This is a hunting stand with two caged birds as decoys, a crouching dog, and a net on the tree that frames the group.

The study of the birds and dog, as well as the bush in the foreground, reveal Goya's interest in flora and fauna, which he paints with precision. The mitte owl, a nocturnal bird, is quite similar to the owl Goya used in his drawings and etchings as a personification of evil forces. Here its appearance is more that of a stuffed animal than of a study from nature.

This cartoon was for one of the tapestries intended to hang above a door in the dining room of the Prince and Princess of Asturias at El Escorial.