I’m making a bit of a jump out of my timeline so that I can add the story about my visit to the Falcon Hospital. I visited it back in December 2013, during my mum’s first visit to Abu Dhabi.

I wanted to dedicate a blog post to it because I couldn’t find a lot of information on this centre and it’s really worth checking out when you’re in the region.

Falcon Hospital

The hospital is not really easy to find, but it is just off the highway to Sweihan. You’re best off with either a GPS or a knowledgeable taxi driver.

A visit to the hospital requires pre-booking which you can do on their website. The centre is only open for a limited time each day so the timeslots tend to be booked in advance.

According to the website: “The Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital (ADFH) is the first public institution in the United Arab Emirates providing comprehensive veterinary health care services exclusively for falcons.” In order to get an idea of the amount of falcons that are admitted into the hospital: “Yearly around 11,200 falcons are received for examinations and treatment.” These falcons come from all over the Gulf region and in some cases from all over the world since this centre is famous for its great service.

When you arrive at the centre you will be seated among the patients which are about to be admitted.

This little guy was released back to his owner.

The first part of the tour is a presentation about the different kinds of falcons in the region and their characteristics. Please don’t ask me to recite the presentation, but it was very interesting and informative.

Then your whole tour group will go to the treatment room. You’ll find another big bunch of falcons waiting to have their “operations” done.

Unfortunately, the birds have to be put under during the operation, but really most of the work that is done is nail clipping and beak shaving. When you’re on a tour you get to witness the full procedure and the surgeon also gives a presentation during the operation.

The next part of the tour was holding the huge falcon on a glove. This was great! The animal feels so powerful; I was told to shake my hand up and down which resulted in the falcon flapping its wings (and an embarrassing picture of myself).

They also had a tiny falcon we could hold without a glove. This was probably my favourite part of the tour! How cute is this little guy?

The last part of the tour took us to the outside enclosures to have a quick glimpse at the living conditions of the animals.

Conclusion

The Falcon Hospital is doing a great job educating people on the characteristics, life and upkeep of falcons. It was an incredibly informative tour of this beautiful and strong bird which is still used for hunting in the UAE. These birds also get special treatment on airlines as they are allowing in business class on their stick (as long as their heads are covered with a cloth to ensure they remain calm). Fantastic animals and fascinating tour!

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