Hi All

[dankay123 33]

Hi there

Introduce myself as a beginner to falconry. I have 2 mentors that I can learn from. One flies a pair of harris hawks ad the other has a pair of gos hawks. I am looking at getting my female harris later this year. Just converting my aviary into a mews for the hawk and buying the initial equipment.

[Lee C 55]

Good luck

ATB

Lee

[j j m 6,540]

Good luck bud

[dankay123 33]

Cheers lads. Pick up my equipment tomorrow and then I can start to look for a female harris. I want an older bird to start with instead of a young one. I have been told to look out for 'damaged' birds screamers etc. what advice would you give. Obviously my mentor is gonna accompany me when buying the bird.

[youcanthide...BANG 1,051]

Cheers lads. Pick up my equipment tomorrow and then I can start to look for a female harris. I want an older bird to start with instead of a young one. I have been told to look out for 'damaged' birds screamers etc. what advice would you give. Obviously my mentor is gonna accompany me when buying the bird.

Get a young one is my advice mate, more satisfying and you know its not gonna have any problems before you buy it. If you do get an older bird wait till the start of the season and ask to see it flying.

[Jake w 232]

When you go an look at one make sure the birds crop isn't full because more than likely been fed to stop it screaming and personally I would want to go in the aviary with the bird and have a look at his avairys and have a good talk to the man see if he seems genuine enough see if he knows what he's on about and that if you know what I mean but sometimes you get the good actors but arnt genuine but let us all know how you go on mate and hope you get the right bird and it all works out for you mate

 

 

Atb jake w ?

[Lee C 55]

Getting a young bird will have no vices. As said if the bird is a screamer it can be masked by fat weight, it's when the bird is at flying weight with a bit of hunger that it can start to call.

Some bits of advice if I may feel free guys to add or criticise

 

Good luck with what ever you get.telemetry is a must they can be right next to you in cover and you dont see the buggers.

If I can add one thing feed the bird away from house !! when you get started on the training and try not to fly it in the garden my bird is fairly quiet because of this. I Free lofted for 2 weeks with sight of me around garden but not pestering him just letting him get used to surrounding and noises. He is fed with foodshoot in the side of aviary with no vision of me feeding him then cault up and maned down and fed, flown in the field. His sister was maned straight away fed and flown in the back garden by the owner. She screamed all the time. You could hear her inside the cafe we would meet at before field meeting and she was in her box in the van and outside!

Bowing is fine but on a short lease so he, she can not pick up a lot of speed if baiting as leg can get pulled with very long leashes as the can pick up a lot of speed before jerking to a stop.

Not showing the bird where food is coming from is the key to quiet. You can take the bird to the food, put it in different places and take the bird to it!

If you keep in sight all the time when feeding the bird sees you as a perant and will call for food all the time !!

 

If you get it wrong harrises are a nightmare if screaming all the time!!

 

It will be your bird and best you do it your way. Just wanted to try to help you get off to the best start.

I'm sure your mentor will have his views on this.

Good luck and enjoy the hunting with the bird. Also I would recommend hooding I didn't do this and wish I had. Also ferrets are a god send to produce game as it is very difficult to just walk up enough game, get the bird entered AS SOON AS you can if they learn they can catch from a young age it is a great start.

With the hooding tacktic I would start as soon as the bird sits on the glove but is still bait nervous. I left mine till he was sat very confidant on the glove and he is like a snake when the hood is near his head, to confident. I think if it done early the bird is still a little on edge and will accept hooding. You can leave it on for a bit slip it off and spend time sat down with him just slipping it on wait a bit slip it off. More additions ! I would stroke his feet as well so he is confident with you touching him all over, helps with inspecting him under feet wings etc.

When out in field and feeding bird up that is sat on glove cover food with right hand and pass food to glove from behind glove underneath the birds tail and put to glove this stops the bird baiting forward at the sight of food if you feed him from the front also he will grab out with feet towards the food, your hand this can make them footy. Just one more get a large cut of leather fold up and put in hawking vest. When hunting and taking bird off prey cover rabbit completely with the leather hold rabbits leg !! Throw a chick head away from bird and it should release its hold on the rabbit and move to the food on floor, scoop up rabbit in to back of vest.

