Dave

[chamokane]

Hi,

My name's Dave. I live in northeastern Washington state. I have hunted with Redtail, Harris, Coops, Prairie, and Peregrine. Current birds are an 18 year old female RT, a 6 year old female Peregrine and a 4 year old male peregrine.

Dave

[everetkhorton]

Dave: Welcome, you are a busy guy flying three birds, What is Wash area like. I am from Mi. and hunt mostly sqr. in the woods. Very few rabbits in my area. Ducks but not good falcon area.

[`Chris L.]

Hi,

My name's Dave. I live in northeastern Washington state. I have hunted with Redtail, Harris, Coops, Prairie, and Peregrine. Current birds are an 18 year old female RT, a 6 year old female Peregrine and a 4 year old male peregrine.

Dave

Dave, Welcome to NAFEX. It is great to get more long wingers on here to help others that are just trying. I know I will want to fly a long wing soon and it will be great to be able to get help from you guys.

If you need an avatar made for your username just send me your favorite picture and I will make you one ( it takes me 5 min).
My email is: admin (at) nafex.net

How did your birds do this year?

I hope you enjoy the forums and please let me know if there is anything we can do for you

thank you again for joining the forums and saying hello.

[chamokane]

Dave: Welcome, you are a busy guy flying three birds, What is Wash area like. I am from Mi. and hunt mostly sqr. in the woods. Very few rabbits in my area. Ducks but not good falcon area.

Thanks for the welcome. I live in the mountains in mixed pine and fir forest. The game around my house is Snowshoe Hare and Ruffed and Blue Grouse. I used to hunt the Snowshoes but it takes a really good dog and mine got old. I have a pup but I'll have to see how he develops. There are a lot of turkeys too and they just opened a falconry season on them for the guys who fly eagles.

I drive 50-60 miles to get down into farming country and sagebrush to find rabbits and pheasant for the RT and Huns, pheasant and ducks for the falcons. I have two Pointers that work well with the falcons. I used to hunt jacks but their numbers have declined and they are closed to hunting.

I bet you really enjoy the squirrel hunting. I bet it keeps your hawk in shape too.

Dave

[chamokane]

Dave, Welcome to NAFEX. It is great to get more long wingers on here to help others that are just trying. I know I will want to fly a long wing soon and it will be great to be able to get help from you guys.

If you need an avatar made for your username just send me your favorite picture and I will make you one ( it takes me 5 min).
My email is: admin (at) nafex.net

How did your birds do this year?

I hope you enjoy the forums and please let me know if there is anything we can do for you

thank you again for joining the forums and saying hello.

Thanks, I'll send you a photo for the avatar.

This was the first slow season I've had in a long time. I got a late start due to circumstances and I quit early because the game was scarce. Next year should be better. I've arranged things so that I have no job and no promises to anyone except the birds and dogs. Now I'm just hoping for a dry nesting season for the game.

Here's a photo of Lucy on the only pheasant she caught this year.

Dave

[`Chris L.]

. There are a lot of turkeys too and they just opened a falconry season on them for the guys who fly eagles.

Dave

Dave, I would njoy hearing more about that. I have you seen any eagles take a turkey. I bet that is a great time.

Thanks, I'll send you a photo for the avatar.

T

Here's a photo of Lucy on the only pheasant she caught this year.

Dave

Great looking bird... I sure wish we had pheasant here.

just email me the avatar I will take care of it for you. [smilie=icon_thumright.gif]

[everetkhorton]

Dave: Nice looking falcon. I am lucky I have sqr. all around me, I could hunt them in my yard. I try to stay clear of fox sqr. Just to large. I think I took 8 or 10 of them this year. The first HH I had, the first time out chased a turkey, just to look at them. No action, but she followed the a long ways. Fun to see.

[chamokane]

Chris,

I wish you had pheasant too. I enjoy hunting them, they are sneaky.

