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elionwyrI went to see the Harry Potter film again, and this time I was struck by the thought: "I wonder if anyone is stupid enough to watch this movie and think that owls would make great pets? After all, they show Harry handling Hedwig without a glove or any other sort of protection; they don't show Harry feeding Hedwig; they don't address the smell, the mess, the danger..."
Apparently, though, the answer to my question is YES, people are THAT stupid!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Potter fans swoop on owls for Christmas
- www.sundayherald.com
Animal rights groups warn of threat to birds of prey by copycat followers of the boy wizard
By Jenifer Johnston
ANIMAL rescue groups are ''concerned and dismayed'' that the Harry Potter movie could spark a children's Christmas craze ... for pet owls.
There are already around 100,000 barn owls kept in captivity in the UK, and owlets can be bought for as little as £15.
Julie Ross, the owner of the Edinburgh Birds of Prey Centre, said the film is bound to start a dangerous trend. 'I knew this would happen,' she said. 'Children are coming to us talking about Harry Potter all the time. They don't understand that the large snowy owl used in the film would have had months of training to get it that tame. I have already seen adverts for people wanting snowy owls to breed from -- it's part of the movie's bandwagon.'
She said that owls were very unsuitable as pets. 'They are very powerful creatures. People wanting to seriously own an owl would have to get training, build an aviary, buy scales. I'm very concerned and upset that the film has put an emphasis on owls without stressing the responsibilities involved in keeping them.'
Warner Bros would not comment on the issue.
There are four species of owl in the UK, butonlybarnowlscanbekept domestically. Parents who do get an owl for their children for Christmas must make sure the bird has a leg ring signalling it was bred from captivity -- if they unwittingly buy a wild bird they could face a fine of up to £5000.
Ian Burlanson, a senior wildlife assistant at the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals' Wildlife Unit in Fife said many people were unaware of the problems involved in keeping an owl.
'If people do not have a clue how to care for them or what to feed them then the birds aren't going to be very well at all. They are not good as pets because an owl can do a furious lot of damage to you if it wanted to.'
He explained that although there are four species of owl in the UK, only barn owls could ever be kept domestically.
'Barn owls are cheap, only about £15 to £30 each. There's so many breeders breeding them that the prices have come right down.'
Keeping owls as pets is an arduous task. With a lifespan of 20 to 25 years, many owners either neglect them or release them into the wild, which should only be done under government licence. Around 3000 owls are released illegally each year and most starve because of competition from the 4000 pairs of wild barn owls already in the countryside in the UK.
One barn owl breeder in Cumbria, who does not want to be named, said over the last two weeks he had received three enquiries from parents interested in getting an owl for their children for Christmas.
'They breed so quickly and there are so many of them about that it's good we have demand on a bigger scale. That's definitely because of the film.'
Andy and Gay Christie run the Hessilhead Wildlife Rescue Trust in Beith, Ayrshire and take in over 3500 patients a year,including unwanted pet owls.
Gay Christie said she was worried that the movie would spark a trend on the same scale as the widescale kestrel thefts after the release of the film Kes in 1969.
'For a few years after Kes there was a big problem of children taking kestrels illegally from the nest and trying to hand-rear them.' she said. With this film released at Christmas there is an obvious risk.'
She also pointed out that many people are simply not prepared to care for such a demanding animal.
'Barn owls are readily available in this country. We would not recommend them as pets, and certainly not for children. People buy an owl because they think they want one and after a while get fed up. They are pretty messy to have in the house and the birds eventually get stuck out in a shed and lead a miserable life.'
Michael Baxton, 10, from Stirling, is a big Harry Potter fan but said his mum and dad would not like to have an owl in their house.
'I had a toy owl as part of my Halloween outfit -- I was Harry Potter. Hagrid is really cool but to have a real owl is messy, and my mum wouldn't let me have one. We have two dogs and the owl would get frightened if it lived inside the house.'
Finn Campbell, 7, said he wasn't sure why anyone would want an owl for a pet.
'It's quite strange. I would like to have a rat, like Scabbers.'
