Thor 2011 imprint male gos -his hack

[goshawks00]

Thought I'd start his own thread ... He has been "at hack" since he could stand ( 17 days or so) , mostly in the house with ocassional forays out side. He started to seriously branch yesterday, and today spent a good deal of time outside in the yard. Here is a first pic of that from today...

32 days 760gr




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[FredFogg]

Nice Barry! Looking forward to reading about his hack! A question for you and others hacking birds, how far are you from the closest road and/or neighbors? The reason I ask is I would love to hack a bird but I live on 2.6 acres in town and have neighbors and a convenience store that is on the other side of my next door neighbor and I am hesitant to do a hack.

[AK Rev]

I've been looking forward to this one.

Fred, I'm sure you've heard of the prairie falcons that were hacked inside of St. Louis from a rooftop? McDermott mentions it briefly in his writings (they were successful and more than just one example) but I would love to hear more about the in-city hacks.

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

This is gonna be fun reading and I hope to see loads of photos.

Harry.

[DirtHawker]

Wow, long way from that little bundle when you brought him home. Please keep us posted on the progress,
Sue

[FredFogg]

I am no expert in accipter sexing but when most of the experienced folks talk about the shape of a males head, it can't be more obvious than in the picture Barry posted. Awesome shot Barry! clapp

[goshawks00]

Fred we are pretty rural here, closest neighbor is 1/4 mi. Bigest plus for hacking here is we have a lot of 100 year old trees on the property, soa he hacking is pretty self contained. Nearer to hard penning they will travel a bit farther down to the neighbors... All the neighbors are great about the hack and always call when any of them show up.. On several occassions I've called them after receiving signals from their places... and been told oh yea he/she is down sleeping on the patio furniture, or swhes in the garden playing ... Once,the old folks down the road called to tell us ..don't worry he's down here playing with their grandkids up in the tree houseclapp
Anyway day 33, hanging out on the back porch watching the rain... doing butt drags thinking he's bathing:D

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[AK Rev]

Great photo Barry. Is this the one out of Lou's pairing?

[goshawks00]

He is a wild taken eyas Mich. goshawk, the first in 40 years. Here are a couple of him making it to the bench on the back deck... As I type this he is under attack from a robin and the small wren that has made it's nest right around the corner on the deck...


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[AK Rev]

Wow...that's super groovy.

[goshawks00]

One more the makins' of a chicken hawk!!

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[jballone]

Barry, I think an eyas was taken last year.

[goshawks00]

Barry, I think an eyeas was taken last year.

Mind sharing who it was , I mean there were only what four permits given... and talking with Casey our permit contact she said there were none...

[goshawks00]

Thor is now experimenting with flying... and is able to do 3 foot vertical flights. He now has his new equipment, so starting tonight he will begin to be tied to a perch when brought in for the evening...

Day 34


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[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Great pictures! A touch of fluff in the eye.

My boy is 25 today, standing and flapping but can't stand and preen yet.

Harry.

[DirtHawker]

Barry, Love the posts. He is getting some personality.
Sue

[goshawks00]

37 days
It's been a couple days now so I thought I'd give a little update... Thor is getting more mobile all the time... I couldn't find him today after a couple of hours so had to get the telemetry out...



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He will sometimes come to the lure , but most often I will pick him up( he is standing on the glove now.. ) and take him to his food. With much whining and carrying on , he is brought in at around 7pm and tied to his perch and left on the blanket in the dining room for the evening. We tried leaving him loose in the house but he wanders so much and is beginning to want to perch higher up than the floor so he is relegated to his floor perch until being released in the morning...

[Zarafia]

Great thread, Barry! I will definitely be following it :)

[AK Rev]

Sneaky! clapp

[hcmcelroy]

A tame hack. Do you see him during the day?

Harry.

[goshawks00]

All the time... he's hangs on the fences, under the old truck , in the bushes,on the deck furniture etc.. The grandkids spent the day here today , so he got lots of pets, carrying, talking to etc... He goes for car rides if we run to town, but spends a big percentage of his time just avoiding the robins that find him no matter where he's at.

Big step today was I called him down from the shelf where he pics came from , down to the garage floor to the lure. It's those little things that are preparing him for when he finds himself on top of the garage or the 'big tree'.

The other big issue I didn't expect is the tom turkey is showing BIG interest in him when he runs across him. The posturing tells me he may want to pick a fight if given a chance, so we are all trying to extra vigilant while he is out..

[Chris L.]

Hi Barry,

I just caught up on this thread... I love it! I have always to do a hack but never had the nerve!

He looks great!

Thanks for taking the time to share this with us. It really helps shed some light on this.

I look forward to the updates

thanks again

Chris

[goshawks00]

42 days 788 grs.

Thor is doing great... It's been a few days since I've posted... On Tues. evening Thor was sitting on the railing , the one in several pics posts already when he was again 'attacked' by the Robin family. I didn't see it happen, but it became evident when I heard them cursing him not along the drive but in the front yard and about 40 ft up a big maple tree. He was well protected by the limbs but I do wonder how he had got there. It would have been a 100 ft flight and a 40 ft vertical to get to that position. Long story short, I had fed him about 2 hours before this and he a) wasn't hungry, b) didn't have a clue how to get down. He spent the night out. It rained , it blew, it thundered and lightening off and on all night.

Next day , in the afternoon after many tries, hopping back and forth among the limbs, he started to work his way down eventually ending up 15 ft above his lure. He made the last clumsy flight with a not so soft landing on the lure. After eating he was picked up (he now sits well on the fist) and put in his aviary for the day. Later that evening the same as every evening he was brought in and kept on his perch for the evening.

Thurs. he was turned loose again and he spent the day in the cedar tree preening and enjoying his freedom, that evening we had a bit of an issue with the wind and him not knowing how to fly into it, and worse, what happens when you turn down wind. He wound up landing several feet from his intended landing and hop/walked over to the lure.

Friday, it rained most all day so he spent the day in his pen watching the rain , taking baths,preening, and just hanging out. Later that evening he came in to his perch surrounded by 5 adults and 6 grandkids as they were making dishes for todays graduation party for 3 of our grandsons.

He has just eaten off his lure as always, and is in his pen for the morning, later when the party starts he will be brought out and left on his bow, for lots of pets, strokes and handling.

All is well, though I just realized he hasn't had any car time , so I'll have to start that up again as it is imperative to get him saturated with car exposure as I want to try crow hawking him this year early on...



