Anyone who has felt loneliness knows that one person can make all the difference in the world. This owl knows that to be true, too, and she has found the one human she loves more than anything. This extraordinary owl is proof that birds can love just as strongly as humans do.
Gigi is a great horned owl who suffered a great deal of head trauma. When she arrived at the Mississippi’s Wild At Heart Rescue, the workers could only guess that she had been hit by a car.
“She had a massive concussion, her body was riddled with parasites, and she had a condition called aspergillosis, which is similar to pneumonia in humans,” explained Missy Dubuisson, founder and director of Wild At Heart, to The Dodo. Gigi lost a whole pound of weight over the course of her treatment – which could be as much as a third of her body weight.
This poor owl was in desperate need of help. She needed the very best, so she went under the care of Douglas “Doug” Pojeky, the president of the shelter. This man was even known as the “birds of prey whisperer.” He certainly earned his title with Gigi.
As time went by, the owl got stronger and healthier. She even started to grab her own food instead of being hand fed. Doug was working his magic with this one.
“This bird was one of the most critical we had ever taken care of” Missy shared as the bird continued to recover. “The fact that [she] has lived is beyond comprehension.”
Doug could tell the owl trusted him, but he never knew how strongly she cared about him until he took a trip to Michigan to visit family. He was away from the bird for a little while, and when he returned she showed him just how much she had missed him.
“After Pojeky returned, he gave Gigi an examination and she immediately started bobbing her head and dancing on his arm,” The Dodo documented. “Then, she slowly walked up to his chest, rested her head on his shoulders and draped her wings around him in a fully fledged owl hug.”
The gesture meant a lot to Doug, particularly because it reminded him of his father. A great horned owl had visited their barn often when he was growing up, but it was usually only his father who saw the bird. When his father passed away, Doug saw the owl paying his respects from the top of the barn.
“For some reason when that bird was hugging me, all I could think of was my dad,” Doug revealed.
Gigi is now healthy and doing better than ever. When she finally makes a full recovery, she can return to the wild. But for now, she has her favorite human to hug.
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Source: The Dodo