Books are great but nothings quite like the real thing !!

Most people with large aviaries have pea down sand is good in small weatherings but needs to be kept dry or it just goes to mush! So pea is good. + can be replaced after years. Look at where you will be putting the perches as the bird will projectile poo behind where it sits!! I would recommend lining the inside with fomex or stiff plastic board this can be wiped down easily. Heating is another thing to consider in the first year they are quite venerable to frost cold + drafts, do not put away wet, hair dryer the bird but dryer must be Teflon free as Teflon well poison bird and kill it, don't leave bath in in winter. So perches out of drafts and if very cold you could box and bring the house, worth it as all your hard work will go out the window if they get wingtip / frost bite on wing.

Also where windows will face, nice to see bird but can contribute to calling if he can see you all the time. I have 30 mm spacing in my bars. Look out for cats on roofs pestering or cat proof roof with nets. I have also made it so I can slide in two shutters. I can have half window when cold and bird can sit at back and full window in summer. Also put window perch below window level bird can see out but poos below window level.

Just some things to think about.If you are after a bird I would see if there is a falconry club near you and ask the members for a good breeder they would recommend and get a couple of peoples advice about the breeder as there are a lot of breeders and some that will sell you anything!!

 

It is a long-term commitment!!

Hope the above helps

All the best

Lee

[arcticgun 4,548]

Cracking post Lee, cant add much more than start with new bird, quality breeders wont have any left, good birds are rarely sold on, plus its moult time now so any decent person wont sell you one cos they settled down, im suprised your mentor recommends previously owned bird, not best advice, ya need too learn from ground up, otherrwise its just hunting another , mans bird out, you miss too much imho this way and it will tell at some point

[Accip74 7,112]

Can't add much to the good advice given already, but never settle for the land you've got, always look for more, you can't have too much & it's good for the bird to be in different places......that way, when you start getting invites, she shouldn't let you down because of strange surroundings......providing you've got everything else right :-)

 

.....oh & seriously reconsider getting a second hand bird, you'll only want to do your own one day, so you might as well do it now!

 

Good luck

Edited April 18, 2014 by Accip74

[dankay123 33]

Cheers for that. Plenty of info.

I have built a loop perch which is around 2ft high to protect from first. I can shut off the complete aviary in winter to keep in the warmth. My mentor has said I would be better with a young bird but if the right older 'made' bird come up through someone giving up then would be worth a look

[Lee C 55]

Hi they recon about 4ft is just above ground frost hight but the higher the better. The first year as well is apparently the most dangerous time for frost / cold injuries. I have a heater in mine, I put look out for cats as Vladamir has a wing injury due to kitterns on the roof. He also has small one on other wing from crashing in to a tree in very high winds with a sudden gust! I love to fly him in high winds He works hard and the flights are fantastic. With both injuries being minor and only an issue when in moult one feather stays in blood. Also get a good vet! He has had a thorn in his foot / leg area that went funny antibiotics! Also fed him up on his first pheasant only for a chunk of circular cartilage from the trackier / wind pipe to some how go over the tip of his tongue and slid down to the base of his tongue acting like an elastic band and cutting the blood supply off, luck I spotted it a couple of days later. I thought it was frounce until the vet cut it off. Nearly lost his tongue just my luck.

so check your bird often.

All the best

Lee

[dankay123 33]

Once manned would you free loft a harris? I picked up my equipment yesterday and the lad in the shop had loads of birds in the back in aviaries. He said once manned to free loft a harris as it will help with boredom and fitness. My mentor said to keep them tethered on the loop perch as it has plenty of movement whilst being tethered to the loop. What you think

[Lee C 55]

I free loft myself some bow but I prefer to free loft, each to their own.

ATB

Lee

[youcanthide...BANG 1,051]

Id say it depends on the bird, one that was scatty i would keep bowed, one with a chilled out nature id freeloft.

[HPR 1,161]

Older birds are like older dogs you will get some genuine sellers but very rare id get a young one especially with a harris its not going to take you long to get it going with two mentor's and it willbe the bird you have trained and want