Bath police officer Brett McIntire holds the injured barred owl found on High Street in Bath. Photo courtesy of Bath Police Department

Bath police officer Michael Jones and animal control officer Jim McKnight rescued an injured barred owl on High Street in Bath Wednesday night.

Bath Police Chief Andrew Booth said someone called the station around 10 p.m. Wednesday to report the owl was sitting on the side of the road. Booth said the bird couldn’t fly away when officers approached.

The officers picked up the bird and took it to Avian Haven, a wild bird rehabilitation center in Freedom, the next morning.  However, the owl’s wing was severely damaged, and the animal had to be put down later that day, according to Avian Haven co-founder Diane Winn.