Finn, his sister Ailidh, 11, and brother Lorne, 9, have all read the Harry Potter books and can't wait for the movie to be released.
Apparently, though, the answer to my question is YES, people are THAT stupid!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Potter fans swoop on owls for Christmas
- www.sundayherald.com
Animal rights groups warn of threat to birds of prey by copycat followers of the boy wizard
By Jenifer Johnston
ANIMAL rescue groups are ''concerned and dismayed'' that the Harry Potter movie could spark a children's Christmas craze ... for pet owls.
There are already around 100,000 barn owls kept in captivity in the UK, and owlets can be bought for as little as £15.
Julie Ross, the owner of the Edinburgh Birds of Prey Centre, said the film is bound to start a dangerous trend. 'I knew this would happen,' she said. 'Children are coming to us talking about Harry Potter all the time. They don't understand that the large snowy owl used in the film would have had months of training to get it that tame. I have already seen adverts for people wanting snowy owls to breed from -- it's part of the movie's bandwagon.'
She said that owls were very unsuitable as pets. 'They are very powerful creatures. People wanting to seriously own an owl would have to get training, build an aviary, buy scales. I'm very concerned and upset that the film has put an emphasis on owls without stressing the responsibilities involved in keeping them.'
Warner Bros would not comment on the issue.
There are four species of owl in the UK, butonlybarnowlscanbekept domestically. Parents who do get an owl for their children for Christmas must make sure the bird has a leg ring signalling it was bred from captivity -- if they unwittingly buy a wild bird they could face a fine of up to £5000.
Ian Burlanson, a senior wildlife assistant at the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals' Wildlife Unit in Fife said many people were unaware of the problems involved in keeping an owl.
'If people do not have a clue how to care for them or what to feed them then the birds aren't going to be very well at all. They are not good as pets because an owl can do a furious lot of damage to you if it wanted to.'
He explained that although there are four species of owl in the UK, only barn owls could ever be kept domestically.
'Barn owls are cheap, only about £15 to £30 each. There's so many breeders breeding them that the prices have come right down.'
Keeping owls as pets is an arduous task. With a lifespan of 20 to 25 years, many owners either neglect them or release them into the wild, which should only be done under government licence. Around 3000 owls are released illegally each year and most starve because of competition from the 4000 pairs of wild barn owls already in the countryside in the UK.
One barn owl breeder in Cumbria, who does not want to be named, said over the last two weeks he had received three enquiries from parents interested in getting an owl for their children for Christmas.
'They breed so quickly and there are so many of them about that it's good we have demand on a bigger scale. That's definitely because of the film.'
Andy and Gay Christie run the Hessilhead Wildlife Rescue Trust in Beith, Ayrshire and take in over 3500 patients a year,including unwanted pet owls.
Gay Christie said she was worried that the movie would spark a trend on the same scale as the widescale kestrel thefts after the release of the film Kes in 1969.
'For a few years after Kes there was a big problem of children taking kestrels illegally from the nest and trying to hand-rear them.' she said. With this film released at Christmas there is an obvious risk.'
She also pointed out that many people are simply not prepared to care for such a demanding animal.
'Barn owls are readily available in this country. We would not recommend them as pets, and certainly not for children. People buy an owl because they think they want one and after a while get fed up. They are pretty messy to have in the house and the birds eventually get stuck out in a shed and lead a miserable life.'
Michael Baxton, 10, from Stirling, is a big Harry Potter fan but said his mum and dad would not like to have an owl in their house.
'I had a toy owl as part of my Halloween outfit -- I was Harry Potter. Hagrid is really cool but to have a real owl is messy, and my mum wouldn't let me have one. We have two dogs and the owl would get frightened if it lived inside the house.'
Finn Campbell, 7, said he wasn't sure why anyone would want an owl for a pet.
'It's quite strange. I would like to have a rat, like Scabbers.'
Finn, his sister Ailidh, 11, and brother Lorne, 9, have all read the Harry Potter books and can't wait for the movie to be released.
