Lee Zard is beginning to play. Of course it is mostly practice footing and jumping around, which will stand him in good stead when he begins hunting. He is starting to show a bit more finesse with his flying. He is still sticking pretty close and has yet to leave what I call the Yard. He has started following me around a bit as well. Just curiosity, but its an improvement. With the increased exercise, his appetite is picking up a bit. That is good to see. A bird that is hungry all the time is a good pupil.
Jessie is still stuck in Mommy mode, and is driving me a bit nuts trying to figure out how to shut her off. She has laid 10 eggs so far, and thinks that I should be giving her more food so she can lay more eggs. I have cut her back on her food hoping to starve her out of this cycle, but all it has done is to increase her begging me for food. I weighed her yesterday and found that she was down to hunting weight. I picked her up and fed her on the fist. She was quiet all day long. Perhaps she is feeling left out, with this new bird that I spend so much time with.
This morning Lee was anxious to get outside, so after he ate his breakfast, I opened the window and he would outside soon after. I went on to do my chores, one of which was to take Jessie to her day time perch in the weathering area, where she gets fed. Pretty soon we can hear her pitiful screaming as she would do for food. Karen asked me if I thought she would do better if I fed her on the fist again. I went out to look and there was Lee right in front of her on the outside of the weathering area, and she didn't like it.
I picked her up and went out to the Hot tub to drink a first cup of coffee and feed her. Lee apparently was a bit jealous, so he straffed my head and then circled around to the roof of the house where he could watch. Karen called him down and fed him some more. When Jessie finished all she wanted I threw the rest up on the Hot tub cover. Lee wasted no time getting to it and really fed up on the breeder quail. He especially liked the egg yokes still inside the Quail.
The food that he took in was of high enough quality that he didn't want any lunch, but he was ready to eat by 7 PM.
https://vimeo.com/172188820 password - owyheeflyer
Friday, June 24, 2016
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Day 52
Its been an interesting 24 hours. Don't worry Lee Zard is just fine, its been other things. First the well pump went out last night about 10:30. It had been giving me trouble for a while, I replaced the control box and it seems as though we had dodged a big one. We did, but only for a while. The pump was going bad and that is what messed up the control box. The hard part is getting someone to come fix it. Plenty of people in Idaho, but they have to be licensed in Oregon to work on it. :-/ That leaves the little town of Burns with about 3000 people.
No real problem. I had water enough to make coffee, plenty of water in the pool to use to flush toilets. Actually my only real problem was water for the critters. I have 7 Ducks just waiting and growing that I will be using to show Lee what I want him to catch when he grows up. I swear those varmints carry a beak full of food and dump it in their water, over and over. I have never seen anything any where near as messy as a Duck. I couldn't use the pool water because of the chlorine in it.
Of course I was up early, only to sit around and wait three hours for 8 AM to roll around in Burns. They are an hour behind us, so it seemed to take forever. I got lucky and there was one guy there who could actually take care of my problem. Its the middle of haying season, so the irrigation pumps are turned off, thus they had time to make a drive down here. Two guys showed up about noon and we pulled the pump, put another one in and I was back in business by 4 PM. I've got no clue how heavy the bill is going to be, but that is life in the Desert.
We had moved Lee's play pen up against the window while we had gone to Nampa Tuesday, and it had worked so well, we left it there. So at 6 am when I got up, I fed him and opened the window. I had read an article about putting transmitters on falcons and they had recommended Number 16 rubber bands for the neck mount. The last place that we stopped when coming back from Nampa was a Staples store. I had been using a big wide one that the mail lady puts on all out junk mail. The article claimed that some birds had killed their selves with the heavier rubber bands, The #16 looked a bit tight to me, but what the hell, I'll try anything once. That was the first real fit I have seen Lee throw. He gagged, and scratched until the fuzz was floating all over the place. I finally took pity on him and cut it off. I found a bigger one that was thinner and put that on him. He liked that a lot better and soon made his escape out the window.
It was pretty hot today, and I found Lee several times hiding behind the Chimney to get out of the sun. He is still hanging around pretty close. At noon I took half of a Quail out for him and tossed it on the ground. He was on the trailer and came to it and ate a little bit. I picked him up and put him back in the open window. He slept a bit on his perch. He went out again about 3 PM.
