I occasionally come on photos and videos of people with “pet” owls or owl cafes.

Owls are beautiful and soft, but they aren’t meant to be around us being cuddled or whatever. What is cuddling to us causes anxiety to them. It isn’t owl behavior. They tolerate it sort of if they are imprinted, but it makes them more underdeveloped and under equipped to be themselves than it does to make them good company.

Handling birds of prey, a person will get nipped or cut, but these hands are seriously grabbed up and cut, yet in the video clip they still have the owl restrained and continue “playing” with it.

If this hand is any sign of how happy the owls are here, I feel bad for them. If they don’t like their handler touching them, I can only imagine how upset they are being touched by strangers all day.

Dogs, cats, and farm type animals have been domesticated and are used to humans to a decent extent. Most animals though will never be domesticated. They want and need to be free.

  • anon6789@lemmy.worldOP
    2·
    2 days ago

    The tiny ones at work I haven’t noticed a real smell from, but I’m not allowed to get too close to them very often.

    The adult grey foxes at the park like to nap near the fence, and even from a guys distance, they are quite potent. The red ones sheep closer to the night of their area, and even if you can’t see them, you can tell they’re there. 😜

    I had to teach my one cat to clean herself. She was just a teeny thing when we found her. I used the corner of a warm wet washcloth to make licky motions all over her a few times and then she got the hang of it!