1. Catching the prey

Before an owl pellet can start to be formed, the owl must first catch its prey. Owls are carnivorous and eat a wide variety of animals including: birds, moles, mice, rabbits, skunks, frogs, insects, and much more.

2. Swallow the prey

Since owls do not have teeth, they can't chew their food. Therefore, they must swallow their food whole or in large chunks.

3. Digestion

After an owl swallows its meal, it travels down the esophagus, then through the proventriculus, and finally into the gizzard. In the gizzard, the meal is separated into two parts - those that are digestible and those that are not. Digestible material continues to pass through the owl's digestive tract. Material that is not digestible are formed into a rounded pellet.

4. Holding the pellet

After the gizzard has formed the pellet, it then pushes the pellet back up into the proventriculus. Here the pellet is stored for several hours. Before the owl eats another meal, it must regurgitate the pellet inside the proventriculus (since this would block the next meal from going to the gizzard).

5. Regurgitation

The final step for the owl is regurgitating the pellet. While the owl is regurgitating the pellet, it looks like it is having difficulty breathing. Once the pellet is ejected, the owl settles back into a comfortable position.