They call Doug Pojeky the bird whisperer.

And now that photos of Mr. Pojeky, 40, being hugged by an owl have been shared thousands of times on Facebook, “they” have expanded from a small group of rescue workers to people around the world.

“My phone has never rang so much,” said Mr. Pojeky, who is retired from the United States Navy and volunteers for the nonprofit Wild at Heart Rescue in Vancleave, Miss., northeast of Biloxi. “It’s really rewarding in a sense because we work really hard at what we do.”

What the organization does entails answering hundreds of calls every day, but usually about an animal in need. Mr. Pojeky said Wednesday that the call about the owl, dubbed GiGi because of her gigantic size, came from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in May.

GiGi, a great horned owl, had a concussion and two types of infections — and she was unable to stand up.