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[adam norrie]

Hi Barry,

This is one of those threads where you want to read more and more. You are doing what a lot of Goshawkers would love to do. He is a good looking chap.
Looking forward to more news.

[DirtHawker]

He is looking really good, I am enjoying your thread please keep us posted.
Sue

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Beautiful hawk! The thread is grand reading. Keep it going.

Harry.

[goshawks00]

Thanks Harry, he is just about on pace with the other hacked goshawks I've done... He is branching well now , but does seem to be a bit behind in exploratory flying. He seems very content to stand or lay around on the bigger branches, preening and just observing. One little twist I notice in him that I've seen in a few others but not all, is his fascination in bugs, ants, spiders and other crawlies. He will go out of his way to walk up a limb to get to one then either cock his head up side down to make sense of them, or beak flick or try to foot them... It's kind of comical to watch him, and maybe it's just training for eye foot co-ordination.

One other observation is that he is not a big eater, which may or may not become an issue later in his hack. Today he was 789 grams so he is maintaining his weight, yet on a good day he will consume 2/3 or so of skinned quail. That to me is a bit low but you can't make them eat if they don't want to... It also tells me he will be a big tiercil, as once his appetite picks up along with his exercising he will eat more and at a minimum I think maintain that weight...or gain, I think... We'll see.

[goshawks00]

45 days 785 grams

Thor is finally losing his down at a slower pace Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

We have started his car rides again and after discovering windshields, he settled into watching the world go by. His favorite perch is on the folded up arm rest in the pickup, and will ride there without reservation. On the way back from the store yesterday we came upon a couple of youngster crows, so I slowed way down and he was all eyes and stretched necked with interest when we went by. Unbeknown-st to those crows they were 10 feet and a few weeks from their death angel.

He continues to come in and get tied to his bow perch for the evening and most of his evening meal.. I believe the earlier you start teaching them restraint the easier it is for them to accept it. We expose them to as much as we can so they learn their lessons while young and easily molded hoping to broaden their acceptance of things later in life. Tethering is just one more lesson the will have to learn.

Today we are having sustained 20-25 mph winds, and Thor is getting schooled. Several times I've tracked him down along the treed north property line and found him 'playing' with the wind. He lifts off flaps his wings then grabs the branch he's on.hanging on for dear life so he doesn't get blown away. I haven't seen him 'lose ground' so I guess he is getting the hang of it. I just got back from finding him again , and he was just standing there one footed soaking it all in no care in the world.







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[adam norrie]

Hi Barry,

I love this thread. I never hacked a Gos, but it brings back memories of the games they play whilst growing up. I wonder if you get to see his first chase at birds whilst at hack.
Will you be feeding him on the quarry you will eventually fly?

[goshawks00]

Hi Barry,

I love this thread. I never hacked a Gos, but it brings back memories of the games they play whilst growing up. I wonder if you get to see his first chase at birds whilst at hack.
Will you be feeding him on the quarry you will eventually fly?

Eventually he will turn the tables on his tormentors, but my experience has been the first kills will be baby birds in nests. As far as feeding quarry that he will hunt, yes at some point we will establish a prey image of sorts so that he will recognize fur and feather. There was guy that used a plastic type crow decoy with food tied to eat for his gos. Novel idea and i believe the gos killed the first crow it actually chased.

[adam norrie]

Thanks Barry,

I really like the photo's of him in the tree.

[goshawks00]

day 45

Thor has been spending the afternoon everyday in a chamber,he gets called down to the lure, given a few bites, picked up, taken to the chamber and fed the rest of his meal in there.

Today about 3pm I went out to call him down, not sure what to expect as the winds have picked up to 30+mph, and he has been all over the property in the trees. When I got near his pen, I was surprised to see him standing on the door to the pen. I went back in the house got the camera and took a few pics. When I tossed the lure in the chamber he went right in... grabbed the lure and food then proceeded to toss, catch and play with it , for a couple of minutes then began to eat. I'm not sure if this is a one off deal or not , but it will be interesting to see if this is a start of a pattern.. I hope so. It also reminds me that it's near time to start feeding him some meals in his GH for future use.



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[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

He is looking good! The tail is way down!!! Are you feeding once per day?

Harry.

[goshawks00]

Barry,

He is looking good! The tail is way down!!! Are you feeding once per day?

Harry.
No he still is being fed three times a day, though he isn't eating much at any one time...

[Lee Slikkers]

Wow Barry...he's almost all grown up already :D Looking forward to following along...

[goshawks00]

day 46 /788 grams

Thor had an early breakfast, was wired up and released. I kept closer tabs on him this morning seeing where he was hanging out. As suspected, he was all over the place, never spending to much time in any place, and was everywhere from near ground level to the tops of the trees. It's neat to see him becoming more and more Mobile, learning his surroundings.

After skipping lunch, I went out to feed him this afternoon (5pm), but decided to test him a bit. Rather than do the telemetry drill, I stood on the porch and called him. Nothing. About 5 minutes later I went back out and called him again, this time I heard a distinct alarm call, but still no sign of him. After another 5 minutes or so I went out again and called, this time, right over my head in the ancient Walnut tree , he cakked at me. It was one of foolish juvenile, wise crack type response, the 'I'm full of it" kind.

Ah-ha so he did come looking for me... !!

A few fly bys and he was again on top of the door to the chamber. Again I tossed his food in and again he went in to play/eat it. As I type he is dripping wet, having eaten and now bathed. I think I'll let him dry himself and bring him in about dark..

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

That is advanced management. Will he will be hunting in another week to ten days?

Harry.

[goshawks00]

Barry,

That is advanced management. Will he will be hunting in another week to ten days?

Harry.

I don't know Harry what's your take?

Some of my thinking--It's a day before July 1, and the hottest weather is coming. We really don't have a hunting season here in Mich for a while yet, unless I did ferals ( pigeons/starlings/E. sparrows). I could do some bag work and set up some real hunting type situations, and at some point I will do that , but the hack is so easy and laid back..

I just kind of hate to rush him into killer mode. He shows he is ready I suppose some times, esp. if you consider all the games he plays with bugs, his lure or a hundred other distractions that are flooding his mind.

Obviously tippy toe time is coming as there would have to be sort of weight reduction involved in putting 'that spark', 'that fire' in his eye.

I kind of liken it to today's society, everyone wants their kids to grow up, hurry up, be mature, learn responsibility, press them hard... yada, yada, yada, I know I did it too, and I see it happening with our grandkids. I am feeling stronger and stronger about the "let them be kids" idea , you know going back to the good old days when life was taken at a slower more relaxed pace..... Heck he will be a killer for life, I'm all for allowing a bit more innocence for now.

