The owner of a local bird sanctuary has warned parents not to buy children owls for Christmas.

Maria Evans, who runs the Bird of Prey and Swan Rescue Centre at Tinkers Hill, Amroth, maintained that owls do not make good pets.

She is concerned that the spell of Harry Potter could backfire and become a curse of misery and suffering if caged owls are given as presents. She said that owls can be noisy, smelly and unpredictable, and are not cuddly little toys. They grow up to be large birds with talons that can dig into humans and cause serious injury.

The snowy owl as featured in Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone is not a British bird and cannot be released into the wild without a special licence. Mrs Evans is concerned that children who have owls as pets will get bored with them after six months and chuck them out.

She said: It is people like me who are left to pick up the pieces.

Owls need a great deal of looking after, and lots of feeding. It is illegal to feed them anything live. Supplies need to obtained from specialist outlets. Under the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act, it is illegal to take and disturb any wild bird and a £2,000 fine can be incurred.

For further information about keeping owls as pets, contact Maria Evans on 01834 814397.