African Owl

The African Owl is a small ornamental pigeon bred for showing rather than racing or utility work. It belongs to the owl group of fancy breeds, so called for the round, short-faced head that loosely brings an owl to mind. Grown birds are compact, with a short body, a high rounded forehead and a very small beak set into a wide head.

The most recognisable feature is the frill, a strip of feathers down the front of the chest that grows outward in two directions and meets in a centre line. Along with the short face, this trait sets the African Owl apart from bigger owl pigeons such as the English Owl and from its close relative, the Oriental Frill.

Temperament counts for a good deal of the breed's appeal. African Owls are affectionate, gentle and calm, and they settle well in a loft minded by an attentive keeper. They are quiet birds that take handling in their stride, which suits novice fanciers who want a manageable show pigeon.

Who it suits

The African Owl suits a keeper after a small, gentle pigeon for showing or simply for the enjoyment of keeping them. The short beak limits how well parents can feed squabs, so anyone planning to breed should be ready to call on foster pairs from a longer-billed breed. Anyone after a hardy outdoor flock or a flying breed would do better with a utility or racing pigeon.

The African Owl developed from short-faced owl pigeons native to North Africa. Tunisia is recorded as the breed's place of origin, and the earliest birds left the region through Mediterranean trade routes. Owl pigeons as a family go back a long way, with frilled and short-faced forms recorded in Europe and the Near East for centuries.

The breed entered the European fancy during the nineteenth century. As it spread through Britain and continental Europe, fanciers bred for a shorter beak, a rounder head and a tidier frill than the original imports had. This selective breeding turned a regional type into a defined show breed.

Through the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, breed clubs and show standards fixed the points that judges still use today, including head shape, beak length, frill and a short list of accepted colours. The African Owl became one of the smaller, more refined members of the owl group in this period.

The breed remains a specialist show pigeon rather than an everyday loft bird. It is kept by fanciers who exhibit at pigeon shows, and by hobbyists drawn to its looks and its quiet nature.

The African Owl gives the impression of a small, neat, rounded bird. The head is broad and high, with a well-domed forehead, and the face is short, which is the defining point of the type. The beak is short and fine, set low on the wide head. The neck is short, the body is compact, and the bird stands fairly upright on short legs.

The frill runs down the front of the chest, with feathers turning outward on each side to form a centre parting. A clean, even frill and a true short face carry the most weight with judges.

Plumage and colours

The body plumage is short and lies smooth, apart from the chest frill. White is a common and popular colour, but the breed also turns up in self colours such as blue, silver, black and red, and in marked varieties. In coloured birds the eye is usually orange to red, while white birds carry a dark eye. Clean colour, an unbroken frill and a true short face count for more than size.

The African Owl is one of the calmer fancy pigeons. The breed is affectionate and gentle, and most birds take regular handling without any panic, which is part of why it turns up so often on the show bench. A settled bird sits steadily in the hand and on the show pen perch.

With its own keeper, an African Owl handled from a young age grows tame and confident. With strangers it is reserved rather than aggressive, and it tends to retreat rather than square up to trouble. In a mixed loft it gets on peaceably with other pigeons, though its short beak leaves it at a disadvantage if it has to compete with bigger, longer-billed breeds at the feeder.

The breed is quiet by pigeon standards. Birds coo softly during courtship and at the nest but are not noisy through the day. Calm, steady handling keeps them tame and takes the stress out of showing.

Day-to-day care follows the general run of pigeon practice, with a few points specific to a small, short-faced bird. The frilled chest and short face mean keepers should watch grooming and feeding more closely than they would with a plain utility pigeon.

Grooming

• Provide a shallow bath two or three times a week so birds can keep the frill and body feathers clean.
• Check the frill for dirt and dried droppings, which mat the chest feathers.
• Trim toenails when they grow long, and check the short beak for any overgrowth or damage.
• Look out for external parasites during routine handling and treat the loft as needed.

Exercise

• Allow daily movement in a roomy loft or a covered aviary flight.
• The breed is not a strong flyer and is usually kept rather than flown free.
• Provide perches and floor space so birds can stretch, walk and bathe.

Environment

Keep birds in a dry, draught-free loft with good ventilation and clean, dry litter. Irish conditions are usually cool and damp rather than bitterly cold, and pigeons cope with cold far better than damp, so keeping the loft dry is the priority. Give each pair room to claim a nest box, and avoid crowding, which spreads disease and frays the frill.

The African Owl eats the same basic diet as other fancy pigeons: a balanced mix of grains and legumes such as peas, maize, wheat, sorghum and small seeds. The short beak makes the smaller grains easier to pick up, so a mix weighted towards smaller seeds suits the breed best. Provide insoluble grit and a mineral or pickstone source to support digestion and shell formation, and keep clean, fresh water available at all times.

Treats and supplements

Small amounts of safe greens and the odd oil seed can be offered as treats but should not replace the main grain mix. During breeding and moult, a vitamin and mineral supplement in the water or feed helps keep condition up. Adjust quantities to keep birds at working weight rather than overweight, since heavy birds breed and show poorly.

The African Owl is a hardy little pigeon when housed in a dry, clean loft, and a well-kept bird lives 8 to 12 years. Most health problems in the breed are the same ones that affect pigeons in general, plus a few tied to the short face. Good husbandry, quarantine for new birds and routine observation prevent most issues.

Preventative care

• Keep the loft dry, clean and well ventilated.
• Quarantine new or returning birds before adding them to the flock.
• Vaccinate against paramyxovirus where the disease is present locally.
• Provide grit, clean water and a balanced diet all year round.
• Worm and treat for parasites on a regular schedule, with veterinary guidance.

Training an African Owl is mostly about tameness and show conditioning rather than flying or performance. The breed's calm, biddable nature makes it easy to work with, and birds handled often as youngsters grow into steady, confident adults. The main goal for most keepers is a bird that stands calmly in the show pen and accepts being handled by a judge.

Basics

1. Start handling squabs gently once they are feathered and steady, in short sessions.
2. Get the bird used to your hand near the feeder so it links you with food.
3. Practise lifting and holding the bird in the show grip so it stays calm.
4. Bring in a training pen or show cage so the bird learns to settle and perch.
5. Repeat short sessions often rather than long ones, and finish while the bird is still calm.

The African Owl is a loft bird, kept in a dry, secure pigeon house or a covered aviary. The breed is not usually flown free, so housing needs to give enough room to move, bathe and nest within an enclosed space. Dryness and ventilation are the two priorities, since damp and stale air cause most loft health problems.

Setup checklist

• Nest boxes or bowls, one per breeding pair, with nesting material
• Perches at varied heights for resting
• A shallow bath offered several times a week
• Feeders and clean water containers kept up off the floor
• A grit and mineral supply
• Predator-proof wire on every opening

African Owls usually lay two eggs to a clutch, and both parents share incubation. Eggs hatch in roughly 17 to 19 days, the normal range for pigeons. The challenge with this breed is feeding: the very short beak makes it harder for parents to feed squabs well, so many breeders place eggs or young under foster pairs of a longer-billed breed to rear them properly.

Hatching steps

1. Let the pair settle and lay, usually two eggs a day or so apart.
2. Allow both parents to share incubation, or set the eggs under a reliable foster pair.
3. Check that the eggs are kept covered and warm right through incubation.
4. Watch for hatching around day 17 to 19 and leave the squabs undisturbed.
5. Check the squabs are being fed by seeing that the crop fills; foster them if growth is slow.