need help

[Barrney]

HI CAN ANY BODY HELP ME I HAVE A EAGLE OWL I HAVE BOUGHT IT IS 3 YEARS OLD MALE , NOBODY HAS HANDLED IT FOR SOME TIME I HAVE HAD IT FOR 3 WEEKS NOW BUT EVERY TIME I GO NEAR IT WITH MY HAND ALL IT WANTS TO DO IS BITE IT , IS THIS NORMAL AS I HAVE ONLY HAD BARN OWLS BEFORE ALL MY MATES HAVE GOS HAWKS AND THEY DO NOT NO, ANY HELP WOULD BE GREATFULL

[Jester]

maybe he is a little wild if he hasnt been handled much but my best guess would be someone reared him making the same mistake i did :oops:

owls have pretty poor eyesight close up and if he was fed by bare hands he automatically assumes there is food coming his way every time he sees a hand coming near his face so goes to try and get it.

i have managed to stop Jester from biting as much as he used to but he still tries occasionally.
a couple of things i have tried seems to have helped and he bites a lot less now.

1. stop feeding with bare hand........... if he is on your fist put him down before putting food on your glove ( or if you are really sneaky and can distract him put the food on your glove without him seeing it)

2. put his weight up a decent amount so he wont be so hungry and keen to get at any possibility of food ( no chance of flying when heavy but you can always cut the weight back down)

3. this worked for me but im not "telling " you to do this ( it may be worth a try though ) I let him try to bite my hand a few times but kept it in a fairly tight fist so he couldnt get any loose skin to grab hold of ( you have to be careful to avoid letting loose skin or fingers get into the beak cos it hurts) by doing this he seems to have learned there is no food to be had and gives up.

im just in the middle of getting his weight back down for flying and can still touch his beak and stroke his breast feathers which would have been impossible before steps 1,2 & 3. still cant touch his feet again though without him trying to bite but he is a lot better than he used to be

[Saker-Clive]

I don't know a great deal about owls but I have been tod that Eagle owls in particular can get aggressive after the 2nd year; if your bird hasn't been handled for a long time, I think that you might be in for a bit of trouble.
On the other hand, lots of manning and patience might work.
Let us know how it goes. I expect some of the other 'owl keepers' will be along later this afternoon or maybe Varmint, a centre owner.

and welcome to the site. :D

[Jester]

ahhhhhhhhhh never thought to ask if he is just trying to bite or if he puffs himself up and shows other signs of aggression.

In Jesters case it was just the feeding thing was his problem

[Barrney]

I don't know a great deal about owls but I have been tod that Eagle owls in particular can get aggressive after the 2nd year; if your bird hasn't been handled for a long time, I think that you might be in for a bit of trouble.
On the other hand, lots of manning and patience might work.
Let us know how it goes. I expect some of the other 'owl keepers' will be along later this afternoon or maybe Varmint, a centre owner.

and welcome to the sight.MANY THANKS FOR THE REPLYS I WILL TRY THEM ONCE AGAIN MANY THANKS :lol:

[Barrney]

HI JESTER WHEN HE IS ON MY FIST HE JUST TRYS TO BITE AND WHEN HE IS IN HIS AVERIE HE PUFFS HIM SELF UP, BUT NOT AS BAD AS WHEN I FIST GOT HIM

[Carol]

I puchased a bengal eagle owl with the same problem it was really aggressive but with time and patience im sure he will be fine i did all that jester mentioned and i also sat with him for hours on end day and night not touching him just watching and studying him he soon became curious about me and started to come to me just too look at first and then he would sit with me in the end we became the best of friends to the point he used to tread me every time i went in and offer me food he even made a nest scrape i guess i became his mate in more ways than one lol.
just give him time and patients just sit with him too let him know your not going to hurt him, its all about trust and if you show him your scared the more he will do it try not to snatch your hand away the pain only lasts a few minutes i know ive been bitten by eeo's and bengals its worse if you snatch your hand away.

hope it all goes well just ask if you need any more help there are a few owl owners on here.

carol :D

[Saker-Clive]

What ever you do...DON'T LET HIM GRAB YOU WITH HIS FEET!!!
They are extremely powerful and have the power to crush a tennis ball.

