Twice as many owls have received care this year in Edmonton compared to same time last year

WildNorth Animal Rescue says it's seeing an increase in owls needing care in the Edmonton area this year. CTV News Edmonton's Amanda Anderson explains why.

Edmonton’s owl population appears to be growing as twice as many of the bird species have received care so far in 2025 compared to the same time last year.

WILDNorth has seen 15 great-horned owls come through in 2025, compared to eight during the same timeframe in 2024.

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Dale Gienow, WILDNorth’s executive director, says great-horned owls are common in Edmonton and that their population is growing.

“The population of owls directly correlates to the food source. If we have more mice, we’re gonna have more owls,” Gienow explained. “We’ve had a huge influx of rodent population in 2024 and as we get more hares and larger prey species, these guys like to eat, we’re gonna see more great-horned owls.”

One of their current patients had a “pretty badly injured wing” when he was hit by a car.

The veterinary team pinned the owl’s wing and treated an eye injury.

The owl is still being monitored but Gienow thinks he’s healing well and is a good candidate to be released back into the wild.

“Great-horned owls are amongst the greatest predators in the animal kingdom … so pinning a wing like this is always a dicey endeavor. We have to monitor them. They have to go through a rehabilitation process,” Gienow said.

“We have to ensure that they can fly and hunt perfectly before being released back into the wild.”