The turkey thing is new and I haven't had a chance to talk to the eagle guys to see if they did any good. They live over on the west side. I should get a chance to talk to one or two of them in June. A couple of my neighbors have seen wild eagles take turkeys, and, driving down the road, I spooked one that was stalking a small flock.

The demons in the back of my head keep telling me I should see if my old Redtail could hold one long enough for me to get there. She's not as big as some eastern birds but she's pretty big for a western Redtail.

Dave

[buteoflyer2000]

I wonder how many HH in a cast would take a turkey??? Hmmm...

[RTJim]

Welcome Dave

Tell us about your HH's etc. I am interested to hear more about them. I have flown sharpie's, Coop's, RT's, and Finnish Gos.

My group that I hunt with on weekends have flown lot's of ducks this year.

jm [smilie=icon_thumright.gif]

[chamokane]

I wonder how many HH in a cast would take a turkey??? Hmmm...

The Harris Hawkers around New Orleans used to have a standing bet over whose birds would be the first to hold a turkey. The last I heard, no one had collected, but that was about 17 years ago. It could be a fun project though. Maybe a little dangerous for the hawks.

Dave

[chamokane]

Dave: Nice looking falcon. I am lucky I have sqr. all around me, I could hunt them in my yard. I try to stay clear of fox sqr. Just to large. I think I took 8 or 10 of them this year. The first HH I had, the first time out chased a turkey, just to look at them. No action, but she followed the a long ways. Fun to see.

Hmmm....I tried to reply to this before but I don't see it. If you end up with three replies, it's my fault.

How do you avoid the fox sqr? What kind of dog do you use?

The HH that I had was pretty small and that was back before the turkey explosion so I didn't see any turkey action. She did try to take a full grown Mule Deer once. That didn't work out real well.

Dave

[Jimmy]

I wonder how many HH in a cast would take a turkey??? Hmmm...

I know a few people that have taken them with a 2 bird cast. There's also a local falconer that has taken them with a single bird, a harrisxferrug.

[chamokane]

I wonder how many HH in a cast would take a turkey??? Hmmm...

I know a few people that have taken them with a 2 bird cast. There's also a local falconer that has taken them with a single bird, a harrisxferrug.

That's encouraging. At least we know it can be done.

Dave

[chamokane]

Welcome Dave

Tell us about your HH's etc. I am interested to hear more about them. I have flown sharpie's, Coop's, RT's, and Finnish Gos.

My group that I hunt with on weekends have flown lot's of ducks this year.

jm [smilie=icon_thumright.gif]

The only HH that I flew was a small female, 27 oz, but she was a lot faster than I expected. In her first year, hunting without a dog, she caught rabbits, pheasants and a teal. In her second year, I had a good terrier and she caught rabbits, Snowshoe Hare, jacks, quail, pheasants, teal, feral pigeons, a starling, a ground squirrel, and a few other things. She had a very sweet nature.

I've only flown two Coops, one male and one female, each one for only one season. I had plenty of time to fly the male and he did well on quail, sparrows, and feral pigeons. I liked the sparrow flights the best. I got most of the pigeons away from him unharmed and used them to train a passage Prairie.

When I flew the female, I only had time to hunt on week ends so I couldn't get her in shape. She caught a sparrow and a few Mountain Cottontails. It was hard for her to hold the rabbits because she only weighed 13 oz. which is about average for here. The action on the rabbits was fast and furious and I would do that again.

I've flown three Prairies. One big, fast female was such a pain to handle that I released her. A more average female was a dream to handle and I flew her for almost nine years. She did well on quail, huns, pheasant, and a lot of different ducks. She was killed by an eagle. A late trapped male was also a dream to work with. I trapped him too late to hunt but I tossed homers for him for a while. I had to be careful how I tossed the homers because he didn't have much trouble killing them.

