Owls, not often seen as therapy pets, are soothing hospice residents in Germany

Jose Lay, a patient at a hospice in Germany’s Koblenzer, is comforted by Marga, a therapy owl. Photos: dpa

Horst Demsky, a patient at a hospice in Germany, is no longer strong enough to get up.

Two owls gaze at him with bright orange eyes, sitting perched on a falconer’s glove on his duvet. It is strangely calming.