# Birds of Prey???



## keelow (Feb 12, 2005)

I friend of mine recently went into a reptile and bird shop in melbourne and noticed they had a Kite in a cage (bird for the smart arses)

Anyway i got a phone call asking me if its legal to keep birds of prey...

I don't know, any of you guys?

What about other states?


CHeers

Kee


----------



## instar (Feb 12, 2005)

Jeff will know. never thought of that, if I was inclined to keep a bird though, it would be a raptor, a wedgy would be very cool, you'd need a huge avairy though and a good supply of rats, chickens etc.


----------



## ether (Feb 12, 2005)

And a good quality leather glove. Those talons would tear you to shreads!!


----------



## womas4me (Feb 12, 2005)

One of our carers here does raptors. You may be surprised that they dont eat as much as people think. We have a sea eagle in care that is huge, but it only weighs just under 3 kg. It is in good health and almost ready for release. They are all mostly feathers making them seem big. Great birds though.


----------



## insectovor (Feb 12, 2005)

Birds of prey are only good to keep if you have experience in keeping raptors. Think of these birds more like a dog where you will have to train this bird and fly it every day, weigh it, care for it etc. I would say specialist raptor trainers/keepers are only suitable for owning this type of bird


----------



## farmdog (Feb 12, 2005)

keelow i hope you made your friend burn his clothes and had a decent wash if he went where i think he went just ask westy what i mean


----------



## Kenshin (Feb 12, 2005)

i used to do raptor rehab with dave pette in perth a large wedgie gets roughly 500g of food a day if you are training and flying it


this reminds me im suppose to find out weather they are on the restricted bird licence in qld.... i know you can keep them in one of the other states 

would be vary interested

they do put away a hell of alot more food then reptiles and i think technicly falconry is illeagle in aus although it is used extensivly for rehab/show birds and even more extensivly illeagaly off the radar well in perth anyway i dont know anyone over here in qld that plays with raptors


----------



## keelow (Feb 12, 2005)

you know the place yeah Farmdog? 

Somehow i doubt they are Raptor specialists.


----------



## craig23 (Feb 12, 2005)

I use to be a carer in NSW years ago, and at that time only carers that had approval could keep Raptors, and it was generally illegal in all states to keep Raptors other than if you were a carer. To even get approval as a carer wasnt easy, you needed to have expencive cages and equipment and proven supplies of suitable food. I was very interested but after contacting canberra I was told it was prohibited australia wide to keep them as pets basically.... Hope you have more luck than i did, and if you do let me know.

craig


----------



## farmdog (Feb 12, 2005)

been their years ago it was dirty smelly and animals looked a bit poor but westy knows more about it


----------



## Kenshin (Feb 12, 2005)

i will ring epa on monday arvo and see what happens i cant see why they cant be slotted onto a restricted licence old parrot breeders that have turned to raptors (dave pette did this) have had great success the only real difference breeding wise is that u use netting avirys (some international breeders use brick houses), keep up the food which is meat of course, and you have to show more care when handling them if they arnt manned which is easy

on an international scale they are bred by the thousands so i think it should be something that should be looked at

id love to get a pair of black falcons or any accipiter my favs


----------



## instar (Feb 12, 2005)

must clarify, if I was gonna keep any bird it would have to be a raptor, they just wow me! that said im generally against keeping birds caged, its a bit sad imo. (i know captives cant survive etc etc, just in general) :wink:


----------



## Dicco (Feb 12, 2005)

> this reminds me im suppose to find out weather they are on the restricted bird licence in qld.... i know you can keep them in one of the other states


 They aren't on the specialist licence Chris, they aren't 'traditionally' kept :roll:


----------



## redline (Feb 12, 2005)

which pet shops was dis.


----------



## nuthn2do (Feb 12, 2005)

Raptors cannot be legally kept in NSW, even rehab licences are heavily restricted. As far as I know falconry is illegal throughout all of OZ


----------



## keelow (Feb 12, 2005)

Australian Bird and Reptile place on springvale road. 
Clayton, or springvale i forget.

They also have a macaw and a Kooky.


----------



## BuggieSmuggler (Feb 13, 2005)

As far as I know it's still illegal all over Oz. 
I lived in a country town as a kid & my dad & I were taught falconry by a German guy who'd come to live there. 
We kept several types that people brought to us injured & such. A Kestrel we rehabilitated thought I was his mum. He'd cry & flap his wings when I came home from school. It was great to see him go free.
Dad was always worried about the authorities though.


----------



## indicus (Feb 13, 2005)

"Birds of Pray, are one of the greatest species i've had the pleasure of working with over the years, i do believe 'they' when given time, become quite used to their handler to the point of singling me out in a crowded room......i feel some of the less endangered species should be allowed to be kept (fork tailed kite, barn owl), provided that they were hand raised (sad to see a wild bird of prey in a enclosure) receive the effort, food and large free-flight enclosure to ensure their captive life is a rewarding one.......nothing quite compares to a bird of prey..."


----------



## craig23 (Feb 13, 2005)

Im almost 100% positive its not possible to keep raptors in australia other than on a zoo permit or a rehab permit. And yeah like already said, falconry is illegal. I have already inquired in the past. After all this is said they require alot of attention to keep properly, and rehab is a specialist field with I remember only one or two permits in NSW when i was looking into it, which was a few years ago.


----------



## indicus (Feb 13, 2005)

"In qld, alot of birds of prey are in rehab/hand raised by carers, having been in both the zoo industry and spent years hand raising and rehabilating, its a credit to those who at their own expense, provide countless hours working often around the clock to these and many other species, i thank them all, as the politics and hassels associated with caring only adds to the pressure these people endure and face daily, 'the struggle of life and death', despite all your best intentions and efforts"


----------



## nuthn2do (Feb 13, 2005)

Talked to a raptor rehabber and trainer today, they can't legally be kept as a pet in any state of Oz and the art of falconry has been banned since the mid 70's.

BTW if you are already a registered wildlife carer he is doing a course in the Central West of NSW sometime in May


----------