I've had three Peregrines. I gave the first one away because the Prairie that I had at the time was a better bird. The two that I have now are probably about average. They have both caught Huns, pheasant and a lot of different ducks. The male has also caught quail. For a while before I retired, I used the Peregrines and pointers to do bird control around the runway at an air force base. I flew them each about five times a day at the base and then hunted Huns on the way home. They were in pretty good shape then. Twice, the male was attacked by a wild female Peregrine and both times he out flew her and chased her off. My female was noticeably faster than my male.

I'd like to here about your birds. I've never flown a sharpie or gos but I see a lot of them around my house.

Dave

[everetkhorton]

Dave; I do not use a dog. There is no sure way to avoid fox sqr. If I stay away from the real tall trees I seem to avoid them or if they go all the way to the top my RT will not go after them. I fly her at a higher weight so she will not take those folish shots at sqr. If I drop her weight she will take any shot she can to get them and that how I think they get bites and banged up. I also do not do anything to stop the sqr from going in a hole etc. I only take one head a day. I am thinking of changing next year, some hunts only last 5 min.

[chamokane]

Everet,

I appreciate your wisdom on weight control. I also appreciate the fact that you place the safety of your bird above the desire to see flights that may be more an act of desperation than of intelligent hunting. I think that the RT is about as tough as they come but it is still just flesh and bone.

I'll be interested to hear how your bird changes after you have been flying for multiples for a while.

Dave

[wesleyc6]

Hey Dave,
Glad you made it over here. We can talk more about birds here. smile. How is your pup doing? I took mine out two nights ago and we got a grinner. I am taking him tonight over to my friend Scott's house to work on some wild rats. Not much for a Jagd, but should be fun none the less. They killed like a 100 one night.

[Jimmy]

I am taking him tonight over to my friend Scott's house to work on some wild rats.

Having the minimeet without us?................... [smilie=angry5.gif]

[wesleyc6]

If ya load up now, you will beat me there. [smilie=banana.gif]

[everetkhorton]

Wes:
Are we talking Norway Rats? What is attracting all the rats? I have not seen a rat is many many years. As a kid we use to shoot them at dumps.

[wesleyc6]

Chicken houses seem to be the draw. I think we are talking about the very rare "soon to be dead" rat. [smilie=banana.gif]

[Jimmy]

You gonna save 'em for hawk food? Or just kill 'em and leave 'em?

[chamokane]

Hey Dave,
Glad you made it over here. We can talk more about birds here. smile. How is your pup doing? I took mine out two nights ago and we got a grinner. I am taking him tonight over to my friend Scott's house to work on some wild rats. Not much for a Jagd, but should be fun none the less. They killed like a 100 one night.

Hi Wes,

I'm glad you're getting a chance to get your dog out. Yesterday, my pup followed a track to a culvert that is mostly filled up with gravel. He dug his way in and after about fifteen minutes of digging and barking, he bolted six ground squirrels out the other end and he was hot after them. I was glad I didn't have to figure a way to dig him out. He seems plenty determined for a nine week old pup.

Have fun on your rat hunt.

Dave

[`Chris L.]

He dug his way in and after about fifteen minutes of digging and barking, he bolted six ground squirrels out the other end and he was hot after them. I was glad I didn't have to figure a way to dig him out. He seems plenty determined for a nine week old pup.

Dave

Dave,

you gotta love that for such a young dog..

[wesleyc6]

Jimmy,
Scott thinks we killed 40-50 rats. It was pretty fun. He fed the ones he shot with the bb gun. Some they shot with rat shot though. Took my dog a while to figure out what was going on, but he killed a few. He killed a 12 lb rat on the way out. [smilie=icon_pray.gif]

Dave,
The pup sounds like it is doing very well. Who is it out of?

[RTJim]

Wherni was a kid i had a rat terrier and we would go to the local farmers and get .05 per rat.......what fun we had! [smilie=banana.gif]

[chamokane]

Wes,

Hank is out of BruceXTicker fom the Wenner brothers in New Mexico. Bruce is Night Hunt (DacksXFly) and Ticker is from Bill Lee.

Most close ancestors were used on bear and cougar. I hope he can handle a bunny.

Dave