OWL BE SEEING YOU

No two days on a homestead are ever the same. And despite all your glorious ideas and plans, a day often derails. Your goats have broken into the newly planted field. The neighbours pop in for coffee. They leave two hours later. A pipe bursts, wasting precious water. The tractor doesn't want to start. And....there's those goats breaking out AGAIN!

My favourite type of derailed day involves animals. That is, if it's a good type of derailing and not a sad good bye type. Early one morning I heard strange noises in our empty concrete dam. Inside was a scared bird of prey. His right wing had been severely broken. We soon discovered that it was an old injury and irreparable. The poor boy could no longer fly, although he hopped pretty fast! Because I name all animals he was promptly named Martie and took up residence in our barn. Martie is a spotted eagle-owl. He is the smallest of the eagle-owls and mate for life. So poor Martie was forever separated from his lady love. Because owls rely largely on flight in order to eat, I had to feed him. He attached rather grudgingly to me. And so Dr Doolittle's menagerie grows.

(Edited to enter the combination contest held by @papa-pepper