15 hours Ago
Oh, owly night! A Virginia family had an unexpected holiday visitor recently when an owl flew down their chimney and promptly found a picturesque place to rest. “This beautiful Barred Owl decided to play Santa and drop in—literally—through the chimney of a local home, and declared himself the newest star on top of their Christmas tree,” the Animal Welfare League of Arlington wrote Thursday on social media , adding that the feathered guest had “knocked the old star over to make room for himself” on the tree. The nonprofit, which provides animal services in Arlington County, shared two photos of the owl on the tree, as well as a video showing the bird of prey flying around the room as children in the home laugh.
The video also shows the owl flying free outside after being caught in a net by animal control Sgt. Spencer Murray. Following the stint inside, the owl was “uninjured and totally healthy,” Chelsea Jones, a spokesperson for the organization, told HuffPost via Facebook .
She added that the nonprofit is “so grateful to the family for staying calm and allowing our Sgt to safely remove the owl!” Other news outlets have retreated behind paywalls. At HuffPost, we believe journalism should be free for everyone. Would you help us provide essential information to our readers during this critical time? We can't do it without you.
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Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again . We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you.
Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all. Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages. The Animal Welfare League of Arlington noted that the incident is “a great reminder to keep your chimneys capped this season to prevent curious critters from coming to visit!” The photos and video footage prompted thousands of social media comments, most of them delighted.
“It’s been such a wonderful experience seeing the joy this has brought people,” Jones said. Related From Our Partner.
