L ast week, the Wildlife Center of Venice received the season’s first baby birds: A great horned owl with a fractured tibia tarsus, and the smallest eaglet ever admitted to the Center. In these situations, the goal is always the same — get them well and get them home.

The great horned owl’s leg fracture will need to be healed and functional before I can return it to its parents, as is our practice whenever possible. (It is usually not true that a mother animal won’t accept it’s young after human handling. Please call for advice in situations like this.) The owl should heal in approximately 2 weeks, and I hope its sibling will keep the parents on duty until I can return it home to its nest.