Around 5PM he flew back onto the Hot tub, and was trying to drink out of the little sheen of water on the top of the tub. I filled the bath, but he decided the pool was where he needed to be. I poured the water in the bath onto the cover. He made a bee line for that and got his drink and bath. After he got all preened out he went behind a Mediterranean Sage and slept again for an hour or two.
About 8 PM I got another half of Quail for him. He was sitting on the hangar, so I called his name and tossed the lure out. He wasted no time in flying to it. He overshot his landing and had to run back to it. So now the safety factor has increased by leaps and bounds. Now no matter how far away he is, when I swing the lure he will come.
After I put him in the house, I went back out to enjoy the evening counting Jack Rabbits. They are thick as I have ever seen them. I found two young Jacks dead at the edge of the yard. No marks on them so it is some sort of a disease. The only thing visible is their butts show some intestinal problems. Not a good sign at all. I was counting 7 in one group that was in about a 10 foot circle. Any disease will spread like wild fire if its bad enough.
We have about four Deer that lay up in the old growth Sage by the creek, so I always take my bino's with me when I sit out there. I noticed something light at the edge of the Sage. The field was full of Jacks and Quail, so I assumed that this was another Jack. Nope it was a Coyote working the edge of the brush. I made a bee line in the house and got the 22-250. No more Coyote. I drug her up to the top of the gravel pit to feed the buzzards. Don't worry, the bullets are frangible- no lead.
I had found one of the dead rabbits this morning while I was waiting for the pump guy's to show up, and took it up to the gravel pit so the dogs wouldn't get into it. Sometime the problems with the rabbits are worms. I don't need dogs with worms or rolling in a decomposing rabbit either. There was a Raven's nest inside the pit, so I took the Rabbit there. The pit has been locked off to the public for a year or two now. I tossed a rock at the nest area from the rim. Imagine my surprise when a Prairie Falcon flushed off the cliff face. You could have knocked me over with a feather. I have been risking my life flying all over looking for the Prairie that chased my Pigeons all winter and spring. I don't know how many miles I have walked to get to remote areas close to here, because I was convinced that she was near. Duh! Right in my back yard as it turns out. I haven't been able to verify the age of the babies, but it appears that they are quite a bit younger than Lee. The female was sitting on the cliff face in the shade when I went back to check so something is there. Oh well, no body is perfect, and I apparently am a shining example of that statement.
No real problem. I had water enough to make coffee, plenty of water in the pool to use to flush toilets. Actually my only real problem was water for the critters. I have 7 Ducks just waiting and growing that I will be using to show Lee what I want him to catch when he grows up. I swear those varmints carry a beak full of food and dump it in their water, over and over. I have never seen anything any where near as messy as a Duck. I couldn't use the pool water because of the chlorine in it.
Of course I was up early, only to sit around and wait three hours for 8 AM to roll around in Burns. They are an hour behind us, so it seemed to take forever. I got lucky and there was one guy there who could actually take care of my problem. Its the middle of haying season, so the irrigation pumps are turned off, thus they had time to make a drive down here. Two guys showed up about noon and we pulled the pump, put another one in and I was back in business by 4 PM. I've got no clue how heavy the bill is going to be, but that is life in the Desert.
We had moved Lee's play pen up against the window while we had gone to Nampa Tuesday, and it had worked so well, we left it there. So at 6 am when I got up, I fed him and opened the window. I had read an article about putting transmitters on falcons and they had recommended Number 16 rubber bands for the neck mount. The last place that we stopped when coming back from Nampa was a Staples store. I had been using a big wide one that the mail lady puts on all out junk mail. The article claimed that some birds had killed their selves with the heavier rubber bands, The #16 looked a bit tight to me, but what the hell, I'll try anything once. That was the first real fit I have seen Lee throw. He gagged, and scratched until the fuzz was floating all over the place. I finally took pity on him and cut it off. I found a bigger one that was thinner and put that on him. He liked that a lot better and soon made his escape out the window.
It was pretty hot today, and I found Lee several times hiding behind the Chimney to get out of the sun. He is still hanging around pretty close. At noon I took half of a Quail out for him and tossed it on the ground. He was on the trailer and came to it and ate a little bit. I picked him up and put him back in the open window. He slept a bit on his perch. He went out again about 3 PM.
