To Screen Or Not To Screen???

[killjoy]

I feel the same way you do, but about different things.

a mosquito might get your bird in or out of the mews, BUT i WILL be using screen. WNV is very real, and i would think most sponsors would require you to take your sick bird to the vet, and a vet trip is NOT cheap, just to get told that the bird is going to die, or put it on a lot of expensive meds. so a little screen is a good insurance policy. not full proof, but helps.

I feel this way about the floor of the mews, the bird doesnt live near pea gravel pits, so I dont see why grass isnt good enough. BUT I will do as my sponsor says, and he says pea gravel.

He also says he wants me to fly a RT and not a kessie. bummer

[raptrlvr]

I screened my mews. The screening material was less than $10 and it was fairly easy to do. To me, its just another step to try and minimize the threats to my bird. If you were my apprentice, I would require you to screen your mews.

[killjoy]

K9jay,

If you are worried about people judging you, dont post it.

I have notices what a popular answer is, like the screen material. If people ask you about it give a political answer, you know one that satisfies their hunger but has no nutritional value, and do as you wish.

there are alot of "know it alls", and not alot of "let me teach you why's".
but there is only one higher authority, and he goes by sponsor.

like I said, I agree with your post, just not on the screen part.

The only thing that matters is the health of your bird, and how much you hunt it.

good luck man.
hope to make falconry class of 2008.

[Deleted]

Jul 1, 2008 13:40:57 GMT -5 raptrlvr said:

I screened my mews. The screening material was less than $10 and it was fairly easy to do. To me, its just another step to try and minimize the threats to my bird. If you were my apprentice, I would require you to screen your mews.

For $10 I would screen my weathering area. I priced what I would need and it's more like $200 with shipping. It's on the list but low on the list.

[raptrlvr]

I got my screening material from Home Depot. It comes in a roll that is up to 48 inches wide. And yes I do train my birds to the flashlight to answer your question. I have never heard of a bird going into a coma overnight. I have heard of birds getting eaten by GHO's overnight. I am not judging you, but, you would not last long as my apprentice if you didn't do the things that we discussed as being necessary. Its pretty hard usually for an apprentice to pick up another sponsor once they have been dropped by the first one. This is my opinion and thats all I have to say about it.

[K9JaY]

The thread didn't go the way I intended. Thanks for the comments Killjoy and DaveL. For the rest... I'll try to speak slower next time.

[dac]

Jul 1, 2008 22:02:30 GMT -5 strixvaria said:

^ Ladies and gentlemen, the future of American Falconry.

if your talking about raptrlvr you should show some respect to someone who has been a falconer longer then you and who Knows better then you when it comes to it.

[Migisi]

Jul 1, 2008 13:40:57 GMT -5 raptrlvr said:

If you were my apprentice, I would require you to screen your mews.

I also ask my apprentices to install screening.

My past apprentice didn't 'get around to it' for 4 years, despite my persistent nagging. She finally did it last summer - while I rehabbed her WNV-infected hawk. She added 3 solid walls to her pen, screened the 4th wire wall, and stuffed steel wool in every opening of her corragated steel roof. It's bug tight!

She said, "I had X for 3 years in the same mews, and he never got sick. So, I didn't think I needed to do it for this bird. I was wrong." Yes, she was. The hawk did recover after intensive care, and flew well last season. A lucky one.

When WNV first started to wreak havoc on hawk/owl populations and falconry birds - especially hard hit here in the midwest - Dr. Pat Reddig at the Raptor Center sent an urgent message to all falconers recommending they screen their mews while he and other researchers worked on an effective vaccination.

To all: Please heed the advice from folks who have the experience, and want to help others avoid the same problems. You'll blame yourself later if you don't, and rightly so. I'm off my soap box now. You all have a great day! ;D

[K9JaY]

Hey Migisi,

I just wanted to say I appreciate your comments. There are a few people on here that are either too stupid to hold an intelligent conversation, or are so determined to tell someone else that they're stupid, that they don't even bother to listen to what the other person is trying to say. I'm not sure which one it is, but either way it's just ridiculous.

I didn't originally open this thread as a debate of whether or not screening should be done. It was more a discussion on where falconers should draw the line on judging other falconers' decisions in their falconry. It was taken that I was arguing that screening your mews isn't a smart thing to do. So rather than keep defending myself, I just deleted my comments.

Saying that screening your mews isn't a smart thing to do would be just a ridiculous statement. It's relatively inexpensive and a quick fix, or at least a quick improvement to a problem. There are no negative side effects to doing. You're not creating a problem by screening, so it's a win win. I agree completely.

[kenbro77]

ok, I guess I missed the original post. I do not want to debate screen or not. I do screen and believe it should be a requirement. What I what to mention that I have found works good, is I noticed someone mention steel wool in gaps, what I used was a product called "Great Stuff". It is a can of foam that expands when sprayed into ma gap and seals it. You can find it at Lowes or Home Depot. It works great on sealing any kind of gap.

[strixvaria]

dac,

I was referring to the attitude that Jay was giving raptrlvr in a post that was wisely deleted. In fact, the point that I was trying to make was that Jay himself should, as you say, "Show some respect to someone who has been a falconer longer then [him] and who Knows better then [him] when it comes to it."

[dac]

Jul 2, 2008 14:27:55 GMT -5 strixvaria said:

dac,

I was referring to the attitude that Jay was giving raptrlvr in a post that was cleverly deleted. In fact, the point that I was trying to make was that Jay himself should, as you say, "Show some respect to someone who has been a falconer longer then [him] and who Knows better then [him] when it comes to it."

ahh...ok then my mistake.

[Falcon Boy]

For the record, and i know its not the point of the thread, you can get 36" x 84" rolls of screen from walmart for about $6. I just bought it for my mews, and spent about $13

[K9JaY]

Jul 2, 2008 14:27:55 GMT -5 strixvaria said:

dac,

I was referring to the attitude that Jay was giving raptrlvr in a post that was cleverly deleted. In fact, the point that I was trying to make was that Jay himself should, as you say, "Show some respect to someone who has been a falconer longer then [him] and who Knows better then [him] when it comes to it."

Cleverly deleted? I would've use the word "deviously." My thread was misunderstood. It wasn't intended to be a debate. I removed it. If I overreacted, I apologize.

[strixvaria]

Fixed. I apologize as well.