[Carol]

good point saker sucker i never thought to mention that sorry

carol :oops:

[Lanner Nut]

alot of manning i would have thought?? then again owls aint my strong point :P

[Carol]

I have just thought of somthing else i know it may sound silly but check in the corners of his pen or aveiry for uneaten food eeo's like to stash unfinished food in the corners of the pen it could also be a facter if he has some food left over. He maybe trying to protect it.
i dont know how you feed him on the glove or on a shelf i just thought it was worth a mention

carol :D

[Saker-Clive]

What is he like in his enclosure and his feeding regime. Do you feed on the fist, make him fly to the fist for his food or do you just throw the food in?
Are you able to weigh him? these factors will also come into play. If he's too heavy, he has no need to have you close by.......................

[Hawkmaster]

WELCOME Barrney, hope you tons of help? Where do you live?

[Wightwings]

welcome barrny...........get rid and get a real BoP :wink: :lol:

SORRY owl keepers just joking..........i think most peeps have covered the problem Barrny you ay hes 3? how was he raised? what did the previuos owners used to do with him? exactly how long since he was last handled regular? most importantly what are you expecting from him?

I have a good friend with a male that melts like butter for her but NOBODY else is able to get near. quite simply she raised him and thats that. At that age i fear you've taken on a bag of trouble and may have been better imprinting your own. Just keep up the manning, no food in your bare hand and good luck

[KenHawker1970]

Well your going to have your work cut out mate. First of all dont higher is weight, if you do this he wont need you for anything. It sounds like he is scared of you Barrney. If this is the case, and you try to handle him he may hurt you. You must remember that he posseses the power in his tallons to make a mess of your hands (glove or no glove). So never feed him with your bare hand, always use a glove. Like jester has said these birds have really poor eyesight closeup.
Basically I would treat him as a parent reared owl (wild). Get your self a comfy chair and get your self a good book, go into the avery and read it.
If theres any perches in there which are higher than you as you are sitting remove them or lower them so his head is at the same level as yours. You are the dominant one here not the owl.
Fix a long perch inside the avery and feed him off that jut place his food on the perch and then move away, but remain inside the avery. If after a wile he doesnt eat them take the food away, and go back into the house and leave him to think. Say about an hour later return with the food. You must let him see you bringing him the food, so as soon as you get out of the house wistle, do this every time you are going to feed him. He will soon get the message. If he doesnt show any kind of attention towards the food then just leave him a chicks leg or a small peace of meat. Always leave him somthing to remember you by. Dont forget sit with him as much as you can. You need to gain his trust, when you have done that the rest will be easy.

Reguards Ken

[Barrney]

thanks to every body who has replyed its nice to now people are their to help , i thank you all i will keep in touch, keep up the good work every body once again many thanks ps one point i was going to get rid but reading what every body has to say and help every body has givin me i will keep him fingers crossed

[Barrney]

Well your going to have your work cut out mate. First of all dont higher is weight, if you do this he wont need you for anything. It sounds like he is scared of you Barrney. If this is the case, and you try to handle him he may hurt you. You must remember that he posseses the power in his tallons to make a mess of your hands (glove or no glove). So never feed him with your bare hand, always use a glove. Like jester has said these birds have really poor eyesight closeup.
Basically I would treat him as a parent reared owl (wild). Get your self a comfy chair and get your self a good book, go into the avery and read it.
If theres any perches in there which are higher than you as you are sitting remove them or lower them so his head is at the same level as yours. You are the dominant one here not the owl.
Fix a long perch inside the avery and feed him off that jut place his food on the perch and then move away, but remain inside the avery. If after a wile he doesnt eat them take the food away, and go back into the house and leave him to think. Say about an hour later return with the food. You must let him see you bringing him the food, so as soon as you get out of the house wistle, do this every time you are going to feed him. He will soon get the message. If he doesnt show any kind of attention towards the food then just leave him a chicks leg or a small peace of meat. Always leave him somthing to remember you by. Dont forget sit with him as much as you can. You need to gain his trust, when you have done that the rest will be easy.

