For the Birds: Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital

Patient in Falcon Hospital (Helmet covering eyes; Feet tied to perch)

Apparently, people who own falcons in the Arabian Gulf region are as passionate about their birds as racehorse owners are about their animals. Only the most professional of care will do, and price is of little consequence. A visit to the Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital has become one of the top tourist things to do. For good reason. The veterinary technicians outfitted in blue hospital scrubs conduct a technical and informative tour showing the capabilities of the medical and recreational facility. We spent over one hour in the procedure suite. We watched a patient being put under anesthesia. 

The tech placed a cone over the bird's head. Kind of like a human's oxygen mask, except more like a football helmet. Once the bird relaxed and its respiration slowed, the tech went about clipping the bird's claws and beak.

The visitors' area has a room filled with plaques and awards for excellence. The facility is sought out by owners for everything from care while molting to treating traumatic injuries. They conduct orthopedic surgery and they repair cracked feathers by implanting replacement shafts.

Drawer Containing Supply of Feathers to use in Repair and Replacement Procedures

If we had been competing for points that day, we probably would not have done the visit. The Global Scavenger Hunt assigned 35 points, the same number we earned for 5 minutes in the fish market. By contrast, the Falcon Hospital took a total of 3.5 hours. 

Avoiding the bird hospital would be good strategy. But, we weren’t in it to rack up points. Taking the tour of that bird hospital was well worth the visit. Points were not the point. 

Patients are helmeted to keep them from seeing (and thus, attacking) each other