I have so much to write about but the days go in quickly…..
Up at 6am home after 6pm or later if I go via the gym, eat relax sleep. At least that’s my schedule when I’m working at OWL
I’m loving it here, really loving it but this post is going to concentrate mostly on OWL. There is so much knowledge, so much compassion from everyone involved. My learning has went through the roof, and yet I have only just began to scratch the surface.
Yesterday’s lesson in particular I want to document….
I was cleaning out a set of cages with the likes of bald eagles, peregrines, red-tails. I got to a cage of three Great Horned Owl there was a warning to wear a hard hat due to one in particular GHO being prone to dive bomb. I went into the enclosure and wore the hard hat and full face shield. I maintained eye contact which is more difficult than it sounds when there are three birds in an enclosure, kept myself close to the wall. Checked water, and food platforms for any cleaning there were warning clicks but nothing I hadn’t experienced in other enclosures.
I returned with food. Chose the hard hat, rather than the full facial guard, I had my own eye protection with the form of glasses so why the need for full facial shield, after all someone I was shadowing went in and wore nothing. I went in, placed food, heard the clicks, talked to the owls as you do. There were more clicks and puffing out, I dropped my eyes for a second and BANG! Great Horned Owl right in the side of the face, scared was an understatement it damn well hurt and I ran to the door. Thankfully one of the other workers was near by I was so relieved so see her. I was stunned in the oh my what happened, my face was sore and I wasn’t sure if I was injured. She was wonderfully supportive, having experienced similar with other birds. I knew I was bleeding to what extent I wasn’t sure, I couldn’t touch my face due to possible risk of infection. I went in and cleaned it as protocol. It wasn’t as bad as I feared it had taken a slice, it felt bruised more than anything else.
Taking it over with another volunteer later that day the penny dropped between the incident with the owl and when I started working with adults with learning disabilities. I was working with a man who presented challenging behaviour. He had a reputation of hitting out, which in that line of work is sadly an occupational hazard. He was highly agitated shouted at me, spat on me, I stayed in the same room and conversed with him. I stepped closer he continued to shout and scream at me. Like the owl I thought I can do this, stayed too long and bang! He grabbed me, thankfully I wasn’t too badly injured. All the signals were there with all actions they are just different forms of communication, ‘go away’ ‘leave me alone’, but I was too young and naive to listen. You would have thought I would have learned by now eh? 🙂
Some food for thought I need to take with me as I go into my next week of adventure.