Utah Administrative Code
Topic - Natural Resources
Title R657 - Wildlife Resources
Rule R657-20 - Falconry
Section R657-20-6 - Care and Facilities Requirements
Universal Citation: UT Admin Code R 657-20-6
Current through Bulletin 2024-18, September 15, 2024
(1) A person may not possess a raptor without first providing adequate facilities and equipment to humanely house and care for the raptor.
(2) Care Requirements.
(a) The falconer is responsible
for the maintenance and security of raptors held in his or her care.
(b) All raptors held under a falconry COR
must be kept in humane and healthy conditions.
(c) The Division may impose additional
requirements regarding the safe and humane handling and care of raptors that
are necessary to ensure the birds are maintained in a healthy
condition.
(3) Facilities Requirements and Inspections.
(a)
The primary consideration for raptor housing facilities, whether an indoor mews
or outdoor weathering area, is protection of the raptor from unauthorized human
access and disturbance, the environment, predators, including domestic as well
as wild animals, inhumane treatment, and other undue disturbances.
(b) Request for a facilities inspection must
be made by contacting the Regional Division office where the facilities are
located.
(c) Once a request is
received, a facilities inspection will be completed by the Division within 30
business days of the date the request is received.
(d)
(i)
Before a person may obtain a falconry COR, the raptor housing facilities and
equipment shall be inspected and approved by a Division
representative.
(ii) Inspections
must be conducted in the presence of the applicant.
(iii) In the course of this inspection, the
Division representative may collect photographs of the facilities to keep on
file with the falconer's records.
(e) Detailed photos and a description of
facilities and equipment, including measurements of mews or weathering areas,
shall constitute a temporary inspection for purposes of issuing CORs if the
Division has not physically inspected within 30 business days.
(f) The COR may be revoked if significant
changes to facilities are made without prior notification to the Division or if
the photos and descriptions of facilities and equipment do not match the
facilities in place.
(g) Facilities
must be adequate to house the number and species of raptors in
possession.
(h) Only inspected and
approved indoor mews and weathering areas may be used for housing raptors for
falconry.
(i) In addition to
inspected and approved facilities, raptors may also be housed inside a place of
residence as provided in Section R657-20-6(4)(c).
(j) A new facilities inspection will be
required when a permittee changes address, increases the number or species of
raptors in their possession beyond capacity of the existing inspected
facilities, or changes class of their falconry COR.
(k) The Utah Falconry Program Coordinator
must be notified within five (5) business days of a change in the location of
an individual's falconry facilities by submitting notice to
falconry@utah.gov.
(l) Facilities
requirements for non-resident falconers wishing to establish residency in Utah.
(i) A raptor may be housed in a temporary
facility for no more than six (6) months, provided the temporary facility has
been inspected and has a suitable perch for the raptor and adequately protects
it from predators, domestic animals, extreme temperatures, wind, and excessive
disturbance.
(ii) Following
establishment of residency, the falconer must have facilities re-inspected to
ensure compliance with the facilities requirements of this rule.
(m) Falconry facilities may be on
property owned by another person, provided the falconer submits a signed and
dated statement by the falconer and the property owner agreeing that the
falconry facilities, equipment, and raptors may be inspected without advance
notice by the Division at any reasonable time of day.
(4) The Mews.
(a) A mews shall:
(i) be large enough to allow easy access for
the care and feeding of raptors kept inside;
(ii) provide for a healthy environment for
each raptor inside;
(iii) have
walls and ceiling that may be solid, barred, or covered with heavy duty
netting, so long as any openings are narrower than the width of the body of the
smallest raptor kept inside;
(iv)
have a suitable perch for each raptor and at least one (1) opening for
sunlight, or adequate lighting if mews is in a residence,
(v) be large enough to allow each raptor the
opportunity to fly if it is untethered or, if tethered, to fully extend its
wings or bate without damaging its feathers; and
(vi) include a pan of clean water large
enough for each raptor housed in the mews to bathe in it that remains available
to the housed raptors at all times, unless weather conditions, perch type used,
or some other factor makes it inadvisable to have water available next to the
raptor.
(b) Indoor
facilities as a mews.
(i) Indoor mews used to
house untethered raptors must be fully enclosed, unless the indoor mews are a
place of residence.
(ii) Acceptable
indoor facilities may include shelf perch enclosures where raptors are tethered
side by side.
(iii) At the
discretion of the Division, other housing systems may be approved if they
provide the enclosed raptors with comparable facilities characteristics to
those listed in R657-20-6(4) and the opportunity to maintain undamaged
feathers.
(c) A place of
residence as a mews.
(i) If a raptor is
housed inside a place of residence, the residence must satisfy all of the
general requirements of a mews identified in R657-20-6(4), except there is no
need to modify windows or other openings in the residence.
(ii) Falconry raptors housed in a place of
residence may satisfy the mews requirement, provided each raptor is tethered to
a suitable perch, except when being handled or when flown within a flight
chamber.
(iii) Areas within a
residence that may be used as a flight chamber must satisfy the following
conditions:
(A) the flight chamber must have a
source of light;
(B) the flight
chamber must be fully enclosed;
(C)
walls and ceiling of the flight chamber may be solid, barred, or covered with
heavy duty netting; and
(D) if
bars, heavy duty netting, or mesh are used, openings must be narrower than the
width of the body of the smallest raptor housed in the flight
chamber.
(d)
Untethered raptors may be housed together in any mews if they are compatible
with each other.
(5) Weathering Area.
(a) The weathering area must
be:
(i) totally enclosed;
(ii) constructed of any suitable material
capable of preventing the raptor's escape and excluding predators and other
animals capable of causing harm to the raptor.;
(iii) covered and have at least one (1)
covered perch to protect a raptor from predators and weather;
(iv) large enough to insure that the
raptor(s) cannot strike the enclosure when bating from the perch;
(v) include a pan of clean water large enough
for each raptor housed in the mews to bathe in it;
(vi) provide a water source that that remains
available to the housed raptors at all times, unless weather conditions, perch
type used, or some other factor makes it inadvisable to have water available
next to the raptor.
(b)
Raptors must be tethered while inside the weathering area.
(c) Raptors may be perched next to a solid or
fully opaque wall in the weathering area provided the proximity of the wall to
the perch will not cause injury to the raptor or feather damage.
(d) New types of housing facilities and/or
husbandry practices may be used if they satisfy the requirements of this
chapter and are approved by the Division.
(6) Falconry raptors may be kept outside in the open at any location if they are under watch by an individual familiar with the handling of raptors.
(7) Raptors in transit must be provided with an adequate perch and protected from extreme temperatures, wind, and excessive disturbance to ensure the health, safety and protection of any raptor being transported.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Utah may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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