I hope that doesn't make me look soft.

[sevristh]

I hope that doesn't make me look soft.

:eek:

[Chris L.]

I kind of liken it to today's society, everyone wants their kids to grow up, hurry up, be mature, learn responsibility, press them hard... yada, yada, yada, I know I did it too, and I see it happening with our grandkids. I am feeling stronger and stronger about the "let them be kids" idea , you know going back to the good old days when life was taken at a slower more relaxed pace..... Heck he will be a killer for life, I'm all for allowing a bit more innocence for now.

I hope that doesn't make me look soft.


Barry,

I couldn't agree more. It is the same philosophy I have adopted with my birds... Keep on keeping on!

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

I don't know about you but I'm deffinately getting soft. Some years ago I got hawks out and flying early and the very few that were advanced took birds within a day or two. But now I prefer to hold back and fly at a relatively higher weight and let things develop.

My tame hack is quite different from yours and involves less management skill.

Harry.

[Lee Slikkers]

Harry, can you describe your thoughts or plans for your Hack? I would be interested to hear some ideas on this subject. Thanks~

[goshawks00]

Hi Lee, haven't heard much from you lately... I think Harry may be coming out with a book describing his techniques called "Desert Hacking With a Little Help From My Friends". Not sure of the publishing date, or the price, but I too hope he will give us all some short excerpts of it here.. What do you say Harry, can we have some crumbs? toungeout

[hcmcelroy]

Lee,

It is quite basic and nothing inventive but for this area it presents only limited risk. The hawk is trained on the creance after it is hard penned then taken to the open desert only a few minutes from home and flown in the early hours before there is much heat. Normally there is a month or more of this before quail season opens so I have a chance tune in the flight weight. Usually I toss a few sparrows during this time and quickly learn the innate skill level of the student and its overall personality. From what I see the aplomado is the most complex and requires some adjustment in management. Many of them require an hour to play with a sparrow before eating and hopping to the fist.
I had one female gos that was super fast that never lost a sparrow. She played with everything in her life and would take the sparrows to the ground and lay down roll over on her back and release the sparrow then snatch it as it tried to fly. After a while she would pull a secondary or two and keep playing until eventually eating.

Harry.

[Lee Slikkers]

Hi Lee, haven't heard much from you lately... I think Harry may be coming out with a book describing his techniques called "Desert Hacking With a Little Help From My Friends". Not sure of the publishing date, or the price, but I too hope he will give us all some short excerpts of it here.. What do you say Harry, can we have some crumbs? toungeout

I hope Harry's new book comes with a set of "balls" as that seems to be the part of the equation I am missing :D

Things are ok here, been "offline" for awhile dealing with Lyme disease and I had a relapse of the crap about 6 weeks ago but I am hoping coming around.

I have a female Gos coming from Becky/Richard and can't wait for this season to start!

Thanks~

(sorry to hijack the thread, it wasn't my intent)

[hcmcelroy]

Berry,

I can do the excerpts if you will do the other parts.

Lee,

Hope the infection will leave soon and permanently.

Harry.

[Lee Slikkers]

Thanks Harry...our health is all we really have. Here's to a better 2011!

[goshawks00]

[QUOTE=hcmcelroy;195303]Berry,

I can do the excerpts if you will do the other parts.


Herry,
haha, sorry I don't really need the money, I make enough breeding birdstoungeout
Barry

btw two days in a row Thor has been on his chamber door waiting to be fed his evening meal... Yesterday was a fresh killed starling which he took at least an hour to dissect, feather by feather.

[goshawks00]

day 50 771 grams

Thor is getting better on the wing, and is beginning to do more flying around. That said we had an accident... As I have always said go into a hack with both eyes open. Things can and sometimes do happen. Yesterday was hot here , esp. for Mich. and it got up to 99* w/72 % humidity. Some where in the afternoon, while I was working on a project the grandkids came running out to me and said Thor hit a window. Faith said she saw him hit it, but was sure that he hit it with his shoulder. When I got to him he was standing on the deck by the kitchen window. Not moving he was staring at the wall. I went to pick him up and he wobbled away from me, on unsteady legs. Eventually I got him up on the fist and brought him in. Within an hour his eyes were beginning to droop, and he was uncharacteristically quiet and subdued. His eyes are not dilated and pupils equal and responsive.

After watching him for a couple hours, I thought he might need something for a headache and went to see a re-hab friend for advice... She recommended Meloxicam (sp). So it took 2 hours to get to her house , get the meds and come home. I really didn't want to catch him up and stress him with dosing him and thought about it all the way home. By then it was 5 hours since he hit the window, when I came into the house I found him standing wide awake with no signs of injury. I toyed with him a few minutes , and he inquisitively turned his head upside down and nibbled at my fingers. I had offered him food an hour after the window issue and he had no interest in it, but now when I offered it again he readily jumped down to the lure and proceeded to eat a half a breast of quail without effort. One thing I did notice he does a lot of wing and tail stretching.

I decided to hold off on the meds and see how he did through the night, and checked on him several times overnight.. As of this morning he appears to be fine, ate well, and is now sitting outside in his mew while we get ready for church... . I won't be turning him lose today, and will evaluate him later this evening. Prognosis is good, it's just one of those things that happen.




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[Lee Slikkers]

Wow Barry, scary stuff...very glad to hear that Thor appears to be suffering no after effects of the collision. We'll keep our fingers crossed for the both of you.

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Those things could happen under most any circumstance. Recovery sounds good and I hope for the best.

At 50 days now how much longer before he hard penns?

Harry.

[goshawks00]

Usually they pens between 60-65 days. How's your dust ball doing?

[sevristh]

Barry,
Glad he's okay! I had a RT that hit a window and completely knocked herself out. I was convinced she was dead until she began moving as I was starting back for the truck with her. She recovered completely, but hit two more windows in separate instances later on. Never as hard as the first time, and neither time did she lose the squirrel she had. Every time was a nerve wracking experience though.

[ikcus]

Glad to hear he is doing well Barry. Anytime a window is involved with a hawk, it is always scary.

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

How is Thor doing this morning? I hope he is completely well.

My boy Quixote is doing well and is curious, play full, flying all over the house, eager to the lure. Now 42 days he weighed 759 at 40 days. He is at ease with the dogs, horses and strangers. Relaxed in the mew. He now likes to fly up high to perch. But put your ear plugs in he likes to peep before meals and may open up any time now!!!
I've imprinted all sorts of hawks since the 60's and followed an outline from a Calif. falconer and hand fed aplomados but this is the first accipiter I've hand fed. But I've always brought the food to them directly and handled them as they ate so I have always been guilty of the dreaded food association. This will be interesting but so far I see no problems.

