Harry Potter-themed Owl Lounge to open in Sutton Coldfield
A magical animal attraction and rescue centre is set to open at a Birmingham shopping centre offering the chance for children (and adults) to get up close to creatures normally only seen in the wild. The Harry Potter-themed Owl Lounge featuring rescued birds of prey will be welcoming visitors to its site at Sutton Coldfield ’s Gracechurch Centre next month.
Run by mum-of-four Lisa Halford, the Owl Lounge will feature seven or eight owls and other birds of prey, some for visitors to pet, others for viewing only. The lounge will include a Harry Potter-style dressing up area for children to get dressed up in wizardry outfits and then have their photos taken with the owls. It will also have a Sorting Hat.
Owl lounges are a ‘big’ thing in Japan, but rarely seen in the UK, where cat cafes, like the Kitty Café at Grand Central have become a thing. But Lisa said ‘you can see a cat every day, but where can you see owls’. The answer will soon be Sutton town centre
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The 47-year-old has had her head spun with a love of owls and birds of prey ever since buying her first one, Skye the barn owl, 14 years ago. And now she wants to share her passion with others, with the hope of rescuing more birds of prey and save them.
Lisa told BirminghamLive: “We loved the idea of caring for such a beautiful bird and hand rearing her from a baby. She became part of our family.
“Today, we have various birds that have been hand reared, and we have now decided to rescue birds of prey that are injured and can't be released back into the wild to give them a forever loving home.
“We are opening The Owl Lounge in Sutton Coldfield in October and inviting members of the public to come and sit with the birds. Some of the birds can be stroked and petted and others will be purely for viewing only due to them being wild birds and not hand-reared.”
Lisa continued: “We will also have a Harry Potter-themed dressing up area for kids to have photos taken with the owls by their parents. As well as owls there will be falcons and a kestrel.
“Eddie our two-year-old spectacle owl thinks he’s a cat and sits there watching TV at home. We have got 12 birds at the moment and will bring seven or eight of them in at a time. There will be a snowy and great horned owl. We have a pair of breeding screech owls and a rare black barn owl.”
The Owl Lounge will be above the Southtown Tattoo parlour – which is next to Roma Lounge and near Greggs, in the southern end of the shopping site. Lisa said ‘there’s a massive area upstairs’. The Owl Lounge has already attracted interest from a brownies group wanting a visit.
Lisa explained that some of the birds would not survive if she had not rescued them. “We have a peregrine falcon with a broken wing. It can fly but not to hunt. It would die in the wild.” She has A10 – article 10 certificates – for her birds, allowing her to keep the endangered species.
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Lisa has also launched a JustGiving page in the hope of saving more birds. Asked how she is feeling ahead of the head-spinning venture in Sutton Lisa said: “I’m really excited. I can’t wait. Just to show all these birds off to people.
“To show them birds of prey and that you can pet them. They are not just birds. They have feelings!”
The Owl Lounge will be free to visit – with the hope that visitors like the experience and will donate. Fund raised will be used to pay for the upkeep of the birds, like food and building aviaries.
Lisa said: “It’s never been about money. It’s more about looking after the birds. We enjoy doing it.” The birds live with Lisa and her family and will not be kept at the Gracechurch Centre overnight.
The Owl Lounge will initially open four-days-a-week on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 12noon to 5.30pm. And is expected to open the third week of October – just before half-term.