Search begins as eagle owl Buddy goes missing

Sarah Buckland said people should not worry about keeping their pets indoors

People are being asked to be eagle-eyed in a search for a 2ft (60cm) tall bird of prey who escaped from an enclosure in West Sussex.

Buddy, an eagle owl with a 5ft (1.5m) wingspan, went missing from a bird of prey centre in Compton on Monday morning.

Sally Buckland, who runs West Sussex Falconry, said she was in a "blind panic" when she found his enclosure door wide open and its latch broken.

She said Buddy could have kicked the door open as he sometimes tries to jump at pigeons outside.

She said there was no need for people to "lock the doors and keep their pet rabbits inside", although she warned that Buddy was an "opportunist".

"There is always the potential for a bird of prey to kill something, but instinctively he's more likely to be interested if he sees any mice or rats," she added.

'Million dollar question'

Ms Buckland told the BBC finding Buddy, who she has owned for six years, was "a needle in a haystack" situation and his location was "anybody's guess".

"The only advantage with this bird is that he is rather large and he's quite conspicuous," she said.

"If people see him they're not just going to write it off as a tawny owl. They're going to look twice."

Ms Buckland said the "million dollar question" was whether Buddy, who was bred in captivity, knew how to hunt.

Ms Buckland urged people to get in contact with her if they see him

She said if he could feed himself, she doubted she would be able to get him back as he would no longer be dependant on her.

Buddy has large bright orange eyes, ear tufts sticking out the side of his head and his colouring is "very stripy and mottled, with browns, black, greens and all sorts of ochre colours", according to Ms Buckland.

He also has a red identification ring on his leg, though it is hard to see because his legs are furry, she added.

Ms Buckland urged anyone who sees Buddy to not approach him, as it could spook him, and instead get in contact as soon as possible.

She asked the public to email [e-mail] with any information on Buddy's whereabouts.