Harry.

[AK Rev]

Very interested to hear how both Barry's and Harry's birds turn out. The hand feeding is of particular interest of course. Best of luck to both of you.

[adam norrie]

Hi Harry,

The method you are using now is how I raised My male gos, Denis all those years ago. I always took the food to him. He did scream at the start, but once he had a few kills under his belt, the noise was reduced to now and again. But once he was well into the season, there was no noise at all, his focus was on the quarry and not me. He was flown at a higher weight, which allowed him too much freedom, though he had the ability and power to hunt partridges through out the season.
When into his second/third season I was able to raise his condition further, without any loss of control. In fact he got better.
Good luck with you little chap.

[hcmcelroy]

Adam,

It was a few years ago. But how many? As you know there is a balance between keeping them high and yet responsive so I would like to play that one with a fine toothed comb. Here the predators encourage is to fly thin with good lure response. Flying through that period when they scream around the mew etc. takes some patience but is common with most of my imprinted accipiters. This one peeps as we approach dinner.

Harry.

[adam norrie]

Hi Harry,

It must be around 13-14 years ago, wow. His high condition was too high the first year, once a flight went to cover, he would float around looking for something else to chase. Cleaned food bought him back to a more manageable state.

I know you have to watch out for other predators, something we don't worry about. Do you have pictures of your new hunting partner?

[hcmcelroy]

Adam,

Do you post pictures to NAFEX? Beth and Looked it over this morning and did not do well. If you post pictures what system do you use and can you detail it for us?

Yes, I take a few pics of this gos every few days.

That was some years ago with your outstanding gos and now you have moved on to longwings I guess.

Harry.

[sevristh]

Adam,

Do you post pictures to NAFEX? Beth and Looked it over this morning and did not do well. If you post pictures what system do you use and can you detail it for us?

Yes, I take a few pics of this gos every few days.

That was some years ago with your outstanding gos and now you have moved on to longwings I guess.

Harry.

Harry,

Just create an account on www.photobucket.com and upload your pictures there. It's free. After you upload them, it will give you a couple different codes under the pictures. The one you want is the IMG code. Copy that code from the photobucket page and paste the code into your post. Once you hit submit, that code will become the photo.

[adam norrie]

Harry,

There you go, full instructions, photobucket is very easy to use once you have up loaded your pictures onto it.
Yes, Denis was a long time ago, but I think about him often, especially when spotting partridges with friends flying longwings. I find myself saying Denis would have caught that one.
Yes, now onto long wings, and fingers crossed I have one of those special Peregrines that show such potential. She does have the power and desire.

Hi Barry, sorry to have gone off course, I really like what you are doing, a dream for many falconers. I am so glad Thor is well.

[hcmcelroy]

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[AK Rev]

All right Harry! Is that your first photo posted online? Nice.

[hcmcelroy]

Thanks for the help Dave it went well. Yes, this is Beth's 1st to NAFEX. She will try to reduce the next one.

Harry.

[hcmcelroy]

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[hcmcelroy]

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[hcmcelroy]

I reduced the second try in photo shop but it still looks just as big so maybe mor help is in order..........http://i1177.photobucket.com/albums/x341/hcmcelroy/donQuijoteandme.jpg

[goshawks00]

day 53 776 grams

Yesterday for the first time Thor left the property flying about an 1/8th mile down the creek line. After a good while, I went down to see what he was up to and found him buried in a thicket, standing on a branch about 4 foot off the ground. I was able to get to him and brought him home w/o incident. This was the first day I had turned him loose since his window incident.

Today I turned him out after his breakfast, and he flew to the bird bath and got a drink then went to the backyard hedge to play with the pine cones on the ground. I sat there for a while and watched him... Every since I started hacking him he has had a real preference to going to the trees so it was fun to watch him on the ground.

After a while a small band of 4 guineas, decided they had had enough of him and they started sneaking up on him. Evidently he saw them and when they got close enough he reversed rolls on them and started chasing them. This is the first time I've seen any of this type activity from him towards bigger than ant game. He three times charged them before they buggered off. Now he is again under the pines tossing cones and rolling around.



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http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x301/bollette/IMG_2165Medium.jpg

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Great to see he looks fully recovered. The tail is quite long I guess you are going to start checking it soon.

I can't believe that much green. Our monsoon finally moved in and we are about to have rain. At least it is overcast and we could see rain in much of the hunting area..

Harry.

[adam norrie]

day 53 776 grams

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x301/bollette/IMG_2095Medium.jpg

]

Hi Barry,
Another lovely picture of Thor, he looks immaculate.

Hi Harry,

Glad you got the hang of posting pictures, no stopping you now.

[JRedig]

Thanks for the updates Barry, great pictures. I'm really loving all the imprint threads this spring/summer, thanks to everyone for keeping them rolling!

[pj_elia]

Hey Barry, Where are you keeping Thor after calling him down for the evening? Phil and I are keeping his in an outside whethering area with an A-Frame shelter. He is at hack most of the day and after calling him down to the lure and spending some time with him we put him in the whethering area for the night but he jumps around at the end of the leash more than I would like him to if its not completely dark. He's about a day or two younger than Thor.

[goshawks00]

Hi Phil how have you been, haven't seen you or Paul in quite a while now eh!?!
Thor goes outside about 7am after a good feed. I will track him down, if not seen, 5-6-7 times a day, and just hang out near him. Somewhere around 12-2 pm he is called down to the lure and given his lunch, which is usually a half a quail breast, or a full sparrow carcass. I will pet and fool around with him while he eats , and then just walk away when he is done.
At 6-8pm he is given his evening meal, which amounts to a small feed on the lure and while eating I hook him up. Once he is done he is picked up, brought in to the house and put on his bow which is on the floor. At that point he is given the rest of his meal--- basically a full quail so he can take his fill of it. The last few days I haven't opened it for him , I wet it down really well ( stops SOME feathers floating around while eating) and toss it with his lure for him to eat.

Now then to your question- they are hard wired to want to roost up in the canopy so they all will get fidgety near dusk. I know this..so what I do is draw the curtains down ( remember he is in the house) so he doesn't see dark... and give him full light in the dining room where he stays. For that reason --I think- he isn't so antsy, though he will make some minor protests about being tied to his perch. A few times he has acted up a bit, and when he does, he gets a dark time out. When that happens he will settle down and lay down on the carpet on the floor and go to sleep. Some times I can give him a time out, (10-15 minutes) then turn the light back on and he is fine... When he does 'straighten up I will leave the light on for lots of family contact through out the evening. Lights out by 10:30 pm.