Around 5PM he flew back onto the Hot tub, and was trying to drink out of the little sheen of water on the top of the tub. I filled the bath, but he decided the pool was where he needed to be. I poured the water in the bath onto the cover. He made a bee line for that and got his drink and bath. After he got all preened out he went behind a Mediterranean Sage and slept again for an hour or two.
About 8 PM I got another half of Quail for him. He was sitting on the hangar, so I called his name and tossed the lure out. He wasted no time in flying to it. He overshot his landing and had to run back to it. So now the safety factor has increased by leaps and bounds. Now no matter how far away he is, when I swing the lure he will come.
After I put him in the house, I went back out to enjoy the evening counting Jack Rabbits. They are thick as I have ever seen them. I found two young Jacks dead at the edge of the yard. No marks on them so it is some sort of a disease. The only thing visible is their butts show some intestinal problems. Not a good sign at all. I was counting 7 in one group that was in about a 10 foot circle. Any disease will spread like wild fire if its bad enough.
We have about four Deer that lay up in the old growth Sage by the creek, so I always take my bino's with me when I sit out there. I noticed something light at the edge of the Sage. The field was full of Jacks and Quail, so I assumed that this was another Jack. Nope it was a Coyote working the edge of the brush. I made a bee line in the house and got the 22-250. No more Coyote. I drug her up to the top of the gravel pit to feed the buzzards. Don't worry, the bullets are frangible- no lead.
I had found one of the dead rabbits this morning while I was waiting for the pump guy's to show up, and took it up to the gravel pit so the dogs wouldn't get into it. Sometime the problems with the rabbits are worms. I don't need dogs with worms or rolling in a decomposing rabbit either. There was a Raven's nest inside the pit, so I took the Rabbit there. The pit has been locked off to the public for a year or two now. I tossed a rock at the nest area from the rim. Imagine my surprise when a Prairie Falcon flushed off the cliff face. You could have knocked me over with a feather. I have been risking my life flying all over looking for the Prairie that chased my Pigeons all winter and spring. I don't know how many miles I have walked to get to remote areas close to here, because I was convinced that she was near. Duh! Right in my back yard as it turns out. I haven't been able to verify the age of the babies, but it appears that they are quite a bit younger than Lee. The female was sitting on the cliff face in the shade when I went back to check so something is there. Oh well, no body is perfect, and I apparently am a shining example of that statement.
Day 53
Jessie has been giving me trouble in that she will not quit laying eggs. As a consequence I have not been feeding her as much hoping that would curtail her egg laying. She has 10 or 11 so far, and Raptors are not intended to lay that many eggs. Yesterday she was very vocal, and I think a bit jealous, so much so that I put her up very early so that we wouldn't have to listen to her.
This morning I weighed her and found that she was down to hunting weight, so I kept her on the fist and fed her the Quail that I had intended to give to Lee later in the day. Now it was Lee's turn to be jealous. He did at least two high speed fly by's while she was eating. The first for that sort of thing.
After she finished and I had put her on her day perch, Lee flew over to the chairs where we had been sitting, landing on the back of one of them. I got the other half of another Quail and offered him the fist. He got on and ate one of the best meals that he has ever taken. I liked that a lot.
https://vimeo.com/171962079 password owyheeflyer
https://vimeo.com/171962079 password owyheeflyer
Day 51
First, Thank you for letting me know that rather than being pestered with an unwanted Blog, you are actually interested in what it is about. It takes a bit of an effort to produce this thing, and I refuse to monetize it. I enjoy doing it however and I would prefer that the people who get it, do as well.
Today's video concerns Lee's behavior, and training. Or at least the attempts to do so. One peculiar feature that I have not seen before with any hawk is his desire to be with us. When he gets bored and he starts vocalizing. If I go up to him he runs up to the fist talking and biting, then he gets on the fist and calms right down, and fluffs out his chin whiskers and is happy.
What I need to do is to get him made to the lure. It is funny, but he will not come to a half quail thrown on the ground, but he will fly to my ungarnished gloved fist.
He flew around most of the day yesterday and in the evening, when I would like to bring him in is when he gets his third feeding of the day. He doesn't require much food, ( a handicap ) but he still wants to eat at least a little bit. I tried to call him down to the ground for a quail half on a line, and he would not do so. I then stuck my fist up and he flew to it. I then tossed the half on the ground. He did go to that, and when he finished, came to the fist to be carried inside. It was a good start.
