MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- A great horned owl found starving in the wild because it had gone blind could be released this spring after having new eye lenses implanted in a first-of-its-kind surgery.
The owl, named Minerva by medical personnel, underwent a follow-up exam Wednesday by Dr. Chris Murphy, as another member of the avian medical team, Dr. Renee Carter, restrained the oil in a blue towel.
"Perfect," Murphy said.
"I think the bird looks gorgeous," added Murphy, a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist with bird expertise. "Ounce for ounce, this is considered one of the toughest birds on the face of the earth."
Minerva underwent two hours of eye surgery Jan. 22.
The bird had been found in emaciated condition in early December just north of Two Rivers. A resident told Manitowoc-area wildlife rehabilitators Sue and Jerry Theys the owl had been sitting on a fence for three days.
Sue Theys netted the weakened owl, believed to be female because of its large size, and examined it.
"I noticed the white in her eyes and suspected cataracts," she said.
A local veterinarian confirmed the diagnosis.
The owl was starving because it couldn't see well enough to hunt.
The Theys brought the owl to Murphy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine.
Murphy happened to have a pair of lenses on hand that had been custom-made six years ago for another great horned owl, which proved to be an unfit candidate for the surgery.
The lenses were designed by Murphy and Dr. Chuck Stuhr, then made for free by Storz Opthalmics, a company that has been bought by Bausch & Lomb.
"It was done as a goodwill gesture," Bausch & Lomb spokeswoman Meg Graham said. "We've never made a lens for a great horned owl before or since, and we're just thrilled the lenses were able to be used."
Minerva was anesthetized for the operation. With Murphy supervising, Carter and fellow resident Katie Diehl implanted the new lenses.
"To the best of my knowledge, this has not been done anywhere," Murphy said.
The Theys have been giving Minerva antibiotic eye drops three times daily and feeding her rats and an occasional rabbit.
In April, they will move Minerva to a much larger flight cage and release live rats into the straw-filled enclosure to see if she can successfully hunt. If so, she'll be released back into the wild just north of Two Rivers.
Great horned owls are the largest owls in North America, with females obtaining a wingspan of five feet and weighing up to 5.5 pounds. They use excellent night vision and an acute sense of hearing to find prey in the dark.
"She's extremely feisty," Sue Theys said. "I can't handle her alone any more without my husband. She can't understand why we're messing with her. She can see and she wants to take off and fly."
The Theys, who operate Wildlife of Wisconsin wildlife rehabilitation, paid for $300 of the $1,800 procedure, with the veterinary school donating the rest.