Reguards Kenmany thanks to every body that has replyed , it is nice to now that you are all thier for help , and yes i now how hard he can crab with his tallons as i fell pray to them and by god did it hurt he had me pined down for 15 mins be for he let go , all points taken on board , ps he took a chick out of my glove to night hope that is a good sign , because i normally just throw them on the floor for him , once again many thanks i will keep in touch and let you now how i an geting on :lol:

[Jester]

I havent had a problem with Jesters talons at all since he was about 6 weeks old. he would quite happily foot his toys (tennis ball, flip flops and stuffed toy pig ) but as soon as he tried to foot me or my mrs we would ping one of his toes ( not hard but he didnt like it )

i did wonder about doing this in case he got the idea that using his feet was a bad thing (how else will he be able to hunt ) but we noticed he stopped trying to grab us with his feet but anything else was fair game ........... even one of the cats that got too close one day. so far it seems to be ok





now all i need to do is sit here and wait for someone to tell me i done the wrong thing and ruined his chances of hunting :roll:

[Claire]

when I worked at the centre we were given a bengal to train. he was 18 years old and had not been flown or handled for 10 years and I must admit he was pretty aggressive never footed but would bite at every opportunity. we kept him tethered while we were manning him. It took 3 weeks manning and creance and we were flying him free I would now happily fly him to my 6 yr old daughter. we were only supposed to train him but he turned into such a gem we ended up keeping him. he now flies in displays and to fun day students :D .Must admit though we knew his first owner and he was immaculatly trained and entered in his first year so I guess it all came back to him. If your owl wasnt trained early you are really gonna have problems. I know of a male eeo that was rescued aged 4 he had spent all of his life tethered in a spare room he had never seen the outside world and was scared of everything except people very imprinted. It took the falconer 4 years of patience to get him to fly he used to run around the arena on foot but he got there in the end :D

[IAmTheWeasel]

What ever you do...DON'T LET HIM GRAB YOU WITH HIS FEET!!!
They are extremely powerful and have the power to crush a tennis ball.Wow guys...Ya'll make it seem like he has an eagle.....It's a barn owl...It hurts, but not that bad...I've been footed by a wild one before and sure it puts thoes needle shapies in ya, but if it does it to ya, be sure not to freak out and try to pull it away. this is what causes all the damage. Just stay calm(easier said than done) and slowly move the hand away from the owl. When the owl becomes uncomfortable it will release it's grip. Remember that all birds of prey have locking grips. The tendons in the legs look like a ratcheting system meaning that no force is neccisary to keep the grip on you. it only uses the muscles to clamp and release. just simply make them uncomfortable in that position or firmly grab the head and they will release most of the time.

[Claire]

it not a barn owl its an eagle owl. He doesnt say if its a european if it is its capable of crushing bones through the glove if it wanted to

[IAmTheWeasel]

Oops, my bad...I thought this ws someone else....I had someone else asking me about a barn owl that bites like crazy....Still, a EEo can't crush bone with it's grip....It's not possible unless you have really weak bones......I know folks who have been grabbed by eagles and that is bad for the bones, but not really with an EEO. It will just feel like it's broken bones :lol:

[Claire]

At night, the European Eagle Owl is active, flying swiftly and noiselessly while scanning the ground and the air for prey items. These birds will eat insects, smaller birds, small reptiles, fish, and small mammals up to the size of a fawn.