We had to go to town today, so he spent most of the day on his perch in front of the window. When we got home, I took him outside for the rest of the evening. At his normal feeding time he came back to the fifth wheel. I tried again to call him to the lure, but he still wouldn't come down. I then offered him my fist. He flew towards, but didn't feel good enough to land, but he did land on the ground. I tossed the quail on the ground, and he fed from it. He then came to the fist and I brought him in for the night.
It will take a bit, but his response is right on the correct timeline. It would help if he got enough exercise to give him an appetite. Prairie Falcons are designed to survive in very adverse conditions. The Desert is just such a place. It is normal for a falcon fed on a good meal of Duck to take as much as a week to need to hunt again. I am familiar with that since I have the same metabolism.
https://vimeo.com/171698549 Password - owyheeflyer
Today's video concerns Lee's behavior, and training. Or at least the attempts to do so. One peculiar feature that I have not seen before with any hawk is his desire to be with us. When he gets bored and he starts vocalizing. If I go up to him he runs up to the fist talking and biting, then he gets on the fist and calms right down, and fluffs out his chin whiskers and is happy.
What I need to do is to get him made to the lure. It is funny, but he will not come to a half quail thrown on the ground, but he will fly to my ungarnished gloved fist.
He flew around most of the day yesterday and in the evening, when I would like to bring him in is when he gets his third feeding of the day. He doesn't require much food, ( a handicap ) but he still wants to eat at least a little bit. I tried to call him down to the ground for a quail half on a line, and he would not do so. I then stuck my fist up and he flew to it. I then tossed the half on the ground. He did go to that, and when he finished, came to the fist to be carried inside. It was a good start.
We had to go to town today, so he spent most of the day on his perch in front of the window. When we got home, I took him outside for the rest of the evening. At his normal feeding time he came back to the fifth wheel. I tried again to call him to the lure, but he still wouldn't come down. I then offered him my fist. He flew towards, but didn't feel good enough to land, but he did land on the ground. I tossed the quail on the ground, and he fed from it. He then came to the fist and I brought him in for the night.
It will take a bit, but his response is right on the correct timeline. It would help if he got enough exercise to give him an appetite. Prairie Falcons are designed to survive in very adverse conditions. The Desert is just such a place. It is normal for a falcon fed on a good meal of Duck to take as much as a week to need to hunt again. I am familiar with that since I have the same metabolism.
https://vimeo.com/171698549 Password - owyheeflyer
Sunday, June 19, 2016
Day 49
I know that I said that I was likely at this point to cut back on comments and videos due to the fact that not much new would be happening until he began to learn the use of his wings, and I began training. Well today was a bit different in that I do have some different stuff to share.
This is basically his forth day of actually doing more than sleeping in the window. He did very little flying yesterday, but today he has expanded his horizons a bit. Not much but a big step in ability and confidence for the boy.
His biggest improvement is his reentry into the house, which is the most important part of his learning to date. I still want to establish his feedings on a lure, but that seems to be a lot more possible now. The important thing is that he learn how to get back in the house, and where he needs to be. Today he got a little carried away with his flying and playing and stayed out a lot longer than I would have preferred for his lunch. When he did realize that he was starving, he wasted little time getting to where the food was. His manners are baby terrible, but that will improve with time. The main thing was to get a regular schedule established so that we both know what to expect. I am sure that sooner or later he will spend the night out, but the later the better.
He has established his schedule as follows. Breakfast first thing in the morning, usually consisting of half a Quail of which he will eat about 1/5th to a 1/4 of it. I then take him outside into the new morning sunshine, set him on the Hot tub to do as he wishes. He will flit around here and there with periods of sitting and watching. Work his way towards the dining room window about noon, come to either me or the window, get lunch which consists of the rest of the first half. Walk inside the house to the window, lay down and nap for a couple of hours. About 2 or 3 PM go back outside and fly and play some more until about 6 or 7 PM, come back for the rest of his food, and then take up his perch inside the dining room window till dark. At twilight he gets tied to his perch for the rest of the night.
