CarolM
Well-Known Member
Congratulations. Can't wait for the updates. He is gorgeous by the way.CHAPTER 3: Chicken
It used to be that you had to wait until October 1st to trap. Now we can trap earlier if we want to. It takes about three to four weeks to get a bird ready to hunt when starting from scratch with a passage red tail. Since hunting season for cottontails starts on October 1st, NOW is the time to catch a new bird and get it started.
With that in mind, my little girl and I started early this morning. At our third prospective spot we found a good candidate. We put our trap down under a dark chested youngster and then drove off in the distance to watch and wait. I had seen a brilliant white chested hawk stoop at prey near this area on Thursday, and that is the one I was looking for, but I didn't see him this morning. Our targeted bird came down and landed near the trap after about five minutes, but it didn't engage. After about a minute, it decided to fly off and go land on a distant pole. I pulled out the spotting scope to get a better look at him and see what he was doing over there. I figured we could wait a while and maybe he'd decide to come back. As I was setting up the scope at out targeted bird in the distance, I noticed movement in the foreground down near the trap which was about a quarter mile away. I tipped the scope down and started snapping pics. It was the white chested one from a few days ago swooping down to the trap! These two must be clutch mates. Two passage birds in the same area? He landed about 5 feet away from the trap and considered his options for a minute. Then, while we watched through the spotting scope, he waddled over like a chicken and hopped onto the trap.
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After less than a minute, I could see he was hooked up and we shot over there as quickly as we could. I jumped out and grabbed him with no drama. Unhooked him from the trap and gave a quick cursory exam. All looked good. Typical feather mite damage and sheep keds, but all good over all. Good meat on the keel, empty crop, clean clear eyes, minor scuffs on the feet, all flight feathers in great shape, beak, mouth and tongue all in good shape… A KEEPER!
Here is that ever-more-familiar fire breathing look:
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As I was taught, we hooded him and gently wrapped him up in a towel for the ride home. Ever wonder how birds breathe? And reptiles too? This shot just before hooding shows the opening to the trachea on the back of the tongue:
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That hole is where the air goes in and out and everything behind it is throat for swallowing food.
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We got home and attached the pre-made bracelets and stylish new black grommets that I picked up, inserted jesses, attached a leash, dusted on some mite powder, and then I proceeded to try to get him to simply stand on the fist for a minute. This is not always easy and it can take some time for them to be willing to learn it or even try it. Nope. Two hours after capture, everyone, meet "Chicken" contentedly sitting on a gloved hand:
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I didn't think he'd go for it, but I offered some water in a syringe and he drank like a pro! Weight was 992 which definitely confirms I've got a little male. After a rough morning for this little guy, I retired him to his hawk box for some peace and quiet for a little while.
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I'm very excited about this season. I've been talking to all the experienced falconers I can find, and I think I've picked up a few tips to improve upon what I did with Minerva previously. I'm trying out some new tips to make things even more positive for the new guy and his associations with me and our hunting dog. I will also get to experience the personality differences between a big giant female and a little male. And an early season bird verses a late season bird.
Oh yeah… The dog... I've decided to retire Sophie from hunting. She's 10 years old now and I don't want to push her past the point of what she can handle. Meet Charlie:
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He's very young, but if he's into rabbits, it will give me a good excuse to spend a lot of time with him and get him all trained up.
As usual, questions and conversation welcome!