The bird has never flown free before.
The owner of a Golden Eagle now missing since last Wednesday said he is “worried sick” as he appealed to the public for help in tracking down the bird.
Speaking on RTE’s Morning Ireland on Monday, owner John Nugent said the Golden Eagle named Kalin (pictured above) managed to undo his leash and fly away.
As he was meant to be resting at the time, there is no tracker on the 12-year-old Kalin.
Nugent, based in Wicklow, revealed the bird of prey has never hunted or been out in the wild.
He told the show: “His favourite food is chicken legs from a supermarket. He feeds from the hand all the time.
“I was trying to rehabilitate him to let him fly free, so that he could come back whenever he wants to my hand and then put him in his weathering station.
“He’s never flown free in this country. He’s never flown free in 12 years of his life.
“He’s looking for me as much as I’m looking for him, we reckon.”
Nugent said he hoped to find the bird somewhere in the Wicklow area.
He issued an appeal to farmers who may see Kalin on their land not to shoot him.
He said: “He’s not a threat. He’s never killed. He’s not a danger to anybody.
“He could land on a fence post beside you. He could land on a shed or a barn. That’s what he’s used to, that sort of area.”
Kalin is the size of a swan and is identifiable by the two thin black straps or ‘jesses’ on his legs.
Details on how to contact John Nugent can be found on his Facebook page.
Featured image via Facebook/John Nugent
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