"I have been a part of a lot of great moments at KSU thus far, but this might be the coolest of them all," Kennesaw Director of Athletics
Vaughn Williams said.
"It is another step in building and establishing a great tradition and game day environment at Kennesaw State University for our students and fans," Williams added.
After several years of discussing the concept of a live Owl to serve as the official mascot of Kennesaw State, the decision to move forward was finally made last spring. The live owl adopted by KSU was born April 8, 2013 in New York. The owl will grow to six pounds with a wing span around five feet and can live up to 60 years.
Sturgis lives at Winding Woods Ranch in Commerce, Ga., and is trained by Daniel Walthers, who raised, trained and introduced the first live mascots "Rise" and "Conquer", for the Baltimore Ravens in 2008 and 2009. Walthers manages a
website for Winding Woods Ranch and
a blog with information on the ranch and his work with birds.
The Great Horned Owl is the official owl of Kennesaw State, and Sturgis is in the family of the Great Horned Owl.
"We first started talking to Daniel in 2009 and kept in touch since then,"
Lauren Katovsky, assistant athletics director for corporate sales and marketing, said. "About six months ago, Vaughn Williams asked for a proposal and timeline. We knew breeding season was coming up, so we had to act quickly. Dr. (Dan) Papp was very supportive, so we worked with Daniel to secure an egg."
Follwing Sturgis' first birthday on April 8th, 2014, Sturgis and his trainer, Daniel Walthers, announced that Sturgis would adopt the charity "
Hawk Talk". Hawk Talk is a local non-profit organization dedicated to caring for birds of prey that cannot be released back into the wild. The organization also rehabilitates hawks, owls, eagles, kites, falcons and ospreys.