I was told by my mentor they have a grip of 2 tonnes per sq inch and they kill their larger prey by crushing the skull .I may of course be wrong :? but a fawn is pretty big.You say they couldn't break bones but I really wouldn't like to test that one out. I used to fly the male I mentioned above he was about 4 lbs if he was on the glove and we got a sudden gust of wind he would grip to keep his balence and it hurt. I'd really hate to think what he could do if he meant it and thats only a male :shock:

[KenHawker1970]

A female EEO has a grip of 200lbs per square inch. Ok if it doesnt snap somthing it will leave a scab. Ive seen one of these snap a hares back leg as if it was a match stick. I dont think ide like to find out about the pain factor. Stuff that lol

[IAmTheWeasel]

The numbers I have heard where a bit less. RT has approx 50-60 Lbs/sq/inch and The GHO has about 80-100. .........from what I have heard. Still hurts either way.......I don't care if it's 500 to be honest....It night as well be hen those bas***s are on ya!!! :D

[KenHawker1970]

Well thats what me breeder told me, but you right there weasel, I wouldnt like to shake hands with one of them guys when they are peed off. LOL

Ken

[Trigger]

Sounds to me like he is just being aggressive. Be VERY careful. Dropping his weight won't nessiseraly make him any better. Having had many rescue owls at the centre I have seen this alot before. Its just time Im afraid. Another bit of info, if it has been a very long time since he was handled he may never be brilliant, adult, unhandled owls are known to starve before they will fly for you. Just give him time he will get there in the end. And dont belive what you hear about owls not bein ace, your eagle owl could Eat all the guys hawks and falcons on here!!!!!!!

[KenHawker1970]

And dont belive what you hear about owls not bein ace, your eagle owl could Eat all the guys hawks and falcons on here!!!!!!!

Nice one Tigger.lmao

[Spudy]

oscer my wifes four year old european eagle owl is so gental i have held him bare handed im not saying every one try this but the privious owner told me he could so i thought i would try only been manning him a day and he follows me round jumps to the fist and takes food gently my 8 yr old daughter handles him too with out probs fenman64(the prev owner) had him flying and he followed him round too ...he just a gental giant
i did how ever feed him from a shelf and like the others said i sat with him till he came to me first then tried feeding from the glove took about ten mins before he took it and then got him to jump for it and this is my first bird just followed every ones advice and it worked barney mate good luck and have fun ...

[Fenman46]

Humm i have kept bubo bubo Eurasian Eagle Owls for a number of years now,and the best advice i can give is to try to spend as much time as you can with him with out stressing him out,,,Has he ever flown free and do you know if he is a imprint??, feed up heavy untill the moult is over and start to man him while you log his weight,if he has never been manned down?, you will have a very hard job on your hands and prhaps you wont win this one,sell him on for breeding and if you really want a big owl buy yourself a 3 day old chick and imprint it yourself,did you know that a female eurasians feet are as big as a male golden eagle,and run with almost as much power in the claws :lol:

[Bill]

A female EEO has a grip of 200lbs per square inch. Ok if it doesnt snap somthing it will leave a scab. Ive seen one of these snap a hares back leg as if it was a match stick. I dont think ide like to find out about the pain factor. Stuff that lol

I'm confused with all these numbers as what is being said doesn't make sense or qualify the measurement.
For example

You have a one inch cube on a flat surface. You balance a one pound wweight centrally on it and it exerts one pound per sq inch.
Balance 100 pounds on the same block and it exerts 100 lb/sq inch
Balance 100lbs on a block 1/10"(0.1") by 1/10" (which makes it one hundredth of the size) and the force exerted is 1000 lb/sq inch (100*100)
the 1lb weight would exert 100lbs/sq inch.

So imagine only 1lb of force being pushed through the tip of a sharp talon
my guess is that it is 0.01" , (probably a lot smaller) which is 100 times smaller than our small block, so only one pound of pressure from the toe will produce 100lb at the talon tip. My finger and thumb can send a 15lb scale to the max easily so that would make 1500lbs per sq inch. So a powerfull hawk ? ? ? ?

and I give up now cos it's got boring. If anyone can measure the tip of a talon, don't tell me, start a new topic . . . :!:

[Harry Humpher 5]

hi read your message i think you should try your best and dontback off when he tells you to they cant do to much my falconry teacher said your not a real falconer if you havent got over 7 scars i haa few they dont hurtbut if it sticks its talens in you you got to cope untill it decides ton let go hope you do well fae harr hunpher 5