Dogs, falcons and owl in crash on A1 in North Yorkshire
Three people, two dogs, two falcons and an owl have been in a crash in North Yorkshire.
Police were called after two cars, one towing a caravan, collided on the A1 near Allerton Park on Wednesday night.
The woman towing the caravan was travelling with her animals because she was returning to live in Italy.
All involved escaped unharmed but the owl had to spend the night at a local sanctuary.
The woman was eventually able to continue her journey in her undamaged car but did not have room to take the owl, which was being carried in a box.
A lot of her possessions, which were in the caravan, were also damaged.
Sgt Paul Cording from North Yorkshire Police said: "She'd managed to squeeze as much as she could in the car, including the dogs and two other birds, both falcons, but she didn't have enough room for the owl.
"Thankfully we found it a home for the night at a local sanctuary. I think he is going to be picked up by a relative and taken on to be reunited with his owner in Italy.
"It was certainly one of the more unusual nights for us. I did feel a bit like Doctor Doolittle.
"Once we knew everyone was ok, we did have a hoot about it."
Police said the state of the caravan, which had overturned and shed its load, reinforced why it was illegal to ride in a vehicle whilst being towed.