Owl Flies into Side Mirror on Highway, Gets Stuck, Saved by WSDOT

The string of things that had to happen for this story to have a happy ending was unlikely, but it did.

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Lucky Washington State Owl Flies Into Moving Vehicle Side Mirror & Survives

A Washington owl is lucky to be alive after flying into the side mirror of a moving vehicle on a Washington State highway. Washington State Patrol Trooper Kelsey Harding shared the remarkable story on the Washington State Patrol District 7 X (formally Twitter) page. A Trooper responded to reports of the owl stuck in the mirror and managed to get the owl free. The owl was luckily alive but sustained some injuries in the accident. From the image released by the Washington State Patrol, the owl is a Washington State Barn owl and is 32-40 cm (13-16 in) tall with a wingspan of 100-125 cm (39-49 in).

Troopers Transport Injured Owl to Animal Hospital

The injured barn owl was taken by the Washington State Patrol to the Veterinary Emergency Group in Lynnwood. The owl is receiving treatment for its injuries according to the post. Washington State Trooper P. Williams from the K-9 Unit can be seen in the picture holding the owl before transport to the animal hospital. Hopefully, the owl will make a full recovery and go back to hunting mice and rodents in Washington's dark forests soon. Until then, that owl needs to be glad it didn't end up squished on the front end of the truck like a bug. By the way, is it just me or does Trooper P. Williams look a little like Ryan Reynolds?