I'm working on a bugbear NPC that has raised two owlbears from cubs, and so has a bunch of life lessons that she learned from watching them.

So far I have: "Mess with the beak and you get the paws." and "The bigger the egg, the fuzzier the cub."

Does anybody have some fun ideas? They can be things that owlbears say, or things that people say about them.

“You shouldn’t assume the face of a creature purely from observing the (butt/back)” (presumably after mistaking a bear cub for one of the owlbears)

"never trust a lone owl call", because Owlbears are generally solitary, and when you hear a normal owl, there's normally another replying in the distance.

"Went fur over feathers" as an alternative to "went Arse over tit", an english saying which means "to have fallen over".

"Duster-necked", meaning when they bristle (either in aggression or surprise), as their feathers owuld stand up.

"Scrawny-faced", because a wet owl loses over half their puff, whilst a wet bear loses very little, so a wet owlbear would have a really small looking head.

All I can hear is that one voice set from the Icewind Dale video game from the 2000s; the one that goes, "Don't count your owlbears before they're hatched."

Better the hibernation best the feathers

Thanks all! I've got a nice list now. I also came up with “My nest is your nest…unless I’m hungry.” and "You scratch my back and I won't claw your back."

"You're putting the fur before the feathers", implying you're doing it backwards.

"you can't squeeze cheese from an owlbear before it has hatched", a good phrase for chastising those trying to get cheese from owlbear eggs.