Eagle Owls attacking dogs

Caught the end of this on the radio earlier so had to look it up.

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Nesting owls swoop on dog walkers

The eagle owls have attacked dog walkers and their pets.
A footpath has been closed in Lancashire following repeated attacks on dog walkers by a pair of nesting eagle owls.
The birds, who are raising their chicks at Dunsop Bridge in Bowland, have become particularly territorial.

The moorland footpath runs between the nest and the birds' regular perch site.

Lancashire County Council closed the path after about half a dozen people reported the birds swooping down to attack them and their pets.

One person was reportedly treated in hospital for minor injuries.

One bird watcher witnessed an attack. Andrew from Wigan said: "I was walking along the path and watching the female on the opposite side.

"There was someone walking a border collie along the path and the next thing the owl came gliding along straight into the side of the border collie and knocked the dog onto its side."

Knee-high to a human with a two-metre (6ft) wingspan, eagle owls are the largest birds in the owl family and have been making a return to the United Kingdom after centuries of absence.

They are usually more commonly seen on the continent and in Scandinavia and as such, the nesting birds in Lancashire have attracted massive interest from bird watchers from across the UK.

It doesn't surprise me at all. Eagle owls are fiercly territorial when nesting. They're more than capable of carrying off a small dog if they wanted too

They're my favourite bird of prey Totally silent in flight which makes tham a fantastic predator. I did spot one on the top of a building near Tesco's (probably one of the locals that forgot thier broomstick ) I tried driving back, but it had gone when I got there

It's brilliant that the Eurasian Eagle Owl is making a comeback (not for the dog walkers though )

Sadly, printing the details of where they are means they will probably end up dead like the ones that were on the telly, 2 weeks after broadcast the female was shot.
Becky

That's so sad Becky

There are some evil people out there

The thinking behind printing the exact location is to help protect them. The more people who know about them, the more likely someone will be about if anyone tries anything illegal. There is currently a big debate about whether these eagle owls should be culled/captured as they aren't native and do cause problems, like the pair at Bowland.

Most moorland keepers don't mind these owls nearby as they chase away other raptors.

Helen