Owls in the Family
by Ruskin Bond
A. Fill in the blanks to complete the sentences.
1. The speaker and his grandparents lived in Dehradun.
2. They found two spotted owlets and took care of both.
3. The mother owlet left a mouse for its babies.
4. The speaker left the two owlets under the mango tree.
5. Grandmother frequently fed the owlets spaghetti.
B. Answer the questions.
1. Who picked up the first spotted owlet?
= The author's grandfather picked up the first spotted owlet.
2. What did grandfather feed it?
= Grandfather fed it raw meat and water.
3. Why do other birds attack spotted owlets?
= Other birds attack spotted owlets because they consider all owls their enemies.
4. Who attacked the speaker and his grandfather?
= The mother of the two owlets attacked the speaker and his grandfather.
5. Where did the owlets doze off during the day?
= The owlets dozed on a hat stand during the day.
C. Read the lines and answer the questions.
1. "Obviously, she put no great trust on me as s foster parent."
a. Who is she?
= She is the mother of the two owlets.
b. Who is the foster parent?
= The speaker is the foster parent.
c. How do we know that she did not trust the foster parent?
= The mother of the two owlets had left a mouse with its tail tucked through the netting for the food of her owlets. From this incident, we come to know that she did not trust the foster parent.
2. "It's obvious she wants us to keep an eye on them..."
a. Who said this?
= The grandfather of the speaker said this.
b. Who wants them to keep an eye and on whom?
= The mother of the two owlets wants them to keep an eye on the owlets.
c. How did it become obvious to them?
= It became obvious to them to keep an eye on the owlets because the two owlets were probably getting too big for their mother to manage.
3. "I saw one of the owlets had crawled up her pillow till its head was snuggled under her ear."
a. Who saw the owlet?
= The speaker saw the owlet.
b. Under whose ear had it snuggled its head?
= It had snuggled its head under the ear of the grandmother of the speaker.
c. Does it mean that the owlet trusted her?
= Yes, it means that the owlet trusted her as she used to give them food and take good care of them.
D. Think and answer.
1. How do we know that the speaker's family was fond of animals?
= We come to know that the speaker's family was fond of animals because they had had - snakes, monkeys and some crows - as pets from time to time. Besides this, they were already taking good care of the two owlets.
2. Why did the mother owl first attack the speaker and his grandfather but later left her babies under their care?
= The mother owl fist attacked the speaker and his grandfather because it thought that they are going to hurt her owlets. But gradually she learnt that the speaker and his grandfather were taking good care of her babies. And the owlets were probably getting too big for the mother to manage. That is why the mother left her babies under the care of the speaker and his grandfather.
3. Do you think that the speaker's family took good care of their pets? How do we know?
= Yes, I think the speaker's family took good care of their pets. The way they treated the two owlets, shows that they were very caring towards they pets. Grandfather and speaker rescued the owlets and fed them and made them fit to get back to nature.
Then they brought them to the garden to return them to their own home. Then eventually the mother owl left her babies to them. Then we see that the grandmother of the speaker took great care of the owlets. All this proves that they took great care of their pets.
About the Author:
Ruskin Bond is an Indian author of British descent. He wrote one of his first short stories at the age of 16. Most of his works are influenced by his life in the hill stations at the foothills of the Himalayas, where he spent his childhood. His first novel, The Room on the Roof, was written when he was 17 and published when he was 21. He has been writing for more than 50 years.