Owls as Pets

It is a very, very bad idea to keep an owl as a pet. Owls are birds of prey and all birds of prey can only be one thing, Wild! Yet, if you are one of those who would sacrifice the happiness of a poor animal or bird for personal gratification, let me give you some details in advance, about owls as pets. I will hopefully be able to change your mind on getting an owl, by the end of this piece.

About Owls
One cannot stress any less on the fact that owls are wild birds of prey. They have sharp beaks and flesh-tearing talons to complement their cute, cuddly, feathery looks. They are armed with the weapon of stealth and can pounce and kill any victim, before the victim even knows that it has been spotted. Owls eat all sorts of small mammals and will have no compunction going after your latest pet addition either, if you let it wander out, unattended. These birds require large areas to fly in and have fairly large wing spans too. They are the masters of the art of noiselessly pouncing on their prey, in the dark hours of the night. Though unfortunately symbolic of dark witchcraft, owls are magnificent birds that just happen to be nocturnal killers. An owl's specialty is that it can turn its head around, three-quarters of the way and back. This compensates for the fact that they cannot rotate their eyeballs. These beautiful birds usually mate for life and are extremely attached to their family and nests. After knowing this, would you still want to reduce these birds into becoming domesticated by keeping them as pets? If you are of the bend of thought that almost all domesticated animals were initially wild and so shall be with an owl, here are some facts that should bring you around.

Is it Legal to Have Owls as Pets?
It is illegal to keep an owl as a pet in many countries, including America. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service holds stewardship of the wild animals and birds and grants licenses to keep them as pets, but they may recall an animal if someone fails to meet the permit terms and conditions. Owls kept as pets are only allowed if you have a permit to keep them and permits are only given to those who keep owls for breeding or educational programs. Fully trained and licensed individuals can keep owls temporarily for treatment and rehabilitation but never as pets. Keeping owls is also allowed for falconers, but again not as pets, and this is so only because the birds are free and they retain their abilities to hunt in the wild. Since large owls survive till 50 and the smaller ones outlast their twenties, when considering these birds as pets, it is wise to consider the lifelong commitment one needs to give to them, in the forms of time, energy, love and money. Here are some of the reasons why it is strongly advocated not to have owls.

Reasons Why Owls Should Not Be Pets

• Owls are neither very receptive to change nor are they as detached as they look. If you plan a vacation, your owl will not like to be fed by someone else, it will not be friendly towards anyone who tries. Unless you take your pet owl along with you, your vacations will be very hard on them.
• Taking care of owls is not the trial and error job that it is with the dogs of first-time pet owners and even the babies of first-time mommies. You need to know everything there is to know about owls, for you are the only one responsible for them. Everything from perches to food and infections to maintenance, is your sole responsibility for the owl won't take it from anyone else that it is not used to.
• Owls cannot be put in an outdoor pen and forgotten about for the simple fact that they won't let you forget them. They will demand your attention by screeching loudly and making begging calls for attention. You will need to have a lot of time and training to give them their daily flying exercises, for they most definitely will need them.
• Your pet will expect a lot of dirty work from you. As owls molt every year, expect to be cleaning feathers and pellets from just about anywhere. Owl pellets are usually a mass of fur and bones and having to clean them up everyday is sure to give you some really gross nightmares. Oh, and one more thing, keep your eyes open when you have a pet owl, you never know what you will be stepping on.
• You need a large freezer that can stock raw, whole, adult animals. You will have to get them from somewhere and you will have to pay for them too, this apart from dedicating one freezer to all the dead animals. While feeding your pet owl, you will even have to do the dirty butchery of these dead things, to remove their stomachs, livers and intestines. This will save you the trouble of cleaning up the same things (smelly and mucus covered) from your walls and floor, when your beautiful pets throw them up.
• Let me tell you one last time, owls are 'wild birds of prey'. I hope you have deciphered the hidden meaning in that phrase. Wild stands for impossible to potty train, impossible to obedience train and generally aggressive. Birds of prey stands for the birds that can playfully rip you apart in times of fun and play, without even warning or intention. Keeping owls culminates into a 24 hours poop removal business that involves encountering infinite minor and major scratches, hoot and talon fights. Watch the eyes, mate!
• Despite having a pet owl, you cannot be called a pet owner. You see, you will not be getting any of the pet joys from these fellas. No hugging, cuddling and snuggling (that's assuming you actually wanted to snuggle these soft but smelly things in the first place).
• Mating season is more of a hell for an owl owner than it is for the owl that is not getting his mate. You will be expected to put up with all night mating calls and a general racket all day long. If you have a human imprinted owl (one that has been hand-raised by humans and has grown up considering himself as one), I am here to tell you that you are officially taken. You are the owl's sole property (and they are highly territorial), one he expects to MATE with. I hope you read that right. Your pet owl is capable of physically attacking any potential threat to him, no matter that the threat is actually your long-standing boyfriend.
• No expensive furniture for you when you have owls. You will soon discover that anything that can bear scratches and claw marls will be sporting them when you have owls. Things like torn pillows, ripped soft toys and shredded linen will just be so common, that I was even considering not mentioning them here.

I urge you to follow your conscience and not consider these birds as pets. Many that have taken up owls are now regretting their decision. Yet, despite all the facts against keeping owls, the publicity they have garnered through the hit 'Harry Potter' series, is putting them in grave danger. Keeping an owl as a pet, whether it is a screech owl, pygmy owl, barn owl or snowy owl is very wrong.

Consider what you will be doing to the majestic, born free awe-inspiring bird when you take away his freedom and keep him as a pet, before you go ahead and get one. It is a shame that humans are the only species on this planet that put themselves before anything else and all the owl lovers can do, is hope that they do not do so in the case of deciding on keeping owls as pets.