I don’t often mention the passing of ambassador animals, but I just heard we lost one of our best little ambassadors! 🥺

Harry hid most of the time she wasn’t at work on a program, so I didn’t see her other than a streak flying into her owl house as I came to feed her and clean her mew that she shared with her fellow Screech friend, Steve.

I saw her years ago the first time I went to an open house event at the clinic, and she was the first owl I got to care for. I was supposed to be able to hold her for the next event to teach our guests about her, but now I think I know why people were a little awkward on Saturday when I asked why I couldn’t use her for the spring open house.

Now I am even more glad I had the opportunity to work our Halloween event and stand next to her and answer a lot of the guests’ questions, even if I had to run one of the carnival games instead of holding the owl.

I’m sad I won’t get to work with her anymore, but she will always be the first owl I got to care for, so I will always remember her fondly.

Here is the message we got:

Hi everyone,

I’m writing with sad news. Our beloved red Eastern Screech Owl, Harry (Harriet), passed away this weekend.

Harry was an incredible ambassador for her species and such a sweet, easygoing girl. She accompanied us on countless programs, quietly captivating every audience she met. For many of our volunteers, she was the very first bird they learned to handle for programs.

During her time with us, Harry touched the lives of so many volunteers, campers, visitors, and community members. Her presence made an impact that will not be forgotten, and she will be truly missed.

Please take a moment to hold her in your thoughts. Thank you all for the love and care you’ve given her all these years.

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      9·
      10 days ago

      The other pics are from the website, but this was the last pic I took at the Halloween party.

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      12·
      10 days ago

      I am always glad to share. The attention and support from you all is what pushed me to go get hands on with my local wildlife.

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      15·
      10 days ago

      I believe she was on the receiving end of a car strike if I remember correctly, leading to her eye loss and her trademark winky face. I don’t know if some people don’t like the permanent wink, but I always thought they did a really good job on her eye. I see it as a sign of resilience.

      I recently read up of the hows and whys of owl eye surgery and it was very impressive all the care and consideration that goes into it. Owl eyes make up such a large percentage of their heads that there are many things to consider, from potential to damage sight to the other eye to even affecting their hearing.

      • DearMoogle@piefed.socialEnglish
        11·
        10 days ago

        Oh I see. I hadn’t thought about that being such a major surgery for her, but it makes sense even just considering their skull shape and how much of that is dedicated to the eyes. She was a survivor!

    • ChaoticNeutralCzech@feddit.orgEnglish
      4·
      10 days ago

      The former, presumably. She lost an eye at least 6 years ago, which I assume was the injury and reason she became captive. By 2025, any infections would have healed and she’d have learned what she can and can’t do safely, and the staff must have protected her from external harm.

      OP is sharing some insider information because I haven’t been able to find recent info on Harriett, not even by looking up the collage or quote from the press statement in this post.

      • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
        3·
        9 days ago

        We don’t know how old she was when she was found, but I believe she’s been at Aark for 8 or 9 years, and that’s when she got her surgery. If a Screech survives its first year, 8-13 years is a long Screech life in the wild, and they can live up closer to 20 years in captivity, but that’s not necessarily the norm.

        It is indeed inside info, I didn’t see a public announcement, at least as of yet. This was a staff email. She looked great at Halloween in October. I’m guessing she just had a sudden quality of life shift. All the animals get regular exams, and her and Steve have lived in a nice flight pen with separate houses, so they were safe from other animals.

    • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
      2·
      9 days ago

      I’m thinking just age and staff likely noticed some rapid health deterioration or some negative quality of life issue.

      I replied more down a comment level, but until I get to see the other higher level employees again, I probably won’t hear any more.