FREE Owl Pellet Dissection Guide
Owl Pellet Dissection Lab
Unsure of how to start your Owl Pellet Dissection Lab or just need a refresher? Start here and use our FREE Owl Pellet Dissection Guide to help you. For a printable version of this guide, click the button below. Guide has been updated. (8/20/2025)
Download FREE Owl Pellet Dissection Guide
What Are Owl Pellets? A Brief Explanation.
Owls swallow their food whole so the Barn Owl relies on its Gizzard to help it digest. After eating, the Gizzard separates out what the Owl cannot digest. Then the Owl vomits a Pellet filled with everything the owl's stomach cannot digest, like hair and bones. Learn more on our 'What Are Owl Pellets?' page.
At Oregon Owl Pellets, we collect pellets from Barn Owls. We find them in local barns and other places where Barn Owls like to nest. We also gather bulk owl pellets from other areas of the Pacific Northwest, including Idaho and Washington.
How To Plan An Owl Pellet Dissection Lesson
Supplies and Materials
The following will list some, but not all supplies you may need.
- *Owl Pellets, any size
- The most important part of your Owl Pellet Dissection Lab.
- Tray or Plate
- You may need a larger one, depending on the size of the pellets.
- *Plastic Forceps/Tweezers And *Wooden Dissection Sticks
- For tearing apart pellets and pulling out bones.
- Spray bottle or similar (optional)
- Expert Tip: A small amount of water can be used to soften the pellets prior to students opening them. Making the pellets easier to dissect and reducing the risk of breaking remains while opening them.
- *Non-latex gloves or dish washing gloves
- A good reassurance for those who might be a little squeamish.
- *Facemask (Optional)
- *Owl Pellet Bone Chart (Recommended)
- Owl Pellet Bone and Dissection Chart helps students identify bones found in owl pellets.
- Clean Desk or Table
- Like any science lab, having adequate space for your students to work is important.
*These items are included in most of our Owl Pellet Dissection Kits.
Things to keep in mind.
Rodent bones are the most common bone found in owl pellets. These can include voles, rats, mice, and even shrews.
To avoid breaking fragile bones, students should work slowly. Again, this is why using water can be crucial to soften the owl pellet. A small drop or two on each pellet should be enough.
The larger the pellet the longer this lab will take. So we recommend that younger students be given Small Sized Owl Pellets while Large Sized Owl Pellets can be ideal for older students and for longer pellet labs.
“Remind your students not to put the Owl Pellet in their mouth. If they do, don’t worry, the sanitized pellets will not hurt them. However, a good precaution is to have them rinse their mouth with mouthwash afterwards.
Dissection and Bone Collection
As your students begin dissecting the pellets, have them set aside bones or other remains they find. Sometimes this can include rodent skulls.
Encourage them to identify what they find. For older students this may be easier so give them the added challenge of putting bones from the same animal together.
We provide a free bone charts with the purchase of our Owl Pellets! Need more copies of our Owl Pellet Bone Identification Chart? Click the button below to download a FREE PDF and print as many copies as you need!
Download FREE Owl Pellet Bone Chart
Highest Quality And Safety
We carefully hand select each Owl Pellet to ensure quality. Then sanitize by heating them thoroughly to kill any harmful bacteria, protecting you and your students. Finally, we wrap each pellet to protect it during shipping. In short, we want you to receive only the best quality Owl Pellets for your classroom.
If you'd like more guidance. Start with Medium Owl Pellets, purchase these owl pellets bulk, or one of our Owl Pellet Dissection Kits. Each kit includes the most common supplies needed to start a dissection lab.