Falcon Hospital in Abu Dhabi

[Angelus9]

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CNN article here: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/06/10/falcon.hospital.uae/index.html?hpt=Sbin

and you can visit it! http://www.abudhabi-luxury-island.com/abu-dhabi-falcon-hospital.html

From the first article:

"The Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital claims to be the largest of its kind in the world, employing 52 people and treating around 5,000 birds each year.
The scale of the operation is testament to the popularity of falconry in the UAE. More than a sport or a hobby, it's an integral part of the region's cultural heritage.

"Hospital director Margrit Muller told CNN: "Falconry is not regarded as a sport in the UAE, as it is in the United States and Europe.

"In the Middle East falconry has a different background. Even 70 years ago in the UAE most of the population were Bedouin living in the desert.
"It was hard to survive, so they used wild falcons to hunt meat. It wasn't a sport, it was a necessity for survival.

"So falcons were integrated into the Bedouin family like a child and even today, falcons have exactly the same position in the family. They're not regarded as a sports tool -- they are like a son or daughter."

Muller said the hospital now treats all bird species and cares for falcons from all over the region, including Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. She said the owners are ordinary people who want the best for their birds."



Abu Dhabi...that's where I'll go....

 

[cooniexp]

VERY interesting..

 

[breenie]

This is awesome! I liked the dude with the Salukis and falcons, great combo!

 

[thereservoirdog]

This would be cool, except it' in Abu Dhabi. I've spent two days in Dubai once, and not only is the heat and humidity so monstrous that it's hard to breathe, but that place and Abu Dhabi are seriously, seriously messed up in regards to human rights. Think modern-day slavery. I have an uncle there, who would be an angel compared to others, who has a maid from the Phillipines that he works from sunrise to 1:00 AM, 7 days a week, and he took away her passport! These people can't even flush their toilets without a "maid"(and I'm not exaggerating on that one) .

 

[Minnerbelle]

This would be cool, except it' in Abu Dhabi. I've spent two days in Dubai once, and not only is the heat and humidity so monstrous that it's hard to breathe, but that place and Abu Dhabi are seriously, seriously messed up in regards to human rights.

yeah no kidding. i was traumatized this new years when there was this show doing a countdown of the most shameful people of 2009. one of them was the prince of the UAE who was finally busted after a video of him torturing a person got smuggled out. people knew about his behavior but didn't do anything about it until they were forced to to save face for the country after this video got out. it was the most horrific thing i'd ever seen. i had no idea what i was getting into since the rest of the shameful peeps were politicians with infidelity issues and finance schmucks. i was actually surprised that a major tv station would air footage of someone torturing a person (it makes abu ghraib look super tame) and then running them over with an SUV 😱.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=7402099

 

[Armymutt25A]

Falconry is very popular in the middle east. I encountered a couple of guys hunting along the canal in southern Iraq. On another note, we've had two birds of prey come into the clinic since I've been here. The first was a kestrel that got hit by a truck at about 45 mph. He survived with no noticible issues and was released a week later. The other was a steppe eagle. He came in this week after being found on a compound here. Had a displaced proximal humeral fracture. Vet tried to get him to a more experienced surgeon, but the weather didn't cooperate and he didn't make it. Apparently the Smithsonian will be taking him, so at least he won't go to waste. Beautiful bird. I have the rads if anyone is interested - send me a PM.