Owl moved into my backyard...

[Lite Drag]

Try spraying vinegar around the area.
Just pour it out of the jug, or use a sprayer or spray bottle.
This works well for cats, dogs and skunks (the furry 4 legged kind)
Another thing that works especially well for cats and skunks is putting
3-5 mothballs in an old sock and tie it shut, and put along the fenceline,
or wherever the critters are getting in.
I am pretty sure it will work well for anything including birds...
Humane and effective...

[GUSANO]

They usually swallow their meals whole (mice), but a gopher it might have to shred up a bit to get it down. I can see that being messy. Those Owl pellets (furry pooh look-a-like's) is the remnants of the owls usually last meal. It can't digest the bones and the fur. SOOOO that comes back out from the same entrance it came in from. RALPH!!!!
~

[addicted2Daiwa]

Huhhhhh... due to the power of democracy, my veto power had been overide by the court(my wife...) and congress(my daughter...). I contacted an animal rescue agency and they came out for an assessment today.
The Results...

The owl is a native.
It's not much older than a year old.
It picked the front porch because I do have a vermin problem. Stupid gophers had invaded the wife's garden. So there is a steady supply of food.
And according to this rescue group, they believe it's a survivor from a previous batch that had been relocated from my house about a decade ago but it returned because it had claimed my house as it's hunting ground. How in the world did it do that?
Oh, and buying a decoy to try and scare the darn thing won't help because it'll eventually figure out that the decoy isn't real and it'll return anyway.

The owl gets to stay but I'm going to have to invest in a screen to keep him off the porch ceiling. I just hate how the dang thing shrieks early morning especially if he made a kill... his droppings stilll disgusts me... Anyone knows why they do that? Just last night I noticed he must've caught some sort of rodent but he didn't finish it so he left a portion of it on the porch. I'm just glad I didn't have to explain to my daughter what Hedwig did to Stewart Little or else she might actually have second thought about him. (She still thinks it eats marshmallows and cookies...) One day I'm gonna have to break it to her that her "friend" doesn't eat marshmallow and cookies but eats Stewart Little and his buddies... That's going to be a hard one right there... But thanks for all the suggestions though! They really gave me a chance to explore my options rather than go in the directions I didn't want to go.

[Wolf74]

Don't you just hate it when those little turds scream. I've been out in the middle of the night and hear that screeching. Scares the hell out of me half the time.

[BIG_ONE]

Shimano Clarus 7' - 8'6" XH - Fast Action with 12 - 17lbs mono. And a Bobby Barrack Snag Proof Moss Mouse or Boss Rat in colors of black or brown. Technique: Cast behind the owl, and slowly twitch across the yard beneath the owl. Or cast behind a tree and twitch around the trunk onto the owl's site. OWL ON!!!
Sorry...couldn't help it. LOL!

[Duffel bag]

On second thought that probably won't work, because he isn't their at night is he? What about putting a radio out there and turning it to the opera channel, he will probably either leave or commit suicide.

If all else fails, send me a PM and I will send you a picture of my mother-in-law, you won't have any more problem's with unwanted wildlife or door-to-door salesmen.

But Seriously, I did just read that they don't like hawks and they don't like other owls. One person said that he put up an owl decoy on a pole about 10 feet away and it worked.

[Duffel bag]

Maybe you could try leaving a light on at night. By keeping his location as bright as possable he might relocate on his own.

[GUSANO]

Sucks about the mess, but cool at the same time. Sounds like you may have a Barn owl. Screen the entrance to his den. He'll get the message to move. But make sure there is no nest with eggs or chicks. Owls are protected and if you disturb an occupied nest you could get a very steep fine.
About the mess, thats whats cool (for a science geek). Those regergetated owl pellets are cool. For some fun, soak'em over night in Alcohol to kill any bacteria. Let them dry, then they are safe to open up. Its a fur ball with sometimes complete skeletons of rodents in them. As a kid I used to go hunting for the pellets at the parks under large trees. I'd sterilize them then dissect them and on a sheet of paper would lay out and glue the bones on the paper to rebuild the skeleton. You could see what they eat. I've found moles, gophers, but mostly mice. The coolest thing a saw was what appeared to be pieces of a small snake. tons of ribs with small vertebrea but no skull.
~

[Big Game]

Who?.......


....sorry...couldn't resist.....

I don't have a solution for you but I do have a new name. I think you should re-name him "Boomerang"

Good Luck,
Big Game

[hotdog]

That's funny, I can't believe it returned after being trapped. We have a large Oak at the 'kid's end' of our house and they've had to listen to owl's since we moved there.
If it's not a benefit having the owl there (he's keeping your rodent population down), then it's time to screen in the porch and make him move. I wouldn't personally allow it due to the mess. Because he's a good critter, I wouldn't hurt him. Varments, on the other hand, get the extreme-prejudice treatment.