I am sure you can see this same uneasiness with all your goshawks at or near dusk. I know I do. It's either the 'witching' hour when goshawks innately know they need to eat or go without until morning, OR they know they need to find a safe perch for the night. It doesn't go away , but will become the normal as far as what you can expect from any goshawk.

It's supposed to rain here this evening, and because Thor was sitting or the deck furniture I pickep him up and brought him in...

Here's a pic of where he stays in the house.

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x301/bollette/IMG_2181Medium.jpg

[JRedig]

I am sure you can see this same uneasiness with all your goshawks at or near dusk. I know I do. It's either the 'witching' hour when goshawks innately know they need to eat or go without until morning, OR they know they need to find a safe perch for the night. It doesn't go away , but will become the normal as far as what you can expect from any goshawk.


I see this morning and night with my gos in the free loft. The one thing that seems to curb his uneasiness is food. If he eats in the evening within 2-3 hours of dark, he usually retreats to his sleeping corner without much bouncing around. When he wakes up in the morning, if he has a meal right off the bat, he'll usually just sit around and preen or sun himself. If he ate all his food the night before, he's usually very antsy until I give him something to pluck or eat. Of course, there are no "every time he does this" scenario's here, these are "most of the time".

[goshawks00]

. Of course, there are no "every time he does this" scenario's here, these are "most of the time".


clappfrus)confuseddcrazyy

[goshawks00]

[QUOTE=hcmcelroy;196086]
Great to see he looks fully recovered. The tail is quite long I guess you are going to start checking it soon

Harry I'm not that guy, hard penning is not that important to me. As I've said before I am going to take him slow and let him tell me when he is ready to get serious. I saw a hint of it today when he took on all three guineas , w/o any fear. It was play for sure, but it did have, and come from, deeper darker roots.
I have all summer to feel him out, that is one of the nice things about this type of hack, there is no pressure or time table, just fun and games,and I'm enjoying the ride

[FredFogg]

[QUOTE=goshawks00;196133I saw a hint of it today when he took on all three guineas , w/o any fear. It was play for sure, but it did have, and come from, deeper darker roots.
[/QUOTE]

Barry, he is starting to feel the "force"! LOL :D

Very good information on the daily hack! clappclapp

[pj_elia]

Barry,

Thanks for the detailed info. What you describe sounds ideal to me. Unfortunately, neither of our wives will tolerate the hawks anywhere in the house except the basement. My house looks like a nursery school with kids and baby stuff everywhere. I understand the restless activity in the evening as I see it with my other goshawks but he just started doing it this past week and I was hopeing that it would be awhile longer before he started acting all grown up. Thanks again for sharing.

PS- I have some news to share with you about Tony D. I'll send you a PM.

Our boy is in the front in this picture. Middle chick was a week younger than the other two.

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y186/pj_elia/Maine%20Gos%202011/IMG_8728.jpg

[hcmcelroy]

Paul,

My boy began to seek a higher perch at about day 40 and instead of using the usual solution of placing hawks in a travel box in a darkened room for the night I decided to play with alternatives. His imprint box is 48" square coroplast with large windows cut out on each side. I first attached a perch high in one corner and he was satisfied for a couple days but began to bounce about at sunset again. Next I draped a bed spread over the top which covered only two windows and he seems ok but I remain unconvinced. If he bounces some today I will draw down the outside sun shade that will block his view to the outside moderately. If the other windows in the imprint box are covered that may solve the problem??? Time will tell. Or the 4 windows could be blocked each evening using coroplast...

Harry.

[pj_elia]

Harry,

That seems about right for us. I guess around 40-42 days old he started not want to sleep in his nest box or stay on a low perch. At first we left in untethered in a weathering pen but then he started jumping against the chainlink. Then we theathered him and he bates off the perch until it gets dark. We are hood training him and sometimes slip that on him in the evening. Yesterday while at tame hack, I found him in the neighbors yard with a young girl checking him out. He had obviously taken a recent bath somewhere and was still wet. He came back over to my yard and an hour later I called him down. I live in a very suburban neighborhood directly adjacent to baseball and softball fields, tennis courts, a playground and a lot of activity. He will definately be making friends with the locals before his hack is done.

Done hijacking your thread, sorry Barry.

[goshawks00]

day 55 776 grams

Thor is well, and I suspect beginning to pen. Yesterday and again this morning, he appears a bit "pissy', whining about everything. The slightest movement, or restraint. Scale manners are not to good either, as he bated of them as if i were putting him on a hot plate. I believe these are typical signs of penning. Everything is magnified in intensity it seems. Rather than letting out today, I put him in his chamber to weather, as I have to go to town later today , and will get more car/riding exposure.
He's ...well.. becoming a goshawk.

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Sounds like Thor is about to become a teenager. I guess that your management routine will intensify soon.

My boy at 46 days was able to get up on the ceiling fan blades to perch and inspect today. He can move about now. I fitted coroplast covers for each of the windows of the imprint box so we'll see if he is happier at sunset with that otherwise it will be a travel box in a dark room for the night.

Harry.

[goshawks00]

day 55 775 grams
Just a short snip for Fri.
I watched him fooling around in the ancient walnut tree off our rear deck. He was jumping and flipping and acting a fool, when all of a sudden something came falling out of the tree into the yard. Right behind it was Thor doing this descending spiral of some type, surely the first time he ever tried it.
Anyway he stomped around on the ground for a couple of minutes then went back up into a maple tree . Curiosity got to me and i went to see what he had been playing with... Surprise it was an Actias luna!! We find them every so often but this is about as early as I can ever remember.
The grandkids have several 'bug buster' lights that turn on when they come out, and they will get up several times in the night and go check them out for what moths are drawn to them, Every year they 'trap' a couple and keep them for a day or two then release them. Anyway just thought I'd share a little bit of todays adventures... Life is good even if there are bumps in the road.

[goshawks00]

day 56 774 grams
There was a Celtic Festival in town today so we can home around noon to call down Thor and head into the festival. A good friend or 3-4 of us were showing thier falconry birds there and Karen and I were invited to bring Thor down to it. This was his first big exposure to such a large group of people and I wondered how he would handle that and the noises, etc. with penning approaching. He did great, many kids petted and spent lots of time talking to him, which he "enjoyed"considering how hot it got. The ride to and from went w/o a hitch and he is currently hanging out on the back porch waiting to get called in...