I am sure that I mentioned that he likes to be with us, but I am not sure that I have conveyed just how much it helps his state of mind and satisfaction with his world. I am a bit surprised to note that he wants to be in the house quite a bit. He so far has wanted to be outside for about half of the day. The rest he sleeps, and he prefers to do that in the house or on one of the window ledges. When he gets bored, he will start fussing. If I offer him the glove, he will run over to my fist and start biting and talking, then after a short time, he stops, climbs on the glove and settles down in contentment. I can then put him back on his perch and he will be content for quite a long period of time. He thinks nothing of being on the glove and is quite happy to be there and go where ever I go. Boredom is the worst sort of damage that you can inflict on your raptor. They cannot see any reason that they should not get what they want- NOW!
When he had not come in at 1 PM today, I went outside and found him on the roof of the weathering area. He was looking towards me and the house, but he wasn't making any move to come. I went inside and got some food and the lure. I first tried the lure, but right at the moment he is keyed to the glove. I held up my fist and he soon launched off and flew to it talking for all he was worth. It was obvious that I should have looked for him earlier rather than waiting for him. No real harm, I stuck him in the window to finish his meal. When he was done, he went inside to lay down and nap.
He slept until about 3 PM. He jumped to the dining room table and I went to him, offered the fist which he accepted, and I took him back out to the hot tub. I thought that he might like another bath, but he flew over to that window ledge and took another nap.
After about an hour he again began flying around. He flew more today than he ever has. He flew around until about 7 PM then landed on the fifth wheel. I offered him my fist but my head was bigger, so he landed there. I brought him in and gave him a new quail half to work on.
https://vimeo.com/171350224 password- owyheeflyer
This is basically his forth day of actually doing more than sleeping in the window. He did very little flying yesterday, but today he has expanded his horizons a bit. Not much but a big step in ability and confidence for the boy.
His biggest improvement is his reentry into the house, which is the most important part of his learning to date. I still want to establish his feedings on a lure, but that seems to be a lot more possible now. The important thing is that he learn how to get back in the house, and where he needs to be. Today he got a little carried away with his flying and playing and stayed out a lot longer than I would have preferred for his lunch. When he did realize that he was starving, he wasted little time getting to where the food was. His manners are baby terrible, but that will improve with time. The main thing was to get a regular schedule established so that we both know what to expect. I am sure that sooner or later he will spend the night out, but the later the better.
He has established his schedule as follows. Breakfast first thing in the morning, usually consisting of half a Quail of which he will eat about 1/5th to a 1/4 of it. I then take him outside into the new morning sunshine, set him on the Hot tub to do as he wishes. He will flit around here and there with periods of sitting and watching. Work his way towards the dining room window about noon, come to either me or the window, get lunch which consists of the rest of the first half. Walk inside the house to the window, lay down and nap for a couple of hours. About 2 or 3 PM go back outside and fly and play some more until about 6 or 7 PM, come back for the rest of his food, and then take up his perch inside the dining room window till dark. At twilight he gets tied to his perch for the rest of the night.
I am sure that I mentioned that he likes to be with us, but I am not sure that I have conveyed just how much it helps his state of mind and satisfaction with his world. I am a bit surprised to note that he wants to be in the house quite a bit. He so far has wanted to be outside for about half of the day. The rest he sleeps, and he prefers to do that in the house or on one of the window ledges. When he gets bored, he will start fussing. If I offer him the glove, he will run over to my fist and start biting and talking, then after a short time, he stops, climbs on the glove and settles down in contentment. I can then put him back on his perch and he will be content for quite a long period of time. He thinks nothing of being on the glove and is quite happy to be there and go where ever I go. Boredom is the worst sort of damage that you can inflict on your raptor. They cannot see any reason that they should not get what they want- NOW!
When he had not come in at 1 PM today, I went outside and found him on the roof of the weathering area. He was looking towards me and the house, but he wasn't making any move to come. I went inside and got some food and the lure. I first tried the lure, but right at the moment he is keyed to the glove. I held up my fist and he soon launched off and flew to it talking for all he was worth. It was obvious that I should have looked for him earlier rather than waiting for him. No real harm, I stuck him in the window to finish his meal. When he was done, he went inside to lay down and nap.
He slept until about 3 PM. He jumped to the dining room table and I went to him, offered the fist which he accepted, and I took him back out to the hot tub. I thought that he might like another bath, but he flew over to that window ledge and took another nap.
