The Norfolk Show has shone a light on the quiet struggle on one of Norfolk's most beautiful nocturnal animals.

The Fritton Owl Sanctuary brought two of their patrons to the Countryside Area of the Norfolk Showground, in the hope of increasing visitor's awareness of their plight.

Many owls are brought for breeding in Norfolk and are then abandoned or given up when they can no longer reproduce.

Owner of the sanctuary, Mark Weston, introduced two baby owls to the crowds, saying: 'We don't have enough space for all of the owls we take in. A lot of baby animals are bred, and then when no one buys them the sellers give them up.

'We have to send some of them out to foster homes. We provide all of the vetinary care, food, and care, but we physically don't have the space to take them all in.'

He added: 'We release as many as we can back into the wild, but the ones we can't release we keep at our sanctuary for conservation and educational purposes.'

The Fritton Owl Sanctuary is based near Great Yarmouth and offers free admission, open seven days a week.