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Original poster

My parents and I had pet owls. AMA

66 replies

ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 06:37

I've always fancied doing an AMA, but couldn't think of anything that would be of interest.
Following on from a thread last night about owls in London.
So, yes, when I was young, my family had two tawny owls.

OP posts:
TwistyHair · 15/05/2020 06:38

Where did you keep them?

Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 06:43

Hello. In an aviary in the garden.
When my parents first got them they lived in a spare bedroom with an old tree in it for them to roost. This was while my dad built the aviary.
When we moved house he built a new aviary. It was lovely, with lots of trees and a rockery.

OP posts:
funmummy48 · 15/05/2020 07:05

What is it really like, being from a wizarding family? (Sorry, I couldn’t resist! 😂)

GoFiguire · 15/05/2020 07:07

How big is owl poo?

Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 07:09

Owl poo is white and runny like other bird poo.

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shittingmysel · 15/05/2020 07:15

My sister found a baby owl sitting on the road in the sun she says it's eyes looked all red and crusty was the middle of the day. A farmer took it in after he realised why she'd stopped the car. Would it eyes have been like this just due to being in the sun? Also how's a baby owl likely to end up in the road? Just curious.

Notso · 15/05/2020 07:19

How did you get the Owls and did you ever feel it was unfair to have them as pets?

DreamingofSunshine · 15/05/2020 07:20

My DH didn't believe me that owls lived in the UK outside of zoos Grin

Did you teach them to sit on your arm like in the shows at Warwick castle?

Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 07:21

@shittingmysel
Oh that's sad. No, that doesn't sound normal at all. It may have fallen from a tree. Someone may have stolen it and dumped it. I really don't know. Farmers are usually good at that sort of thing.

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Ostanovka · 15/05/2020 07:24

What were their names and were they related?

shittingmysel · 15/05/2020 07:24

He handled it very well spoke to it as if it was his own child and was away to google what to feed it. We couldn't have left it in better hands. I'm sure he'll give it its best shot.

Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 07:28

@Notso
My parents were on a motorway in Wales. It was dark and my mom saw two pairs of eyes in a cardboard box. She thought they were kittens. They eventually managed to turn around, and they were owlets. Someone had dumped them.
They bought them home and the original plan was that they would go to a nearby zoo. When my mom and dad visited the zoo they realised that they could give them a better life than the zoo. They sought permission from a wild bird expert. They wouldn't have survived in the wild. So it wasn't cruel at all.

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Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 07:32

@Ostanovka
The original pair were called Blodwyn and Dodo. They must have been brother and sister.
Sadly a fox got into the aviary and Dodo died of fright. So we got another owl from the aforementioned bird expert. His name was Reg (the owl, not the expert!)

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Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 07:34

@DreamingofSunshine
Yes, they sat on your arms. They don't really need much training to do that
They just treat you like a tree!

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Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 08:18

@shittingmysel
Aah, that's good to hear. It will be difficult for it to live in the wild now as they need to be taught how to hunt. Someone else will hopefully have a lovely pet owl.

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Theonewiththecat · 15/05/2020 08:21

Was it a hoot?

I'll see myself out 🤣

SiaPR · 15/05/2020 08:25

Oh of course. They lived outside. In my head they lived in your bedroom. Did they come in your house at all?

EvilPea · 15/05/2020 08:25

Did you take them flying?

My dd has a weird affinity with birds (more specifically owls) and I would LOVE to get her a pet owl. Although, not so keen on the dead chick freezer issue.

SiaPR · 15/05/2020 08:25

Did Blodwyn take to Reg?

Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 08:29

@SiaPR
No they didn't come in the house, apart from when they had their own bedroom complete with tree! Passers by must have loved it when they saw them through the window.
It was a very average West Midlands three bed semi. (This is sounding quite Potteresque now!)

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Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 08:32

@EvilPea
No we never took them out.
We didn't do the dead chick thing.
They had rabbit from Sainsbury's (a la Chas and Dave) with dog hair on top. It came in frozen chunks in a bag. This is really taking me back now!

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F0RESTGRUMP · 15/05/2020 08:35

I read a book once called An Owl Came To Stay by Clare Rome.

It was lovely 💖

F0RESTGRUMP · 15/05/2020 08:35

.... and very interesting about how you have to mix feathers or fur into their mince and how intelligent they are.

Original poster
ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 08:36

@SiaPR
Yes! Blodwyn and Reg mated! She lay lots of eggs but always managed to break them. (She was quite fat for an owl). We took some eggs away from her and gave them to the expert bloke to incubate. You have to replace the real eggs for plastic decoy ones so as to not upset the bird.

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doodlejump1980 · 15/05/2020 08:36

@Theonewiththecat 🤣🤣🤣
Did you feel a little bit like you were in Harry Potter?