things people do to animals.
Oh jeez
I agree, but for mice, bucket traps are really the best option, you don't have to reload them, set it and forget it. You can reduce the canage by laying cotton balls soaked in peppermint oil everywhere the mice are, they will pack up and leave your house if they can't get away from the smell. Except a few hold outs.
If the bucket dropped them into a dry bottom, they can jump out. Maybe if you could put just some water in there so they couldn't jump out you could relocate them if you wished.