The Wise Owl

by Kayla Musselman

Piney Run Park, located in Carroll County, consists of 500 acres of wooded area along with a 300-acre reservoir. During my senior year of high school, I was an intern at the Nature Center where I was able to become an expert in animal care of various species. From reptiles to raptors, I was able to learn everything there was about not only the species but also each animal’s personality. The raptors under the care of the park have all been injured in some way that rendered them un-releasable to nature. One animal that I had grown to love was the Great Horned Owl, Patriot. He was a 43-ounce owl, roughly 2.7 pounds, with unforgettable bright yellow eyes that some may find intimidating. Patriot had an indescribable pattern of feathers ranging in shades of brown. Great Horned Owls are the largest breed of owls in North America with two tufts which are feathers pointing straight up from their head similar to the horns of cattle. They use these tufts to communicate, intimidate, and camouflage. Patriot had a very strong personality that held a lot of power. He was never scared to face you square in the shoulders, puff his chest, and hiss to make you scared. He did not like most people but through a lot of hard work, Patriot and I formed a very special bond. Everyone may have seen him as just an ordinary owl, but to me, he meant so much more. 

Since Patriot is a raptor, a carnivorous bird, he lived in the aviary. The aviary is a small building located about 40 feet from the back doors of the Nature Center. From the outside, you see three enclosures on the front side facing the Nature Center and three enclosures on the back side facing the reservoir. Traveling around the aviary, there was a Red-tailed Hawk and two Barred Owls on the front side and a Red-shouldered Hawk, two Screech Owls, and then Patriot, the Great Horned Owl, on the back side. The aviary is outlined with a fence about three feet from the enclosures to keep the public back. On either end of the building is an entrance door into the aviary. Only a handful of people are allowed inside, currently me and only one other person consistently go in. 

The inside of the aviary is quite simple. It is a small room, possibly better described as a wide hallway. On either side is a row of three doors that open into each enclosure. There is a small counter with a mini fridge, a large freezer where we keep the dead mice for feeding, and a stack of critter carriers. Each enclosure is latched shut and both entrance/exit doors to the aviary are locked from the inside to keep the public out. There is usually no smell, especially in the winter when it is cold. In the summer, however, when it gets hot, both the sight and smell of dead mice and bird poop roasting in the summer sun can be horrendous. 

When I started the internship, I had no idea what to expect. On my first day, I watched one of my supervisors do animal care. I made sure to watch carefully because I knew by the end of the month, I would be expected to do it all by myself. When it came to feeding the raptors, a certain type of fear set in. Not fear of the animals nor the idea of them hurting me, but rather a fear born out of respect as these animals represent the wonder of nature and deserve all the love they can get from us caretakers, and hopefully the public. My supervisor told me about all the raptors, Patriot was here because he was hit by a car, a very common accident that takes raptors away from their open world in nature and into captivity. I immediately adored him, and all the animals, and knew that I was going to work hard with Patriot to be able to not only take care of him but gain his trust. With this said, I was very aware that it would take a lot of time and patience. 

Fast forward nine months, I graduated high school, my internship ended, and I was still going to the park working with the animals and doing all the animal care as a volunteer. One day I noticed Patriot was favoring his left foot more than his right. I told the naturalist, and we made a vet appointment immediately. The vet diagnosed Patriot with bumblefoot, a type of infection. It is very common for birds in captivity due to the limited number of perches and textures. The treatment was to have minor surgery to remove the infection which would leave an open wound that would scab over. However, to prevent the infection from returning, an ointment had to be applied to the area daily. After Patriot’s surgery, he spent some time at another nature center, where they helped him in the beginning stages of recovery, then he was returned to Piney Run. The naturalist tried her best to keep up with the ointment routine, but she was always on edge and hesitant when it came to handling any of the raptors; therefore, I took on the challenge to work with Patriot. 

The process of handling Patriot is pretty straightforward. I enter the aviary and get myself ready. I grab a Q-tip and open the container of ointment. The cream is a yellowish color with a smell very similar to that of bag balm. Some people find the smell revolting, but I, in a way, find it comforting. Once I have enough cream on the Q-tip, I walk over to the hanging leather raptor gloves, all made for the left hand. I grab the better, newer looking one and put it on. Since Patriot has strong enough talons to break my fingers, the gloves are always worn during handling. With the leather glove on my left hand, I use my right hand to unlatch and open the door to Patriot’s enclosure. On a good day, Patriot is perching on one of his branches with his jess hanging down. All the other raptors have two jesses that hang down from their ankles to make handling both safer and easier; however, since his surgery, Patriot’s second jess had to get cut due to swelling. This made handling a little more dangerous for both Patriot and me. If his jess is easy to grab, I simply grab it with my left, protected hand and pull him up. Patriot would then try to fly for less than a second before relaxing with his wounded foot open for me to apply the cream using the Q-tip. I work quickly, so he is not stressed for long. I then lower him to the ground and go back inside the aviary to get his mice. When I return, he flies over to me, almost landing in my lap, and I feed him off the tongs. On a not-so-good day, Patriot may fly to the ground or already be on the ground when I enter his enclosure, which makes it a little more difficult to grab his jess. As we got used to working with each other, we definitely have more good days than bad, and we know exactly how to work with each other. Within a few weeks, I could confidently handle and help Patriot. 

Patriot symbolizes a lot of different aspects of my life including love, patience, and absolute passion for animals. Since I was a little girl, I would drown myself in books of animals to learn everything there was to know. If my younger self saw where I was today, she would not believe her eyes. The ability to handle various species of animals, from snakes to raptors, was something I would have never been able to foresee in my future. I have a strong passion for working with and helping animals and I was happy to take on the challenge to help Patriot on his road to recovery from bumblefoot. 

Unfortunately, Patriot passed away in the fall of 2023 and it broke my heart to see him go. His loss was probably one of the hardest ones I’ve ever experienced, and I still think about him today, as I continue working at the Nature Center as an employee. I work hard to make sure the animals are taken care of and that someone is speaking for them. I strive to teach the public the importance of protecting the environment and nature and all who call it their home. On a more personal level, Patriot symbolizes the growth I have experienced since my internship. Starting as a nervous intern with little to no experience, to being the “assistant” naturalist ready to work with any animal in need and speaking up for proper changes when necessary. Although he was just an owl, and an unusual choice of a friend from an outside perspective, he symbolizes a big part of my life where I was able to find myself and grow into who I am today. Something that I hold close to my heart is that animals are so much more than just simple creatures existing among us, and if we put our “dominance” aside, we can discover their true beauty and wonder.