Meet Bullet

I haven't posted in a while, so I thought I'd give an update. Bullet is cruising right along. He has exceeded 30 kills now and we could be well over 50 if I wanted to. Because of the heat (90's by 8am) and high humidity I am calling it quits after we catch one or two most days. I am flying only mornings right now because of my dog training schedule. He is flying at 275 grams. He is still dog tame and easy to handle. No carrying and he seems to be quieting down some (not that he was really loud to start with). I'm going out west this next week. It blows my mind how I can drive 7 hours due west and still be in Texas. I am hoping to get some field hawking in. I'm addicted to copper's hawking...

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Originally Posted by rocgwp

I'm addicted to copper's hawking...

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Jeff

What is it about those stand-offish, independent, neurotic birds that makes them so addictive. You either love them or hate them, there's no in between.

I won't speak for Jeff, but this is a new adventure for me and once you experience the flush of the sparrows in the field and feel (see the coops blurring past you) the push off the glove you'll be hooked...it's quite the rush!

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Originally Posted by Bodarc

Jeff

What is it about those stand-offish, independent, neurotic birds that makes them so addictive. You either love them or hate them, there's no in between.

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For me it's been the fact that Bullet is not stand-offish, independent, nor neurotic. He has been easier to fly than my harris. Once you experience their speed and you watch them chase a sparrow twisting and turning for 50 yards and then fold like a missle and chase it into cover and finally catch it in the air after the bird reflushed, you become addicted.

Jeff, how about an update on Bullet...just curious how things are still going with him.
Thanks

Bullet is still doing great. I am having a lot of fun flying him. He is catching multiples almost daily.

I'm flyin him at 277 grams, but it's time to take him down some more. I had some behavior issues today, which I expected. He has been cooped up the past 3 days because of Hurricane Gustav. He caught a sparrow this morning wanted to eat my shoe after the trade off (a fat hawk). I knew it was coming, but couldn't resist flying since I had a break in the weather. Each time I have started to see an inkling of behavior problems I have dropped his weight and things have ceased. He has been very easy to handle. The only time issues show up is when I fly him fat. I have been nervous about getting him too low, so I have held him at 277 for too long. I talked to McDermott tonight and realized that I still have a ways to go in weight reduction before I get to his true hunting weight this year. He is still losing between .4 and .5 grams an hour over night. McDermott sugessted that he be losing between .2 an .3 grams an hour. McDermott has an Eastern bird that topped out over 400 grams and will fly close to 275-280 grams. My little guy topped out at 330 grams so I am expecting to end up in the 250-260 range. I will be dropping him in slow increments though like I have been. I will drop him a couple grams and fly him there until I see an issue, then drop him a couple more.

Flying Bullet has made me a better falconer...and I haven't had this much fun in falconry ever...

Jeff, thanks for the very details reply. I have been having some of the issue you spoke of as well with Genghis. He topped out at around 335 and I have been hunting him prett steadily at the 292g mark but I've noticed his behaviour rapidly deteriorating as of late. Sounds like I need to slowly drop him a bit...something I haven't really done since we started hunting. He has killed every day out so that has probably really clouded my reaction as to his weight.

Anyway, thanks for the info on Bullet and your thread, its been fun to follow. Flying Genghis has also taught me more than I care to admit, grin, but it's been well worth every bit of effort...these flights are to die for!

Any updates on this bird??

Jeff probably has hurt his back carrying all of Bullet's game home:eek:

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been really busy flying Bullet and training dogs.

Bullet has been a dream bird thus far. His hunting weight has leveled off at 260-274 grams. As long as he is in that range I can expect Harris Hawk like behaviour (nice, easy going, and easy to handle). I can fly him above 275 grams, but then the handling gets technical because he wants to be possessive and hop around with the kill. Bullet has only carried twice since I've been flying him and both of those times his weight was above 275 grams. In other words, as long as I don't fly him fat I can expect a great day. If I fly him fat, then I am asking for trouble. He is still feather perfect with his orginal tail. I am waiting for the day I'll have to imp, but it hasn't happened yet.

I have changed my trade off technique and I really like how it has worked out. Bullet always waits for me to get to him before he begins eating. I have begun showing him the lure as I approach and he drags his kill to the lure where he then eats off the lure as I put the catch in the bag. This has been really handy when he catches in heavy bushes or under a car. He pops out of the bush or from under the car looking for his reward. I was worried about losing game at first, but so far (30+ head of game) I haven't lost any due to this technique.

Most of the hawking we have been doing is urban hawking on private land. A lot of the slips are from the truck, but we also beat hedges for english sparrows. I've been running dogs in the fields and there are still no slips yet. The other guys tell me the birds will arrive in the fields about October or November. At that point I'll transition to field hawking and quail hawking over my pointing dogs.

I have some great picks of Bullet, but the photobucket option isn't showing up below. When I figure out how to post pics again I'll add them on...

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Originally Posted by rocgwp

I have some great picks of Bullet, but the photobucket option isn't showing up below. When I figure out how to post pics again I'll add them on...

