An adult male singer feeding common Herring Gull seagulls in a daytime outdoor park setting with tiled ground and greenery, natural light illuminating earthy tones from the environment. 3:33
GeoBeats Animals channel icon GeoBeats AnimalsOriginal creator 454K views Save

Told to leave a hurt seagull, he took her home

Mert Akkoek, a businessman, lives on the outskirts of Istanbul, Turkey, so he can look after his animals. He mostly rescues dogs and seagulls, but any animal in trouble can count on him. more

The seagulls began with a single bird and a broken wing. Mert took her to a vet, and the break was so bad that the wing had to come off. There were no shelters for gulls, and the vet's advice was to leave her at the seashore. Mert knew a one-winged bird wouldn't make it out there alone, so he brought her home and gave her a small corner of his big garden.

An adult male singer feeding common Herring Gull seagulls in a daytime outdoor park setting with tiled ground and greenery, natural light illuminating earthy tones from the environment. The headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
Mert Akkoek, a businessman, lives on the outskirts of Istanbul, Turkey, so he can look after his animals.

Word got around. People came to know him as the man who looks after seagulls, and they began bringing him disabled birds that needed a safe place. One gull's feet had been cut off by fishing line. Soon the corner of the garden held a flock.

A man outdoors near trees and a fence holds two birds, one white and one brownish. A headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
People began bringing him more injured birds to look after.

Nearly 50 seagulls now live in his care. He gives them the best food he can and fresh water twice a day, and on weekends, when he has time, he goes to the seaside to bring back seawater for them. The shelter he built keeps the hurt birds safe from harsh weather.

Mert never keeps the gulls in cages, so any bird that heals is free to fly off. Very few ever manage it.

A gull with mottled gray and white feathers stands on the ground with its wings partly raised and its head tilted down. A headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
There are no cages, so any gull that heals is free to leave.

Mert isn't sure himself why he rescues animals, an admission plenty of strangers have tried to answer for him. He's sure about how the world treats birds and animals. He calls it unjust and cruel, and he believes at least some of us need to help.

He has cared for the gulls for almost ten years, and he has given them names. Each bird has its own personality, he says, and their lives look a lot like ours, with best friends, boyfriends and girlfriends. The gulls know him when they see him.

A bald man with glasses and a beard sits beside a white bird, with shelves full of books behind them. A headline runs in white letters across the lower third.Save
After almost ten years, each bird has a name and a personality of its own.

He has taken in a stork, too, and a cat lounges among the flock without bothering a single bird. Best of all are the visitors. Healthy gulls fly down into the garden to play with the disabled ones, and Mert feeds them as well. For the birds who can't fly, the sky comes to them.

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