Animal rescuer Nigel Williamson retrieves starved owl trapped inside Bunnings Tarneit for over a week

A sick and starving owl trapped inside a Melbourne Bunnings for nine days was running out of time before a hero came to its aid.

A sick and starving owl trapped inside a Melbourne Bunnings for more than a week has been freed, with its rescuer saying it likely wouldn’t have survived another night.

After nine days among the rafters and shelves of Bunnings Tarneit in Melbourne’s west, wildlife rescuer Nigel Williamson said the owl had lost more than half of its body weight.

Mr Williamson spent more than three decades saving injured wildlife so said he was not surprised to hear about the trapped bird.

In the last fortnight alone, he’s saved four barn owls from warehouses across Melbourne.

Nigel's Animal Rescue director Nigel Williamson attended the Bunnings Tarneit store after close on Thursday. Picture: Supplied

Owls enter warehouses after being chased by ravens, he said, often because they’d tried to steal chicks or eggs from ravens’ nests.

Mr Williamson attended the store on Thursday evening about 7pm and had expected to wait until customers left at 9pm to access a scissor lift to retrieve the animal from its lofty height.

However, after initially losing the bird when it had moved, he found it resting on a lower shelf and was able to capture it before 8pm.

He said the animal had been in the store for about nine days and would have likely died if it spent another night without access to food.

Mr Williamson said after the bird moved to a lower shelf he was able to retrieve in on the first attempt. Picture: Supplied

“I know these are beautiful creatures but anyone who knows birds can see how sick this owl is,” Mr Williamson said.

“Normally they are bright and looking up but this bird was compromised, it was under 50 per cent its normal body weight.
“A bird needs to eat a third of its size every day to survive, and after three days without food it would already have been compromised.”

Mr Williamson advised warehouses confronted with a similar issue to leave small amounts of cubed meat up high somewhere to allow the animal to survive while a rescue was organised.

He said not much could be done to prevent the birds coming inside but suggested if skylights were built into a roof, a section could be removed to help chase the bird out.

A bird’s personality will often determine how long a job can take, according to the rescuer, and he claimed to be successful about 98 per cent of the time.

He said Bunnings management had “done everything right” and was in contact with Wildlife Victoria from the beginning.

He said the normally “bright” animal would not look up and had lost more than 50 per cent of its body weight over the 9 days inside. Picture: Supplied

Before its rescue, Bunnings regional manager Barbara Mclatchie confirmed the Tarneit store had engaged local animal welfare groups to ensure the owl was relocated as soon as possible, and the team was ready to assist with after hours support.

A Wildlife Victoria spokeswoman said the owl was first reported to its Emergency Response Service on May 9.
“(We) were in regular contact with Tarneit Bunnings’ and provided advice to encourage the owl out of the store or to engage a paid animal removal service,” the spokeswoman said.

“Turning off all internal lights, opening all doors and windows, and leading the animal towards external openings with food is often the best option and most stress-free solution for the animal.

“If uninjured, most native animals will make their way out of buildings when provided the opportunity to do so.

“When this method is unsuccessful, we recommend enlisting a paid service ... this is due to the complexity involved in rescuing flighted species who will often fly away from rescuers unless specialised equipment is utilised.”