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Here ya go, Jeff. Look at #3 and the picture. http://www.nafex.net/showthread.php?t=1407

Bullet Chasing Under Car
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ngUnderCar.jpg

Bullet taking #50
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ngNumber50.jpg

Bullet and Big Male Depredating Grackle
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ailGrackle.jpg

Bullet's Sneak Attack
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...neakattack.jpg

Bullet and Starling
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ndstarling.jpg

Bullet and the Final Approach
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...alapproach.jpg

Bullet Taking a Depredating Grackle
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...inggrackle.jpg

Awesome pics! Thanks Jeff!

Very cool! Nice shots :)

Killer(literally) shots!!!clapp

Here's a few from this morning. I take no credit for the pics. A friend of mine takes some great pictures of a really fast bird...

Bullet and Sparrows
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...ndSparrows.jpg

Bullet Chasing Sparrow
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...rrowChaseM.jpg

Bullet Closing In On Sparrow
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...nonSparrow.jpg

Awesome pictures Jeff, your friend is a great photographer! It is funny how we see our birds fly every day and don't realize how they really fly until we see them in photo's. I have never noticed my coops wings touch each other on the down stroke(picture 1), but seeing it in these pictures, you know it happens. Love the photo's, more, more, more! clappclappclapp

Jeff:
Great picture, thanks for posting!

Well, Bullet's season has come to an end this year. He caught 80 wild birds and close to 50 or 60 "preserve" quail. He has been the funnest bird I have flown so far. I never had any of the problems associated with a coops (as long as I flew him at weight). He was like flying a super fast harris hawk. I am putting him up and intend to do a forced molt so he is ready to hunt this next summer.

I trapped a passage hen harris that I intend to fly through the winter months. If all goes well, I will have a summer bird and a winter bird.

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Originally Posted by rocgwp

If all goes well, I will have a summer bird and a winter bird.

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Sounds like a great season! clapp Makes me want to fly a male coops even more than I already did! And year round hawking? Can't beat that! :D

Good luck with the new Harris and the winter season!

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Originally Posted by rocgwp

If all goes well, I will have a summer bird and a winter bird.

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Jeff,

That is what I did for 3 seasons! I flew a red-tail in the fall/winter and the coops in the spring/summer! Next spring is going to be wierd as I won't have the coops. I may have to go to Kentucky and pull a sharpie next June.

You talk about a musket, so I´inclined to believe your experience was with a sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus). The nisus, although delicate and nervous, is far less problematic than a coopers hawk. You can have a few omissions on a spar and you could be forgiven, but not with a coops (there are always exceptions).
For example, I have my own "recipe" and I do call to the glove and none of my birds are sticky footed no grabbers, but it took me years to fine tune it. I think for the average the best bet is the proven method. I have seen coops not socialized that even the SOUND of a distant car made them go crazy....

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Originally Posted by musketdaft

I am not convinced that you need to socialise an imprint with hundreds of hours of bombardment with new stimuli.
There has been on one or more occasions where the hawk that became rock steady had hardly any interaction with new people new places the last musket spar I bought from the breeder a week or so from hard pining had never seen the outside world until
I picket him up; he was raised in the home with a few other spars and was hand fed until he could take food from the dish but as far as socialising goes he seen very little.
Same hawk is the steadiest spar I have ever owned so steady he gave semen this year.
Personally I believe it the nature hawk that is going to determine more than anything else how things turn out. Alf.

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Sorry I replied to the last message on the FIRST page (Duh!) and didn´t realize about the progress (was wondering how you got such a young eyass in late-october).
Congratulations! How are you planning to molt the coops?
Best regards,

Jeff:
Are you going to free loft Bullet? How long will it take to molt out Bullet? I am thinking of doing about the same thing but later in the year. CJ is a late brancher. How much above Bullets flying wt. will you keep him? Will you still do a lot of handling and manning? Sorry for all the questions but I know zero about Cooper's Hawk and how to maintain them through the molt.

Bullet is officially molting now. He has dropped 4 wing feathers. I have him free lofted in his chamber with no problems thus far. I am keeping light on him 24 hours a day with his window covered. He is being fed via a timed cat feeder like the one in a recent hawk chalk article. The only modification is it is installed like a kitchen drawer and can be restocked from outside the chamber. He is completely silent and still tame. He is more jumpy than normal, but that is to be expected since he is ~100 grams over his flying weight. Hopefully he'll be ready to go when the birds come back late this spring. I have high hopes for him this next season. I'd like to train him to retrieve his kills to the fist and to hood. Both using operant conditioning. I'm starting a new thread under Shortwings to discuss it.

Great thread!!

What happened to Bullet? Did he molt out okay? Were you ever able to fly him again?

Great resurrected thread. It was before my time here at NAFEX so I was glad it came back too life. Pretty interesting read. Like Mike O, I'm curious too.

Unfortunately Bullet died at the beginning of his second season. He molted out great, but died from a stroke caused by a collision.