When I called him down today the wife called me over to one of the old pens and showed me this....

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x301/bollette/IMG_2188Large.jpg


It's a Cecropia moth...


Also here he is waiting to be fed... the obligatory bird on the bird feeder pic.

http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x301/bollette/IMG_2198Medium.jpg

[wyodjm]

Really nice Barry. Nice job.

Best,

Dan

[ikcus]

Wonderful thread Barry. Thank you so much for sharing.

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

That moth is a beauty. I've seen them but perhaps a different species?

Thor must be in great form to handle the festival.

Harry.

[goshawks00]

He was pretty much bullet proof, esp. considering a) he's an accipiter<G>, b) there were 8 other hawks/falcons/ owls there with him. The only time I saw him actually get nervous, and even then he didn't bate, was when a long line of kids walk by , twice following a man in a dress, playing a bag pipe. The noise as it drew closer caused him to slick down, get wide eyed, and a bit fidgety on his perch, but once they passed he calmed down.
btw day 57 771 grams
He is hanging out staying in the shade, it's supposed to get in the 90's today, so I hope to call him down and put him in the chambers to bath. He is not a big bather, not like some of the other hacked goshawks I've had. Early on in his hack it rained a lot here, along with thunder/lightening, and I wonder if that has anything to do with it? I've had several that were like ducks, and you had to pick up the water pan so they would dry off.

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

It is strange how some hawks love the water. In the 60's we were flying imprinted Cooper's in the Tucson area in the morning. After hawking we sprayed them on the way home and when the mew door was opened they flew straight to the bath and plunged in.

I've had imprinted aplomados that played in the bath all day and had to change the water twice per day because it turned brown.

Harry.

[colelkhunter]

Barry,
just wanted to take minute and say thanks for posting this hack with Thor. I am sure i speak for others when i say it has been on of the best threads I have read and followed in a long time. Pretty much a step by step instructional on how to properly hack a goshawk. It is always a pleasure to have information like this handed down from a true master falconer with as much experience as you have with accipiters.

[goshawks00]

Harry you made me think a bit, every goshawk, but three, I've flown in the last near two decades (close to 20) were all related( 1st/2nd/or 3rd gen.) so it is very possible it might have been in their make-up to do so. Thor is totally unrelated and that may have something to due with it... Then again he is a goshawk so it may have absolutely nothing to do with it alsonoidea

[goshawks00]

day 57 771 grams

It's what I feared, what I always feared,I knew it was a matter of time. Tragedy struck this afternoon. After church I came home to find Thor under the pines playing 52 pickup with all the pine cones. As it was getting warm I got him a wing of quail to play with, and left him there as I changed water for the other goshawks, then I forgot about him. About 4 I picked up the receiver to locate him and got no signal...and checked the receiver with another trans to make sure it was working which it was. I walked the property trying to get a signal with no luck... Gulp...he was gone...

I went back to where I last saw him and there in the pine litter was a lone turkey tail feather. I have several times seen the turkey stalking Thor and it worried me that he finally ran into Thor. I weaseled my way further into the pines, and I found him. There spread out, laying on his side, wings awkwardly fanned out was Thor.

As I got nearer to him he slowly raised his head and gave a small whimpering noise. It was almost more than I could stand... as I got closer to him he again whimpered, stood up, roused and came over to me... Yep, as I suspected his transmitter was dead.

[JRedig]

Great story telling Barry, you had me going!:D

[FredFogg]

Barry, your are evil and should be destroyed! LOL Man, I had this huge lump in my throat and then had to swallow it as I laughed. clappclappclapp

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Gulp! that was some tale and too stimulating!

Harry.

[ikcus]

If you lived closer, I would #$%!@^&* you up. Whooooahhh, you had me going. :D Good job Barry.

[sevristh]

I went back to where I last saw him and there in the pine litter was a lone turkey tail feather. I have several times seen the turkey stalking Thor and it worried me that he finally ran into Thor. I weaseled my way further into the pines, and I found him. There spread out, laying on his side, wings awkwardly fanned out was Thor.

As I got nearer to him he slowly raised his head and gave a small whimpering noise. It was almost more than I could stand... as I got closer to him he again whimpered, stood up, roused and came over to me... Yep, as I suspected his transmitter was dead.

I'm confused... Did the he get hurt by the turkey or...? confusedd

[AK Rev]

Geez Barry...

[goshawks00]

I'm confused... Did the he get hurt by the turkey or...? confusedd

Bill the turkey like everything else here is molting hence the finding of the turkey feather.

Thor was lazying out in the cool of the pines when I found him , not a care in the world.
.
Now then my biggest fear with hacking isn't something bad happening to the hawk , but rather losing the hawk which has no hunting skills and not being able to recover it. The trans in question is an ancient Merlin Spec. from Luksander. In fact it is the very first trans I bought 20 years ago. In all these years it has never failed me... and you know how that makes Murphy look.
Luckily I have two tail mount Merlin trans , so I took the tail mount off one of them which allows it to now be leg mounted, and cut the antenna to about 2" . That should work until I can get a new Merlin Spec. from Louie
Hopefully within a day or two if I get it over nighted.

[pj_elia]

Hey Barry, Thor sounds like a great bird. We had a few hicups this weekend but all went well in the end. First was that he bent a tail feather in the box one morning during a 2 minute drive around the block where he was going to get his morning baggie/lure feeding. The box is dark and he was hooded but that didn't matter. A couple bates and it was bent. Then he carried the sparrow and wouldn't come down. Then Phil checked the scout transmitter on him and it was dead. The battery lasted less than a week. Anyway he was fine and came down hours latter when phil returned. We had neighbors stop by a few times asking if the bird got loose. He was bathing in a pupple in one yard. Laying on a path under a shade tree in another. I think he's introduced himself to every immediate household.

The next two car trips this weekend we had him hooded and then unhooded on a perch. Either way he wouldn't sit still and we were lucky no other feathers were bent. I'm guess taking him the car early does not help things much at this stage. We'll see in the long run.

How was your car ride?

[hcmcelroy]

Paul,

A transmitter going at such a critical time must be quite a thrill. Is your male hard penned? Can you explain your hooding system and is it going on easily?

Thanks,

Harry.

