# Falconry?



## Harbinger

So i've always loved birds of prey, and yesterday i had a falconry experience for my birthday and loved every minute of it. The birds were incredible and every aspect of the whole thing was either fascinating or insanely badass 

Of course if i am going to get into it i wont be for a very, very long time. Been reading a tonne of introductory pages and the like. My main concerns before i get too excited are if i have enough time off to dedicate to a bird. I work on a rota set up so i could be in any and most days, maybe the odd day off here and there. Another worry is location, im in the middle of Gloucester and have no idea what the field situation is like, obviously there are fields around here, but no idea if there's any good ones. A big thing i keep seeing come up as important/useful is joining a local group, so far havent found one yet, spose there probably are.

So far i keep seeing dogs mentioned, do you have to have one?
Do Falconers do it to get meat for themselves or just for the bird to get a meal and exercise?
Would want them to exercise and feed i just wouldnt have any use for game myself and wouldnt want anything to go to waste.

Insanely nooby questions i know but only started reading last night on falconry. Im still reading up on it now i just thought i'd leave a thread to come back to incase i miss anything


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## baitman

First off, hawking is a fantastic hobby, unfortunately syndicates have taken most of the flying grounds and finding suitable grounds to hunt on is very hard, in fact it is why i gave up.

The hardest thing to decide is what type of hunting you want to do.....

basicaly there are two types of birds, longwings and shortwings...


Longwings......these are the true falcon and mostly hunt air prey, they usually stoop (dive) at their prey and striking it to the ground.

these birds are ie....peregrines,lanner,luggers,sakers,gyr to name but a few..all of these are great hunting birds but are best left until you have a lot of experience.....

Shortwings.....these are the hawks, ie, goshawk,sparrowhawk, buzzard,redtail hawk and the one i would say to start with, the harris hawk.
These birds hunt ground quarry such as rabbit, hare and squirrel....ect.

though birds like the gos and the harris will take prey such as pheasant,partridge, crow and magpie..

the biggest recommendation i can give it to youtube and read as much as you can....


good luck...............steve


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## Harbinger

Yeah i already knew the Harris hawk was the way to go for beginners, they still look stunning 
And funnily enough been on youtube browsing exactly that, thanks for the tips 
What about broad wings? What category do they fall into?
Im only interested in starting with Harris Hawks, just still interested in learning about others


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## Harbinger

I dont suppose anyone here's a member of International Falconry forums?
Tried registering but never got a confirmation email, despite the correct adddress :/


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## sharpstrain

Harbinger said:


> I dont suppose anyone here's a member of International Falconry forums?
> Tried registering but never got a confirmation email, despite the correct adddress :/


I am, check you spam filter maybe


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## sharpster

just uple of quick notes- falconry takes a lot of time asnd passion to get anything like right-enough right to make you want to continue.

light years away from reptile keeping.

like this forum and so many others, the iff is full of back stabbers and fools-so you will need to weed out the good info from the bad-or it will be the blind leading the blind, like here-there are some top people on there willing to share great information.

harris hawks are unbelievably good hunting hawks.downsides are of course many-in the hands of many beginners the hh casn be a seriously noisey hawk at home-will this bother you or your neighbours??

they may be a little outdated but read lots of books as well as on internet.
there are so many ways to skin a cat in falconry-it can get very confusing.

a good mentor is best,if you can find a good one.

this is a very rewarding passion indeed,but if just a hobby I wouldn't bother-there are much easier hobbies,like snake keeping!

enjoy


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## baitman

broadwings fall into short wing catagory, they are the buzzards ect


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## Scoffa

The 4 main types of birds are owls, shortwings, broadwings, and longwings. The groups are different in their hunting style and behaviour. I wouldn't consider an owl to hunt with, although the big eagle owls are occasionaly used. Shortwings are the true hawks and include the goshawk, sparrow hawk. They excel in and around woodland. This group is unsuitable to the begginer as they are highly strung and more fragile to train. The longwings are the easiest to train and are high fling tail chasers. They are unsuitable for a begginer because if you make a mistake with training or weight management it is difficult to rectify the problem later. So a begginer is best to start with a broadwing. There are a few in the group including the harris hawk, buzzards, and eagles. Eagles and the bigger buzzards are too big and tempramental to start with. So that basically leaves 3 birds to choose from, the harris hawk, the common buzzard, and the redtailed buzzard. The common buzzard would be ok if you weren't looking to catch a great deal, and if lost wouldn't cause any problems as it's native to the uk. The harris is not a good bird to start with as it's too easy to train. As a begginer you will not learn about correct weight management. Last, and most suitable is the redtail. If you get the weight right and get plenty of flying in you will catch loads of quarry, and learn enough to try some of the other birds.


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## Harbinger

Thanks for the input all, i still, really, really, really want to get into this. 
And still no confirmation email, spam folder and all :/
To be honest im after the best beginner bird, they're all stunning to me so i havent got a preference yet, but i would have thought the easiest to train bird would be the best. Quarry wise im not too fussed about catching a lot, i'd just want to do it to keep the raptors healthy, any quarry we caught in excess i was going to give to carnivore sanctuaries.


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## CloudForest

from everything I've read, they need far more regular flying time than the the "odd day here and there", you cant just leave them in a cage for days on end; i don't think its a great hobby for people who work full time, unless they happen to live on a farm or country estate of some kind


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## sharpstrain

Harbinger said:


> Thanks for the input all, i still, really, really, really want to get into this.
> And still no confirmation email, spam folder and all :/
> To be honest im after the best beginner bird, they're all stunning to me so i havent got a preference yet, but i would have thought the easiest to train bird would be the best. Quarry wise im not too fussed about catching a lot, i'd just want to do it to keep the raptors healthy, any quarry we caught in excess i was going to give to carnivore sanctuaries.


