Yes... Pigeons here pigeons are classified as domestic so game officers approve of it. I have actually been working with some of my surrounding city officials to target pigeons in/on buildings that are causing problems. All other game is still illegal to use a artificial light.
My jesses are reflective! I ordered some silver reflective fabric from a company online and sewed them with nylon thread. They work great!
Several great hunts since last post.....things are still going well and my tiercel is getting better with each hunt. Headcount up to 61 (Pigeons, starling, grackles) after last nights 4 catches.
He has lost 3 secondarys and 1 primary they are now 3/4 grown back in. He looks to be doing great.....no fret marks, look to be healthly feathers. I have been able to increase his weight and maintain great response thru repetition. Hes is now flying 40g heavier than normal.
Well....It's been a GREAT spring season on Avian prey. My Tiercel has really adapted well to the lamping and car hawking and has gotten extremely good at it. He will finish with 64 head of game for just in spring venture (April, May , and June). The Temps here are getting into the upper 80's and approaching 90's and he has also dropped a couple more primarys so it's time for him to get fat and finish molt and get ready for what I hope to be a very successful fall season. Thanks to all for the helpful advice and supporting comments!
So do you guys feed the hawk on the glove during the molt or you just drop the food for the bird. Has not feeding on the glove caused problems in the fall
I rotate a bit usually. I feed on glove about every third feeding durning moult just to keep the bird/falconer relationship strong...... Plus it does help cut time off in the fall when it's time to hit the field.
If it were my bird, I wouldn't hunt through the molt. lowering a hawks condition during that time could result in stress, (or so I've read) and therefore causing the feathers to not grow in properly, causing hunger streaks in the feathers at the end of the molt which can cause feather breakage. I'm just saying this based on what I've read. I do not have first hand experience concerning this topic, and I am not yet a falconer. Anyone, please let me know I am wrong on this, I need to learn all I can!
Inspired by the 'My Side of the Mountain' books by Jean Craighead George. Obsessed with falconry ever since.
"I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that don't work."
-Thomas Edison
The birds we have work straight through the molt. Their molt is a little slower than others, but their feathers come in just fine. As long as you don't bring their weight too low or drop it too suddenly,etc, the bird's feathers will be fine.
This depends on species as well as quality of food fed during their hunt season. HH in particular have plyable feathers that can take more abuse than say accipiter or buteo feathers and tend to be better candidates for hunting through the molt. Yes, keeping an RT , Coops, or Falcons at low condition for the molt will add to their stress ( already stressed due to hormonal changes ) and in this low condition they can and will develop stress lines and have weaker feathers. This HH in particular is being flown on pigeon, I would imagine they are being fed to him. Pigeon, starling, sparrows and mice make for high octane a+ protein for a hawk being kept near hunt weight. If your hawk is being fed cotton-tails and beef heart they won't have proper nutrition for good feather development. A fat hawk will molt out quicker and cleaner than a hawk kept at " hunt weight " , however it's inportant to remember Hawks in the wild hunt through their molt with little detriment to their feather condition.
Last Edit: Dec 26, 2014 19:25:44 GMT -5 by echotadog
It is good to have an end to Journey towards, but it is the journey that matters in the End. - Ernest Hemingway
Thanks for the info. Everything I've read talks about intermewing a bird, so I'm glad to hear other 'nuggets' of information, if you will. Hahaha and again, thanks for the info! God bless, Bosshawk
Inspired by the 'My Side of the Mountain' books by Jean Craighead George. Obsessed with falconry ever since.
"I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that don't work."
-Thomas Edison