Bob Fox of Wild At Heart tells a great horned owl’s rescue story at Cookout at the Ranch as he prepares to release the rehabilitated raptor.
On Saturday, March 5th, at the Scottsdale Western Cookout Adventure, Wild At Heart will be releasing a rehabilitated owl or hawk back to nature. It is something you should watch. You will not forget what you witnessed.
Buy Tickets InformationI’ve never forgotten the first time that I watched Bob Fox of Wild At Heart release a great horned owl. It must have been about 1995. My wife and I were guests attending a Desert Foothills Land Trust fund raiser in Cave Creek.
Bob Fox was introduced. He spoke of Wild At Heart’s mission and then told the owl’s story.
It had been injured and rescued by a Wild At Heart volunteer. It could not fly.
Bob and his wife “Sam” led the effort to nurse the bird back to good health, which involded helping the bird regain its ability to fly. They have a long, large, screened-in aviary at Wild At Heart for this purpose. And, yes, after much work the bird did learn to fly and care for itself.
Now, it was time for the owl to return to freedom and its wild life.
At sunset, Bob lifted the owl high above his head and with both arms thrusting up and forward pushed the bird skyward. It flapped its wings, flew, circling the area and dissapeared. It was free
Tears came to my eyes, as they do now, just reliving that moment. The first rescued owl realease that I watched is one of my favorites.
Bob Fox looks on as Les Conklin releases great horned owl at Cookout at the Ranch. Photographer Tony Nelssen used Photoshop to slenderize Conklin’s waste line. Photo by Tony Nelssen
I approached Bob Fox and introduced myself. I had read about Wild At Heart in The Peak, which was then managed by GPPA’s Don Schoenau. Don helped our efforts with the Desert Foothllls Scenic Drive by publishing my articles, just as he published articles for Wild At Heart. I asked Bob if Wild At Heart would be willing to do a release at our inaugural Cookout at the Ranch. He said, “Yes.”
In the years that followed, Wild At Heart released rehabilitated owls and/or hawks at 17 annual cookouts. In addition to those occassions, I also saw Wild At Heart do releases at events held by other nonprofits, including the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy and the Desert Foothills Land Trust.
My second favorite owl release took place when Bob let me release a great horned owl at Cookout at the Ranch IX. I’ve never forgotten that experience either.
I was the emcee for the evening’s program. When it was time for the release, Bob asked me if I wanted to do it, as he carefully placed the owl in my hands and explained how to do the release.
I was surprised at how light the large owl was. It felt like I was holding a bundle of feathers and fine bones. No wonder they can fly so quietly. Bob told the bird’s rescue story and I released the bird for its flight to freedom. Amazing.
Bob Fox of Wild At Heart releases rehabilitated great horned owl at MacDonald’s Ranch.
Cookout Banner Posted at MacDonald’s Ranch
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