The access to regular quarry is crucial to the bird. It needs to hunt and be successful on a regular basis during the hunting season. A critical aspect of falconry is getting enough land to fly over with sufficient quarry. This can be really hard to get and should come before you get the bird. 

I had permission offered and then withdrawn after a change of land manager and had to postpone getting a bird until I can locate more. :-(


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## becky89

If I can give one piece of advice - choose a harris hawk because you WANT one, not because it's a 'good' beginner's bird. So many people get them because they're told they're good for beginners, then they either get bored or get the bird they wanted in the first place and sell the harris on. Hopefully you'll get on IFF soon, and will be able to join a club or find a mentor who can teach you all you need to know before you get a bird, and it will give you a chance to see if the harris is for you


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## Harbinger

I'd be happy with any bird, so i might aswell go with the best for an utter noob like me


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## CloudForest

Harbinger said:


> I'd be happy with any bird, so i might aswell go with the best for an utter noob like me


how are you going to care for it properly if you can only offer "a day here and there" to an animal which needs almost daily flights/hunting? its entirely unethical to get one when you already know you cannot care for it properly...


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## Harbinger

Well from what i've read so far they dont need flying daily do they?
3-4 weeks daily for training as far as i can tell.


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## CloudForest

the minimum number of times suggested to me is 4 times a week, or every other day, minimum...that's the reason i don't have one myself, maybe when I retire and can give them the time they need

they don't take days off in the wild tho, and you will have a much healthier, fitter and better hunter, if its given daily hunting/flying sessions


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## TalulaTarantula

As previously stated, find a damn good mentor, I wouldnt even consider getting a bird yet until you've had first hand experience if how hard and time consuming it is,
The cold weather, the dealing with a bird on a bad day ect


My partner is a full time falconer and I see the struggle he has sometimes, we don't get holidays, we can't go on days out ect, and with us losing our flying land and having to sell !most of our flying birds, because it just wasn't fair on them, flying ground seems to be harder and harder to find these days! Right pain in the ass.
do a lot of thinking,plenty of research and as much hands on experience as possible, its more than just a hobby its a lifestyle, 

To answer your questions, you don't have to have a dog, although we do and its a great experience
As for game, if you have no use for it, someone else will, 
We never eat the game ourselves, its split between the rats or some of the birds, and if any left over, the dogs if they're lucky lol

Every bird is different, some may not mind being flown every other day, where as some go a bit nuts if they can't get out and fly, especially if their weight is keen.

If you're happy to go through all that, and be as patient and willing, its a fantastic lifestyle and extremely rewarding.

Just be aware of the haters also 

I wish you all the best with your endeavour


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## Scoffa

Harbinger said:


> Well from what i've read so far they dont need flying daily do they?
> 3-4 weeks daily for training as far as i can tell.


A bird does not become a mature hunter until it's 3rd season. If it is flown 6 days a week, and served a variety of prey, it will become a phenomenal hunter to be proud of. On the other hand, a bird flown on a weekend, catching the odd rabbit, will become boring and you will soon loose interest. 

Try to find falconers close to you who are willing to let you go out with them have a look at the different birds and ask questions. You don't need a dog but it helps with finding prey. It's the same with ferrets. How much can you afford, do you have enough for vets bills?


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## miss_ferret

i wont repeat what others have said, but here are some additions of my own, based on my experiences:

- when looking for land, you need as good a variety as possible. i have access to over 50 acres to fly my bird on, but as most of it is moorland, its rendered useless in bad weather. thankfully i have a large garden, so change focus to strength building rather than stamina. the weathers still bad, but its far more sheltered and getting him out doing something is better than nothing.

- there are going to be times when, even with the best will in the world, you're not going to be able to fly the bird, so you need to be prepared for this. my aviary is big enough that he can occupy himself sufficiently if need be. i'm looking at extending it as i'm aware that in 2016 my work load will increase hugely, so my flying time will be reduced, so if he's going to be in the aviary more, he's either going to need more to do, or more room to do it in.

- dogs and ferrets are helpful for finding prey, but only get them if you want them as a pet/companion for their own sake. i've helped rehome more ferrets through wannabe falconers buying them, not treating them right and then getting rid when the inevitable problems start. they're animals in their own right, not accessories. 


course, i'll now invalidate all of the above by telling you my dirty little secret: i keep and fly a barn owl (7 years and counting). something else you need to be aware of is the huge amount of snobbery in the falconry world, it matters not that i spent 2 years with my mentor who was a 'proper' falconer (harris hawk, red tail, peri saker and sparrowhawk, if anyone was wondering) my opinion on anything is usually invalidated the minute any falconer i speak to realises im 'only an owl keeper'  dont worry proper falconers who may be readong this, i dont class myself as a falconer.


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## TalulaTarantula

Scoffa said:


> A bird does not become a mature hunter until it's 3rd season. If it is flown 6 days a week, and served a variety of prey, it will become a phenomenal hunter to be proud of. On the other hand, a bird flown on a weekend, catching the odd rabbit, will become boring and you will soon loose interest.
> 
> Try to find falconers close to you who are willing to let you go out with them have a look at the different birds and ask questions. You don't need a dog but it helps with finding prey. It's the same with ferrets. How much can you afford, do you have enough for vets bills?



Cannot express enough for vet bills, ive witnessed first hand how quickly the price exculates. ughh disgusting the prices they charge, but its gotta be done


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## johne.ev

Another way of gaining invaluable experience, free of charge. Is to volunteer at a local falconry/BOP centre.


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## Neels

And all the talk about falconry being a hobby.


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