Falconry Frequently Asked
Questions

This is one of my most frequently asked questions, so it goes at the top.

My female Saw-Whet Owl is named Hazel. She’s a diva and doesn’t like anyone unless it’s me, and then only at feeding time. She hates Jasper. If he gets anywhere near her, she starts a fight.

My male Saw-Whet Owl is named Jasper, after Jasper Dale from The Story Girl, and he’s a sweety, a cutie, and makes adorable little cricket-like noises.

My male Great-Horned Owl is named Erik, after the Phantom of the Opera. He’s incredibly noisy, as is tradition for Great-Horned Owls.

Falconry is the ancient sport of raising and training hawks, falcons, eagles, and owls to hunt alongside humans.

Many countries all over the world have a rich history of falconry. The United States has a far more recent history with falconry, but it is no less rich and fascinating. The New World has an abundance of interesting birds to fly, and American falconers have long been happy to work with unusual birds and see what they’re capable of.

No, not any more than your average person owning a dog or a cat is cruelty to animals.

Falconry has been practiced humanely for thousands of years all around the world. Its practitioners have always been and still are incredibly dedicated to the wellbeing of the birds above all.

That’s great! I love the enthusiasm. If you’re in the United States and want to look up falconry requirements in your state, go to your state’s Division of Wildlife website. There should be something about falconry somewhere with the other hunting information. A word to the wise, however. Just be sure you know what you’re getting into.

This quote from Frank Beebe in North American Falconry and Hunting Hawks says it all pretty nicely. Well, beautifully. Frank Beebe is a beautiful writer. You’ll see. Read the quote.

Falconry is not for everyone; falconry is not for children.

There is no field sport and few hobbies or recreational activities that require more regular attention than falconry. Not everyone is, by nature, capable of handling the birds and though the time and patience required to properly train a hawk is often exaggerated, there are certain minimum requirements that must be met before there is even a hope of success.

If your interest in falconry is primarily to take game, then DO NOT attempt falconry. If your interest is only because the birds are spectacular and the sport unusual, then DO NOT attempt falconry. If you think it would be a nice way to attract attention, to carry a bird and talk wisely on an unusual subject, you are right; but that is not falconry. If you love birds and think that a falcon or a Goshawk would make a most unusual and interesting pet, then you had better reconsider, for pets they most definitely are not! If you want to hunt in the hunting season, fish in the fishing season, go holidaying in the summer and frequent the ski-slopes in winter, and forget the one recreation until the season is right for it again—then DO NOT attempt to keep falcons, Above all, if you are a busy person with commitments in various clubs, societies and social activities, then DO NOT attempt to squeeze a little falconry in somewhere—you just won’t have time. If you are sensitive to criticism, or worried about “what people will say,” if you dislike taking chances and don’t like unexpected things to happen, then most definitely steer clear of anything to do with this sport.

But—if you have a deep and abiding interest in the outdoors; if you have a basic love of life and living things with sufficient depth and breadth to be more than sentimental; if you can take chances and expect the unexpected; if you can see in the predators the embodiment of all those high qualities we most admire, qualities of strength, courage, energy, coordination, and physical perfection that set them apart from, and above, other forms of life; if you know, or sense, that this high development is real and necessary in order for them to live; if you can sense in their way of life something spectacular and dramatic that you would like to share—if the above is your basic reason for such and interest, then falconry IS for you and you might, with time and practice, become a falconer.

Oof, no falconer likes this one.

Ben Woodruff is a great falconer who has had even more owls than me, and he made two excellent videos on owls in falconry which I will link here and here.

Bottom line, though, if you just want pets, consider doing something other than falconry. Falconry is a hunting sport.

Falconers don’t get mad if you tell them you saw an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker in your backyard.

 Ha ha, birder joke.

Grossly summarized, birders are people who like to look at birds in the wild. Often, they like to take pictures to document the species they’ve seen, and they like to find rare birds. Falconers, as explained above, are people who raise and train raptors to do what they do naturally—that is, hunt—alongside humans.

 Some falconers have interests which intersect with birding, but there are a lot of birders out there who hate falconers. Why? Basically, taking birds from the wild is contrary to their hobby. It’s not that if a falconer traps a Red-Tailed Hawk, there won’t be any more Red-Tails for birders to enjoy, but they don’t like it on principle. That is, the birders who don’t like falconry. Some are fine with it. As for falconers, most falconers seem fine with birders so long as birders leave them alone.

Next time you meet a serious birder, tell them you saw an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker. Be very insistent about it. Hilarity will ensue.

Considering I feed my owls and therefore know exactly what they’ve eaten, that sounds kind of boring.

I have dissected wild Great Horned Owl pellets, though. My dad found one with a crawfish carapace inside.

Hazel and Jasper are certainly more active at night. They’re awake for part of the day and sleep for part of the day.

As for Erik, he maybe never sleeps??? I hear him making his baby Great-Horned Owl screeches all day and all night. I think he gets fuel from eating and making noise.

All owls like a bit of sun, though. Even if they’re a nocturnal species, sunlight is healthy for them.

Actually, no. My favorite kind of bird is an Osprey, has been since I was very small.

In case you’re wondering…

My favorite kind of owl is the Northern Saw-Whet Owl.

My favorite bird for falconry is a Merlin.

My favorite songbird is a toss-up between Mountain Chickadees and Lesser Goldfinches.

Few species of owls make a sound we would call a hoot. Saw-Whet Owls make any number of whistles, screeches, and peeps, but no hoots. Erik, as a Great-Horned Owl will hoot someday when he’s older, but for now he makes very loud baby screeches.

Hazel and Jasper almost exclusively eat mice. It’s what their species eats in the wild, so they depend on the specific nutrients found in mice to be healthy.

I mostly feed Erik quail, but he also gets the occasional mouse. Great-Horned Owls in the wild will eat practically anything they can catch and swallow, so I try to vary his diet a bit. I am also sure to give him food with feathers and fur still attached so he has plenty of material to cast pellets.

Yes. Absolutely. I cannot recommend petting an owl enough. 10/10 experience.

No. He will bite you. It will hurt and bleed.

Yes. He won’t bite you, and even if he did, it wouldn’t hurt or bleed. Jasper is a sweetheart.

She won’t let you. She is a master at the art of ducking and weaving to avoid hands.

No. Not unless I don’t like you.