Owl rescue in ‘Mayberry’

I know that Birmingham is not a big town in comparison to Atlanta or New York, but it is the biggest city in our state. And I think many of us take pride in the fact that living in Mountain Brook has some of the charm and nostalgia of living in a small town.

I remember when my husband and I bought a house in Crestline and moved back to Mountain Brook after he had completed his graduate degree. Our next-door neighbor welcomed us by saying, “Welcome to Mayberry.”

A few Sundays ago, my kids and I had a first-hand “Mayberry” experience that reminded me of that neighbor’s words.

We were driving down Cahaba Road when I happened to notice something on the side of the road. As I passed it, I saw that it was a young owl. We turned around at Office Park and drove back by. It was indeed an owl, and although he blinked his big eyes at us, he did not move. With my eight year old, Davis, and my six year old, Caroline’s input, we decided to call the Birmingham Zoo too see if they could help.

But we couldn’t get the call to go through. So we turned around and decided to just go to the zoo. After all, it’s just down the street. As we turned back around, another car had stopped. Having seen the owl, another neighbor, Tom Curtain, had pulled over. With his hazard lights flashing, he parked his car where the owl could not be hit. We told him we were headed to get help.

After explaining to zoo staff what was going on, Paul from the bird center appeared with a crate ready to help. We loaded it into my mini van and sped off to help the owl.

When we arrived back on the scene on Cahaba Road, Mr. Curtain was still there waiting with the owl, and Mountain Brook Police appeared as well. While the police directed traffic, Paul from the zoo knelt down to load the baby owl, who appeared to have a broken foot, into the crate.

Then the most unexpected thing happened. The huge mama owl swept down out of nowhere trying to protect her baby. The mama owl attacked poor Paul, the helpful zookeeper, and cut his head with her talons.

Still, the baby owl was rescued, and both were transported by the Mountain Brook Police back to the zoo for medical treatment.

It’s moments like these that showcase the sense of community we are so fortunate to have here in Mountain Brook — neighbors, police and the zoo all coming together to help a baby owl who lives along Jemison Trail.

Here’s to wishing both Paul and the owl a speedy recovery!