The holiday season has so far turned out to be a hoot for one Kentucky family who found a tiny stowaway hiding in their Christmas tree.
When the White family of Lexington, Ky., brought home their annual Christmas tree last month, they had no idea a baby owl had already claimed the tree as its home.
Michele White told the local Fox affiliate WDKY-TV that the uninvited guest stayed hidden inside the Christmas tree for four days before being discovered. She said her family has been buying real Christmas trees as part of a decades-long tradition, though they’ve never had a yuletide visitor quite like this fledgling.
White told the outlet she was “stunned” to learn about the owl.
Bobby Hayes, who owns a local carpet cleaning business and was working in the White family home while they were away, said he found the owl sitting on a lower limb of the tree on Nov. 27.
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When he approached, he said the owl escaped further into the tree, but was spotted again several minutes later.
Hayes sent White a photo of the bird.
White said she was surprised no one, including the family’s three dogs, noticed the owl in the busy room of their house.
Still, White was glad Hayes discovered the owl without her, as she’s certain her reaction would have been pretty fowl.
“I would have left the house,” she told WDKY-TV. “The owl could’ve stayed without me. I wasn’t coming home.”
Hayes released the uninjured bird in the White family’s backyard. It has not been seen since.
Hopefully the little fledgling finds his own kin soon, otherwise it’ll risk spending the holidays owl by itself. At the very least, maybe the owl can find a partridge in a pear tree to bunk with.