Looking For Help Please

[kruby01 114]

 

 

id say best way to get a mentor is to offer to drive them to the hunting grounds providing the cars big enough you carnt just expect to be trusted and taken out for a season for nowt, a mentor needs to know the lad they are taking out is trustworthy as there gonna know where your hawk is, how the aviary can be get into and even when the house will be empty, it worries me how more often than not the first question people ask especially young men is how much the hawk is worth. and word soon spreads about the lad with the massive eagle at the bottom of the street, it only takes one wrong un to know. so you deffinetly need to earn the hawkers trust and it will help to have something to contribute and although it might not seem significant it will be a big help for a falconer to be drove to the grounds

That is my main problem i had to get rid of my car, endless problems so decided to get shut but now i am on foot for a while

 

That makes it harder to get a mentor then, doubt anybody will put themselves out to pick you up and drop you off after. so looks like your stuck with the books and dvd's, although if you get the right sources you will be fine. main thing is research a few methods pick one you like then stick to it, don't be combining bits and pieces, it will turn out wrong. And don't be afraid of starting a topic up with a question however simple it may seem, theres loads willing to help a newcomer out and will also give some of us something to do other than counting the weeks down to the end of the moult ha

 

Thanks for all the help lads.

 

To be honest no question is a bad question as we all start somewhere and its better to check with someone who has more experience when the welfare of an animal is concerned.

 

I'm going to get on and order a few books to get me started. As I said I have been out hunting with a hawk quite alot but its the keeping of a hawk I haven't seen first hand

[lor123 12]

 

if you get a good book it will help out personnally i like 'The harris hawk' by lee william harris plenty of info in their will help you out.

Not in any way a criticism of you mate, but I think that book is a pile of shite, for a beginner, much better in my opinion are Martin Hollinshead books, that guy really knows his stuff and for any prospective HH owners really do take things to another level.

 

well i dont think its shite but it is a bit vague in parts and criticism is a good thing because everyone has different points of view but yes martin hollinshead does know his stuff and goes into good detail. but i still like lee williams the harris hawk. even if you think its shite lol

[arcticgun 4,548]

That William Harris book always gets a hard time, but fair does that ain't no live rabbit Amy caught lol spent some time in the freezer that one lol not my favourite bok on the subject either, its more a personal account in my eyes and not one Id choose to follow, but fair play its a read and a different perspective

 

Hollingshead's books are written with pure passion and that always stands head and shoulders above anything 'just turned out' to meet the markets needs, he is the only writer who takes the harris hawk seriously, other books always suggest it as a 'stepping stone' onto gos etc, Martins boks go that step extra and break the mould by suggesting they are actualy maybe even a 'better option' than the #classical' falconry birds afterall they have taken more single species in uk than any other type of raptor in the uk (I may end up with mud in me face there mind lol) and lets face it we all know theres harris hawks and then theres fully fit harris in the hands of someone who knows where to find and fly game, most never see even a small;l percentage of their potential, failed by those eager to move on in a rush to something ??? better??? the real fact is most cannot do the classical birds the justice they need more so when it comes to falcons, same as in history only the chosen few have the money time etc to fly to the old standards most run some sort of compromise compared to the falconers of old days

 

the books to own imho are Falconry and Hawking by Glaister, Understanding the Birds of Prey, by Nick Fox (also get DVDs) Rabbit and Hare Hawking Martin Hollinshead, Art and practise by ford is alo well worth a look at, bets of luck mate, maybe try that british falconers club they are the ones who should be helping newcomers to the sport lol

[grovsey 74]

is there a falconer center nr you where you could volunteer for free and this way you will pick up valuable info of the falconers there ,gl

[lor123 12]

is there a falconer center nr you where you could volunteer for free and this way you will pick up valuable info of the falconers there ,gl

theres prob the best idea of the lot.

[kruby01 114]

I didnt even think of that, A quick google search found a local centre and a quick phone call just got me a volunteer gap on a trial kind of thing, He wants me to give him a call in the week and pop down to him. I didnt even know it existed. Thanks alot for the great advice

[youcanthide...BANG 1,051]

best news you could of asked for there bud. you will be well on your way

[grovsey 74]

God I'm good lol

[lady-hunter07 15]

Best off luck with what ever you decide to do regarding getting a bird.

You have started off on the good foot by volunteering in a centre where you will be able to handle, weigh and maybe even be able to put new equipment on them when they come out off moult.
Will look forward to seeing future posts as to how the volunteering is going and which birds you get to help with.
ATB
.

[j j m 6,552]

when your ready try to look at the adds for some one that is packing the sport in,because of work commitments etc and buy as a job lot its the best way to go if you time it right good luck