"Can you take out a bird?"

"Can you take out a bird so we can see them?"

I both enjoy and dread this question that I often hear from visitors. I love that people are interested in seeing our raptors and want to appreciate them. And I love showing them off. But the question can catch me off guard and make me feel flustered. 

My answer is usually "no" for these impromptu requests. While it seems like a simple question, I realized recently that most people don't know all of the calculations I have to make in my head before I can give an answer. I can't simply pop a bird in and out whenever I feel like it. Here are a few things I need to consider before moving one of our raptors:

Carson's crop is full and foot is tucked. She's not interested in stepping up after her meal.

• Have they already gotten their food for the day? While not completely necessary, I prefer to have treats ready to reward them for stepping on glove and meeting an audience. Another problem is their motivation. If Carson has a full crop from eating a whole rat, she won't be interested in stepping on glove. If Aldo is still holding on to part of his mouse, I can't get close to him because he's protecting his meal. 
• Do I need to save their food? Some days I have specific plans for the birds. Maybe we have a program later or I need to clean the mews that afternoon. In those cases, I need to save their food to get them out for those events.
• Have the birds already "worked" today? I usually try to take the birds out just once a day, sometimes twice. Each time out is a training session and I don't want to make them "work" too many times in a day.
• Is it breeding season? At the height of breeding season, Aldo may be more interested in showing off his nest than stepping on glove. 
• How have they felt recently about the glove? Did we have to restrain Carson for a beak trim yesterday? If so, she probably won't trust the glove again until we have time to do a few days of trust building.
• What's happening around the mew? If the lawn mower just went through the backyard, a group of Junior Naturalists played a running game in front of the mews, or town is extra busy for an event, the birds might be a little scared and won't want to come out.
• Do I have time? Taking out a bird means cutting up tidbits to use as treats, letting the food warm up from the fridge for 10-15 minutes, gathering supplies (treats, clip-on pouch, feeding forceps, glove), and changing shoes. That's all before I even enter the mew! Then I give Aldo a tidbit or two as a warm-up before asking him to step up. If he chooses to stay on his perch, I'll step out of the mew for 5 minutes before trying again. If he does step up, I apply his equipment and as long as we're out, I'll put him on the scale and check his feet. We might spend 5-10 minutes basking in the sun or talking to visitors. Then back into the mew we go, removing his equipment, and leaving him with a large chunk of food. Now I need to change shoes again and wash dishes before I can move on to the rest of my day. That whole process might take 30 minutes. 

With all of that, I would still encourage visitors to ask to see our birds. I just hope they realize that if I say, "no," there are probably several reasons behind that decision. And sometimes you might just get lucky! I might be heading out to the mew to take out Aldo for his daily weigh-in or I might have plenty of time for an impromptu visit. You won't know if you don't ask!