[BestBeagler]

A little bit of of forsight goes a long way in these situations. The Gos I had from Barry rode in the car without a problem I left the leash on him and let him loose in the car with moderate restraint so that he wasnt bouncing wild but learned what windshields and windows were. He figured that out as he was just learning to perch. We will see what this years coops is like it's about time he learned what windsheilds are as well. Isaac

[Lee Slikkers]

Aravis my imprint female Gos (45 days) has been riding in the truck since I picked her up on Wednesday. All the way back from the airport...to the kids parks, library, etc, etc. this weekend we drive 3 hours north to our folks cabin and she rode perched on the rail of her baby basket the entire trip up and down. no issues at all...

I probably need to decide if I'm gonna hood train her or not though...confusedd

[pj_elia]

Paul,

A transmitter going at such a critical time must be quite a thrill. Is your male hard penned? Can you explain your hooding system and is it going on easily?

Thanks,

Harry.

He is not hard penned yet and as for hooding, its been nothing special so far. We always use a hood that is a little larger than normal. The beak opening needs to fit but the closure is usually loose enough that a determined bird could throw it but none of our goshawks ever have. A passage RT with a hood that loose that would most likely get it off. The hood for this male is a Female Gos hood from Ray Gilbertson (size 9??) and it fits him great. We generally hood him once or twice a day for a brief period. The hood was kept with him most of the time in the nest box. It was never left on him for more than a few moments until he was around 40-45 days old. At this point (@53 days old) we have left it on him a couple of times for a few hours and a bunch of other times for very short periods. A few days hasn't seen to hood at all. There is no scheduled hooding. We take a casual and friendly approach to hooding and try to maintain through the career of the bird. It has worked well for our past imprints. If they don't want it we won't force the issue but will keep trying the next time around. For our hawking lifestyle, a hood is almost essential. So far he has yet to show any resistance to hooding.

[pj_elia]

A little bit of of forsight goes a long way in these situations. The Gos I had from Barry rode in the car without a problem I left the leash on him and let him loose in the car with moderate restraint so that he wasnt bouncing wild but learned what windshields and windows were. He figured that out as he was just learning to perch. We will see what this years coops is like it's about time he learned what windsheilds are as well. Isaac


Isaac,

Early on I do the same. The idea for me know at this age is to establish a method I plan to use regularly when hawking, either a giant hood or perched and hooded. I suppose we can continue to let him wander around the car but when do you stop that?

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y186/pj_elia/2011-06-19065107.jpg

[DirtHawker]

Whew. Barry you sure have a mean streak. I was sitting with my honey, eating breakfast reading your post, when I go "OH NO, I just saw him Saturday." My next words were, "Oh Barry can be an evil man".

Good story,
Sue

[goshawks00]

My next words were, "Oh Barry can be an evil man".

Sue

day 58 774 grams

Sue!!! Really? I thought you all wanted the trials and tribulations of 'a tame hack'.

Anyways it's going on 1 pm and Thor is a quarter mile away down the creek line buried in the bush and it pouring out. Along with that the TV guys says 200 lightening hits an hour, and 30-40 gusts. Yea!!! we need the rain... He's been there for about an hour at least because we got home an hour ago.
Other than that I talked to Luksanders and they are sending me a new trans today, along with my old Merlin Sp. which they will repair today, oh an a half doz. double brass tail mount ferrels. Other than that its just a rainy day in ... Michigan

Paul he rides great in the car, though he doesn't show a lot of interest looking out for game ( expected he doesn't know what that is)

[hcmcelroy]

Thanks Paul sounds like it is going well.

Harry.

[pj_elia]

Paul he rides great in the car, though he doesn't show a lot of interest looking out for game ( expected he doesn't know what that is)


Barry, just curious, is he loose in the car or in the giant hood? A friend of mine says he "trains" his imprints to the giant hood early on takes him for rides in it almost every day and sometime feeds him in there. I'm still unsure what the best approach is. In general I have had a difficult time using the giant hood on any of our goshawks. At some point we everntually get either bent feathers, dull talons, soiled plummage, or all of the above from using a Giant hood.

[DirtHawker]

Barry,
Are you using the holohils at all?
Sue

[BestBeagler]

Isaac,

Early on I do the same. The idea for me know at this age is to establish a method I plan to use regularly when hawking, either a giant hood or perched and hooded. I suppose we can continue to let him wander around the car but when do you stop that?

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y186/pj_elia/2011-06-19065107.jpg

Once he learns he cant go far due to the glass he should sit nicely except when he's at weight and starts bating at things. That's the only time I think a hood comes in handy but there are ways to even work around that. In fact feed him before you drive so he is full and less antsy. Create a pattern of good behavior. I wonder if we are so caught up on hood training imprint accipiters bc we like hoods and want to use them on our birds instead of just having them for decoration. I well adjusted imprint shouldnt need hooding for it to be kept calm or from bouncing around to prevent feather damage (not a dig towards you). Sometimes I think we use hoods on accipiters as "bandaids" to a problem instead of getting to the root of it. I think the same goes for all sorts of different perches for an imprint accipiter to prevent feather damage.

[pj_elia]

Once he learns he cant go far due to the glass he should sit nicely except when he's at weight and starts bating at things. That's the only time I think a hood comes in handy but there are ways to even work around that. In fact feed him before you drive so he is full and less antsy. Create a pattern of good behavior. I wonder if we are so caught up on hood training imprint accipiters bc we like hoods and want to use them on our birds instead of just having them for decoration. I well adjusted imprint shouldnt need hooding for it to be kept calm or from bouncing around to prevent feather damage (not a dig towards you). Sometimes I think we use hoods on accipiters as "bandaids" to a problem instead of getting to the root of it. I think the same goes for all sorts of different perches for an imprint accipiter to prevent feather damage.

Without going into the full discussion on the merits of hooding, I feel that they were initially devised to limit bating at errant slips in the field or while being transported (whether on a cadge or in the car). That is what I use them for. It allows us to get past a half dozen squirrels on my way to the stream for a duck slip or have 3 goshawks in the car or field nearby and ready to take turns on the upcoming slips. Everybody has different falconry lifestyles and there is no universally perfect method of raising or flying a goshawk. For me, the hood helps a lot.

I would still like to know the best way to insure that an imprint handles the giant hood well. I don't think we've been doing anything different than others who seem to either deal with or manage issues the giant hood better. We've managed fine so far but I'm always looking to improve things. I'm going to try a modified dog kennel as a giant hood this time around since it works for a few people I know.

