I'm Sick Of The Wind

[pointer 543]

My hawk was heavy on Sunday and was hanging back too far when the dog was flushing, then when he was on point I couldn't get her over top of him. Therefore many chances were lost, she did have a rabbit squealing in cover but couldn't hold on and hit a pheasant in the air knocking it down but it got into a huge bush. Anyway they are out of season.

 

On Monday I arrived home to see that my neighbour had fed my hawk. Not a lot but enough to make her overweight. I stayed calm whilst telling him that she must never be fed. She has become a bit vocal of late and sometimes crashes into the window bars. There's also been some tail damage done which I put down to something in the aviary not being quite right but now I'm wondering if they have been throwing bits of food in and the hawk has been flinging herself around. I've explained why she can't be fed and that they might/ could have turned her into a screaming bird that would need putting to sleep or at least having to be passed on. They can't have done it very often because I'd have noticed but there has been a few occasions when she was over the weight I expected, but not enough to think foul play. I thought I'd just misjudged my feeding. Anyway it's done and won't happen again, I do trust them and I should have made sure they knew the hawk wasn't to be messed with.

 

I'd arranged to go ferreting yesterday with Will.i.am but I knew she would be overweight. However with more bad weather due I still went. The hawk wasn't putting in much effort and if she missed on her first attempt didn't try again. We had a malfunctioning locator box and ferrets killing in which meant digging through rocky ground or waiting until they moved. A difficult mornings ferreting but the hawk did get to catch a few rabbits so it was worth it. I'd left my phone on charge at home so no pics.

[Will-i-am 33]

owe dug the rock

[Accip74 7,112]

My hawk was heavy on Sunday and was hanging back too far when the dog was flushing, then when he was on point I couldn't get her over top of him. Therefore many chances were lost, she did have a rabbit squealing in cover but couldn't hold on and hit a pheasant in the air knocking it down but it got into a huge bush. Anyway they are out of season.

On Monday I arrived home to see that my neighbour had fed my hawk. Not a lot but enough to make her overweight. I stayed calm whilst telling him that she must never be fed. She has become a bit vocal of late and sometimes crashes into the window bars. There's also been some tail damage done which I put down to something in the aviary not being quite right but now I'm wondering if they have been throwing bits of food in and the hawk has been flinging herself around. I've explained why she can't be fed and that they might/ could have turned her into a screaming bird that would need putting to sleep or at least having to be passed on. They can't have done it very often because I'd have noticed but there has been a few occasions when she was over the weight I expected, but not enough to think foul play. I thought I'd just misjudged my feeding. Anyway it's done and won't happen again, I do trust them and I should have made sure they knew the hawk wasn't to be messed with.

I'd arranged to go ferreting yesterday with Will.i.am but I knew she would be overweight. However with more bad weather due I still went. The hawk wasn't putting in much effort and if she missed on her first attempt didn't try again. We had a malfunctioning locator box and ferrets killing in which meant digging through rocky ground or waiting until they moved. A difficult mornings ferreting but the hawk did get to catch a few rabbits so it was worth it. I'd left my phone on charge at home so no pics.

 

You did well to stay calm mate.

[pointer 543]

Yeah, they are great neighbours and have done us a lot of favours, I just didn't think I'd have to tell anybody not to feed a hawk. They come round to feed the chickens or see the dogs, I didn't think they would mess with the hawk. It's a lesson learnt.

[pointer 543]

owe dug the rock

Ok you dug the rock ha

[Accip74 7,112]

I had a neighbour who was bit too keen on the hawk as well, but keeping a good relationship with the neighbours makes life so much easier, what did they feed her?

[pointer 543]

Corned beef, not a lot but I would have thought everybody knows that a cooked, salty, fatty foodstuff isn't good for a hawk.

I still need to talk to them to make sure this will never happen again.

[youcanthide...BANG 1,051]

Some people are just dumb as f**k, cant be helped lol

[Accip74 7,112]

Corned beef, not a lot but I would have thought everybody knows that a cooked, salty, fatty foodstuff isn't good for a hawk.

I still need to talk to them to make sure this will never happen again.

 

Most people don't get it, my neighbour was offering me left overs from Sunday lunch lol & a lot were surprised when I said I fed raw meat.....

[pointer 543]

I took it for granted that nobody who can get near my hawk would feed her, my neighbours were told not to even stand about looking at her. It's happened and I'll have to get over it lol.

 

She caught a rat this morning,after it was dead and probably because I take them off her she dragged it into the bushes and I had to crawl in to get them out which will only make her worse. It made me a few minutes late for work.

[pointer 543]

This weekend was a waste of time, I went up the dales on Saturday morning with the hawk and pointer. After the dog searched a lot of land without finding anything we were getting back to where we had started ready to try the other side when the rain started. I drove up the valley and saw that the sky was blue at the horizon so I waited in the car for forty minutes until the rain stopped. Just as I was getting the hawk back out the wind started blowing and after a five minute walk it was clear we wouldn't be able to do anything more. The wind only got stronger for the remainder of Saturday and Sunday was even worse with gusts of over 45 mph.

It's Depressing.

[Accip74 7,112]

Get a gos mate! Lol the weather becomes a lot less of an issue.........they fly better in the wind & aren't so 'sponge like'

[pointer 543]

I don't think anything could fly in these winds...........well maybe a kite lol

Can a gos really fly better in stronger winds, I assumed a goshawk would get out even less than a Harris in bad weather. When my Harris gets blown away she battles back to me and we can often get something done by having her following on through a tree line etc.

I'd get a gos tomorrow if I thought I could find enough work for one but I think the scrappy bits of land I can walk across is more suited to the following on style of a Harris. Less chance of losing it etc but it's just something I've assumed.

[Accip74 7,112]

In my limited experience, I found it to be the case, they generally fly lower to the ground in pursuit & on return, than a harris does, plus being a Northern European bird, their plumage is more suited to the wet, especially after their first moult,when the feathers harden........

& you've got the best tool for the job, your pointer........jmho....but I'd think you would kill more over a pointer with a gos, than a harris & the flights will blow you away :-)

From your posts, you sound like you would have the patience for a goshawk as well.......

 

I never lost a days hunting with the gos because of weather conditions.............but in fairness....I flew mostly in woodland.

[pointer 543]

Well you've got me thinking

I've always assumed that my only choice of hawk would be a Harris due to time, land, inexperience etc etc. However it seems that some lads are now letting their gosses follow on sometimes and they can go ferreting, the odd squirrel and even hares.

 

A lad phoned me up on Saturday asking if my bird could catch crows, Maggie's etc plus hares on the 3500 acres of land he could get me on. I said no chance on the crows but maybe the hares but I have to admit that I wondered if a gos would be an option in the future as there's got to be pheasants, partridge etc on that flat dyke edged land.

 

I think I need more experience with a Harris but in the future who knows lol.