Topic: WOO HOO! TOOWIT TOOWOO!

[Trixiebelle]

There's a St. John's Ambulance station opposite our allotments & a really nice bloke is in charge over there.

He rescues owls from the RSPCA - people who have bought them as 'pets' (some due to Harry Potter books as well unfortunately) and then can't cope with them.

He's got a gorgeous snowy owl that was tethered for several years on a 3m rope and never allowed to fly. She can now though :)

He brings them to the ambulance station at the weekends so the kids can see them and I always sneak in as well  ;D

His latest rescue is Poppy, a European Eagle Owl. Absolutely BEAUTIFUL she is as well - and HUGE!! She's only 18 months old.

Someone bought her as a chick and then got scared of her when she grew too big. They used to hit her with a stick to keep her in the corner of her pen when she was fed. She's absolutely terrified of people and you can see her shaking  :(

The blokie is taming her though and she actually allowed him to scratch her head today - big breakthrough  ;D

He's keeping her at the ambulance station for the time being (they've got loads of space and he's built a special indoor pen for her)

However, he has to come in and feed her twice a day and he lives quite a way away .... SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ...... I offered to feed her for him when he can't make it. He said YES  ;D

He's getting me a key cut next week so I'll be helping to look after Poppy and HOPEFULLY when she's tamed and used to the glove, I'll be able to fly her  ;D

I flew an eagle owl once and it was a fantastic experience. They weigh a tonne though!!

I'll get pics ASAP. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera today.

Can't wait  ;D

PS: In case anyone's wondering, the owls he's got are RESCUE owls that were destined to be put down. He doesn't keep them for 'fun'. He also takes them to local schools so the kids can see them close-up.

[saddad]

Look forward to the Pics then...
 ;D

[SnooziSuzi]

Wow! what a fantastic opportunity!

My 13yo wants to be a falconer after she helped to find a Harris Hawk.

She was out with her friend and thought she saw something in the trees so took a closer look.  It turned out to be a huge bird of prey which was tethered to the tree branch by it's jesses.

Anyhooo, after ringing her dad who contacted the RSPCA (who didn't want to know, by the way) a local enthusiast was contacted who agreed to collect the bird and look after it.

As they were getting her down, another guy came racing up and yelled that they should leave her alone and quoted her registered number, which was on the ring. 

It turned out that his wife had fed her and she got out of the pen and flew off.  She was tied to the tree because her leather straps had become entangled on the branch as she swooped in and she was stuck there.

they were ever so gratefull that she was found and took her home.  Soon after they also got a European Eagle Owl chick and raised it.  it's massive!!


HOpe you can take some pics of her Trixi, would love to see them  ;D

[Trixiebelle]

I'll do my best Snoozi & Saddad  ;D

She really is the most beautiful bird of prey I've ever seen (apart from the baby osprey chicks my dad took photos of when I was about 5!)

I vehemently do NOT agree with keeping birds of prey in captivity but Polly was destined to be put to sleep and will undoubtedly have a good quality of life from now on - even though it's not what she deserves and is entirely different to her (denied) life in the wild.

I asked the owl-man where these people actually GET the birds from and why they are allowed to be sold. He said it's SOOOOOOOOOOOO easy to buy one on the internet and there's no follow-up to make sure they're being kept correctly etc.

Bloody shame  :(

[Carol]

Good for you Trixie.  good luck with the Eagle Owl, they are wonderful looking birds. 

 ;) ;)

[manicscousers]

wow, you lucky thing..when we were in cornwall, we went to Paradise Park, they have owls, all rescue birds, they fly some of them every day and the public can go see, they really are beautiful birds, yep, got the right one, the eagle owl  ;D

[kenkew]

I have mixed feelings about captive birds. If being 'captive' is the alternative to death then OK, but while we all prefer to see wild birds in their natural environment there is also the chance when 'captive' for people, especially youngsters, to get up close and understand and appreciate them. The end result, we hope, is that children will help to preserve natural habitats for such creatures by understanding their needs.
 So, I guess there is sense in having a 'captive audience.'

[Robert_Brenchley]

At least it's only owls these days. When I was a kid you could buy a lion cub for £150. I remember the case of a scrap metal merchant who had lions instead of guard dogs. One day they treed the postman under his van; he was trapped there for hours with the things prowling round.

[star]

Yeah, but they have changed the law again, and now all kinds of exotics can be bought and kept by the inept......where does the government get these stupid ideas from???

It really does make me angry, I will zip it now as I could rant about this forever.

PS Trixiebelle, this is in no way aimed at you or other wildlife sanctuaries/groups who try to help. I also believe, anyone who is knowledgeable enough and has the right environment for wild (not able to be released) or exotic (no longer wanted and or abused) animals or birds do a vital job. It does not replace the freedom every wild creature deserves, though it is unfortunately essential in a lot of cases.

[Trixiebelle]

I agree 100% Star!

[CoffeePot]

Hi Trixiebelle  :) That sounds amazing, it's great there are so many people dedicated to rescuing animals birds etc.
To be honest i don't think I could do it, I get a bit nervous when things flap near me (even moths and daddy longlegs ::))
Look forward to the photos  :)

[Hot_Potato]

looking forward to seeing a photo Trixiebelle of this wonderful big bird

thought you might like to see this old 'scanned' photo taken about 18 years ago - I was taken home one lunchtime by a colleague I worked with and to my amazement, introduced to her son's owls in a cage in the garden!!

after watching him with them for a while, I was asked if I'd like to try handling one and he's a picture to prove I did (two in fact)....you can see the sheer look of amazement on my face in the first one

[Hot_Potato]

oops!.....thought I could send two together but it seems I couldn't....here's the first one I referred to