[hcmcelroy]

Paul,

I've had good luck with the giant hood using the Coulson design. For the gos and HH they are 12" wide made of coroplast. Some imprinted aplomados are reluctant to go in so I prop it open in the mew and leave it for some days. For the real skittish ones I offer tidbits on the entrance and slowly encourage them in deeper over a period of time. Few imprinted accipiters are that reluctant and they train quickly using tidbits on the perch.

In the field after hawking I offer the aplomados a tidbit once they are inside so they approach the truck looking for the hood and will eagerly fly inside even when stuffed.

I hood the passage hawks when they are placed in the giant hood but when placed inside at the end of the day when eating the passage Cooper's, and HH are well behaved.

Harry.

[pj_elia]

Harry,

I use narrow ones as well. They are 11-12" wide but they are made of wood with the door on the side which makes it easy for them to get in. Before the hunt they usually jump around in there which really annoys me. With our passage goshawks, they usually start off their careers pretty calm in the box but as the routine solidifies, they anticipate the hunt and get very active in there often scrambling in a corner. Hooded and perched on a car seat has minimized feather and talon issues. Even then, they sometimes start moving around or try to make there way towards the sound of my voice in the front seat.

Anyway-- Barry, how's the mighty Norse god doing? Any more behavior changes. Ours came down at the end of the day yesterday and lightly tagged our dog. This morning he pulled the food off the lure and flew up in a tree with it vocalizing. I think he is hard penning.

[goshawks00]

day 61 769 grams

Thor spent most of the day outside. Around 2 pm the grandkids brought their other grandma out to see the "farm". Faith 11 and Jenna 4 wanted her to see the animals, dig potatoes, and pick the giant golden raspberries.. While they were walking around Thor buzzed them several times, looking for his lunch which he wasn't getting today. After a little bit a zoo style, fire alarm went off... Thor was making honest attempts it appeared at trying to take a couple of guineas out, stooping them hard. After several close calls it became apparent why... It seems one of the 'missing' guineas had came home dragging 10 little ones behind her, and Thor wanted to eat them... After everyone ducked and dodged Thor's 'attacks' the babies were rounded up and put in a box.
Once the GKs left Karen and I took them over to our country vet who was looking for some Lavenders. In exchange at sometime next spring we will get our choice of several peacock chicks or some Pearl guineas from him.
This evening Thor came down, was brought in and fed on his bow while I installed his new tall mount. Alls well

[AirAssault]

Barry I have a friend doing a Coop the same way and it is unbielevable how cool that they are his acts just like your Gos sits and preens all the time , flys with the wild Coops in the area and has turned out just to be a plesure to watch, sometime just down right funny. Looks that Eyes tame hacking is the way to go it really gets rid of alot of the problems of the Eyes rised birds, great way to do it.
clapp

[BestBeagler]

day 61 769 grams

Thor spent most of the day outside. Around 2 pm the grandkids brought their other grandma out to see the "farm". Faith 11 and Jenna 4 wanted her to see the animals, dig potatoes, and pick the giant golden raspberries.. While they were walking around Thor buzzed them several times, looking for his lunch which he wasn't getting today. After a little bit a zoo style, fire alarm went off... Thor was making honest attempts it appeared at trying to take a couple of guineas out, stooping them hard. After several close calls it became apparent why... It seems one of the 'missing' guineas had came home dragging 10 little ones behind her, and Thor wanted to eat them... After everyone ducked and dodged Thor's 'attacks' the babies were rounded up and put in a box.
Once the GKs left Karen and I took them over to our country vet who was looking for some Lavenders. In exchange at sometime next spring we will get our choice of several peacock chicks or some Pearl guineas from him.
This evening Thor came down, was brought in and fed on his bow while I installed his new tall mount. Alls well

Don't get a peacock if you dont want your car scratched and pooped on...

[hcmcelroy]

Barry,

Thor is developing quickly. It would be fun to visit your place and see the action but with all that green my eyes may fail me. This desert is tan.

Harry.

[goshawks00]

Barry,

Thor is developing quickly. It would be fun to visit your place and see the action but with all that green my eyes may fail me. This desert is tan.

Harry.

To say the least it is organized(?) confusion around here. Karen is very protective of her fowl, I guess that's why I don't your the chicks( like I can control what happens) for baggies. She was surprised that there were only 10 chicks as the nest had over close to 30 eggs in it. Guineas, or at least ours group group lay and incubate. Thinking maybe a couple more eggs were pipped and were abandoned by the hens, Karen went across the road into the weeds where the nest was. Yep just as I suspected , the nest was still full of eggs and this was a second clutch hatched somewhere else!
Yes green is just another form of camouflage, it just has more moisture in it.
Thor update- 770 this morning , he's got his new transmitter on him and is sitting in the Sycamore tree just outside the kitchen window. Tonight is 'movie in the park'. The city puts on a free movie at dark once a month in the summer and tonight is a cartoon version of Aliens. Several of the GKs want to go so we will be going and taking Thor with us for a little exposure. Hope the skeeters aren't to bad.

[goshawks00]

This afternoon the GKs came out for dinner and go to the movies... Thor was very animated and was everywhere the GKs went. He buzzed them continually, following them and playing with them, making them run and scream by his antics.

About 5 pm I went out to call him down for the evening meal, and start to get ready to go. He was no where to be found...so I got the telemetry out and got a shallow beep coming from the chicken pen. When I got out there the signal got stronger but he wasn't in there. Walking over to his chamber, there he was sopping wet on his wall perch,with one foot up enjoying the quietness of his pen. Sometime during the afternoon he must have decided to go into his chamber and take a breather. I went in got his food and handed it to him and shut the door. We decided with everyone going in the car there wouldn't be room for us plus a hooping, sopping wet goshawk all in one car.

We get to go see "Monsters vs. Aliens" he will get to watch fireflies.

[adam norrie]

Hi Barry,

Any chance of some more photos of Thor? I am looking forward to see how he turns into a hunter, and how his character changes after taking his first few kills.

[Steve L.]

Hey Barry, what's new with Thor?

[goshawks00]

Thor is going good... He is done with the hack three days ago when he started pestering the neighbors chicken, which btw I find interesting as he has nothing to do with ours.
We are working on jump ups and being carried about. Car rides GH work etc. No bags yet as it's still been very hot here. Probably won't be much to write about at this point until we get a bit of weight loss going...

[outhawkn]

Barry, how's the bird coming along........:D

[goshawks00]

ok Bill...see post below:D

[rocgwp]

How's Thor?

[jballone]

Updates?

[goshawks00]

Chasing and catching a few small birds. Covers to high and still a lot to do before winter..

[James Idi]

Any updates and pics by chance?

Awesome thread!