Hack Pen for Rehabilitated Owls & Birds of Prey

Based near Stowmarket, Suffolk Owl Sanctuary is a charity that operates one of the only raptor hospitals in East Anglia for the care and treatment of injured wild owls and other birds of prey. We are able to release between 45-50% of the cases we treat every year, fit and flying free after careful diagnosis, expert veterinary attention, appropriate medication, rest, and fitness exercise.

We achieve fitness exercise with the use of 'hack pens' - well-protected purpose-designed aviaries set up in isolated rural environments conducive to the normal habitat and prey availability suited to individual species in care. Here we feed the birds as they grow accustomed to the local environment and which, through timely intervention, are given access to leave the aviary when confident in their surroundings.

Whilst the hack pens we use at present are suitable for small species - Barn, Tawny & Little Owls, Kestrels, small falcons and the like - over recent years larger species like Red Kites and Buzzards with a much greater wingspan have added to other large-wing species like Harriers to populate our region. With this growth of larger species in the area, there is a need for oversized hack pens that will allow raptors enough room for the flight exercise required build the muscle strength they will need prior to safe release.

As the hospital and rehabilitation facilities of Suffolk Owl Sanctuary are now attracting intakes from other centres similar to ours, we would welcome the funding to build a large hack pen which we and other conservation-minded organisations could use for the vital stage in successful raptor rehabilitation and safe release back to the wild.

Our project not only directly helps the Owls and Birds of Prey we rescue and rehabilitate but by protecting these important species we are able to maintain the balance of diversity within our native ecosystem. 

Birds play a vital role within our ecosystem by controlling insect and rodent populations which left uncontrolled would lead to the destruction of crops and native wild vegetation; this has a knock on affect with the reduction in plant life meaning less CO2 will be removed from the atmosphere, contributing to ongoing climate change. 

Owls and Birds of Prey also act as an indicator species meaning that we can use them to study the overall health of an ecosystem; notable changes in their populations indicate changes in the local biodiversity. This is an early indicator for climate change and allows for action and prevention to be taken early to prevent it's continuation.