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ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Police are sometimes called to retrieve cats from trees, but it's rare they are asked to rescue a barred owl from a chimney.
That was the situation some St. Clairsville residents found themselves in last week. Sgt. Tom DeVaul, commander of the Belmont County Sheriff's Department Dangerous Wild Animal Rescue division, and St. Clairsville police Officers Andy Klotz Adam Porter arrived.
"They called and they had an owl stuck in their fireplace in their living room. He was just a little guy. I was able to reach in there, get him and safely return him to the wild," DeVaul said. "He was pretty tired with trying to get out of there, so it was pretty easy just to reach in there and get ahold of him."
While the owl was understandably unhappy about the entire affair, the children of the home were able to get a close look before DeVaul took the bird outside and released it. He added that the division has been active since 2011, when the owner of an animal preserve near Zanesville, Ohio, released numerous wild animals before killing himself. Many of those animals, including Bengal tigers, lions and bears, were killed by law enforcement during efforts to protect the public.
"We had (the division) for several years. We were required by law to start that after the incident in Zanesville where all the exotic animals got loose," DeVaul said, adding that the division has seen little use since its inception.
The owl did not qualify as a "dangerous animal."
"We also assist when it comes to other animals. If there's a threat to that animal or someone's safety or to their property I'll go and assist them," he said, noting that under such circumstances the Ohio Department of Natural Resources is usually the department to call.
"If somebody has a raccoon getting in their garbage, that is nothing we would help with," he said. "Owls are a protected species in the state of Ohio. I was on duty and I went and saved the animal and helped the people out."
The sheriff's office can be reached at 740-695-7933.