After about an hour he again began flying around. He flew more today than he ever has. He flew around until about 7 PM then landed on the fifth wheel. I offered him my fist but my head was bigger, so he landed there. I brought him in and gave him a new quail half to work on.
https://vimeo.com/171350224 password- owyheeflyer
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Day 47-48
I anticipate that I will not be making many more videos as he is growing up and soon he will not be in a position that I can get videos of him for a while. At least until he begins his training. This "cute" stage will not last too much longer.
I am a bit surprised at his desire to be close to us. If he gets restless and bored, he will begin fidgeting around his perch eventually flying to the table to rummage around there. If either Karen or I go over, put on the glove. He will run over, bite the glove a bit. Then crawl up on the glove where he will talk a bit more, nibble a bit, then settle down and pop out his chin whiskers in relaxed mode. We can then set him back on his perch and he is fine for quite a while. It surprises me a bit to see that he is most comfortable in our presence. Of course that will go away as he gets older.
Today he played outside and visited Jessie for about 5 hours total. He then started making his way over to the house. He made most of the journey on foot, hopping up on the roof, then flying to the window with Karen's encouragement. I gave him a Mouse for lunch. I had to strip its skin back so that he would know that it was food.
This morning he spent quite a bit of time on the hanger, then the fifth wheel, then the Motor home. As you can see there is a bit of a storm front moving through.
Yesterday he was mainly a foot falcon. He played on the ground almost all day long. After he gets tired, he ends up on the ties of the weathering area. It keeps him out of the wind and I think he is enthralled with Jessie.
She however does not seem the slightest bit interested. She is right in the middle of trying to lay all the eggs that she can. She has 8 so far. I have been cutting back on her food hoping that she will stop, and it has had the effect of making her beg me to be a good mate and bring her enough food so she can continue to waste the summer. You see, a raptor that is laying eggs will stop their molt until they begin setting. Unfortunately she does not do that. The longer she continues this farce the later she will complete the molt.
The Chickens also like the area in front of the weathering pen, and congregate there about the middle of the day to nap in the shade. I found Karen sitting in a chair with the camera in her lap, watching Lee by the pen. There were a couple of hens around him, and he jumped at one. She ran, but about that time one of the older hens came up,saw that that and promptly ran over him. He got up with some pretty big eyes and took off flying for safety with the hen right behind. All Karen could do was roll up in a ball laughing. She didn't even try to get a picture. While disappointed, I couldn't blame her too much.
Yesterday evening followed the same routine, but this time I was prepared. I guess I don't have to worry about him becoming a Chicken Hawk.
https://vimeo.com/171220610 password- owyheeflyer
I am a bit surprised at his desire to be close to us. If he gets restless and bored, he will begin fidgeting around his perch eventually flying to the table to rummage around there. If either Karen or I go over, put on the glove. He will run over, bite the glove a bit. Then crawl up on the glove where he will talk a bit more, nibble a bit, then settle down and pop out his chin whiskers in relaxed mode. We can then set him back on his perch and he is fine for quite a while. It surprises me a bit to see that he is most comfortable in our presence. Of course that will go away as he gets older.
Today he played outside and visited Jessie for about 5 hours total. He then started making his way over to the house. He made most of the journey on foot, hopping up on the roof, then flying to the window with Karen's encouragement. I gave him a Mouse for lunch. I had to strip its skin back so that he would know that it was food.
Yesterday he was mainly a foot falcon. He played on the ground almost all day long. After he gets tired, he ends up on the ties of the weathering area. It keeps him out of the wind and I think he is enthralled with Jessie.
She however does not seem the slightest bit interested. She is right in the middle of trying to lay all the eggs that she can. She has 8 so far. I have been cutting back on her food hoping that she will stop, and it has had the effect of making her beg me to be a good mate and bring her enough food so she can continue to waste the summer. You see, a raptor that is laying eggs will stop their molt until they begin setting. Unfortunately she does not do that. The longer she continues this farce the later she will complete the molt.
The Chickens also like the area in front of the weathering pen, and congregate there about the middle of the day to nap in the shade. I found Karen sitting in a chair with the camera in her lap, watching Lee by the pen. There were a couple of hens around him, and he jumped at one. She ran, but about that time one of the older hens came up,saw that that and promptly ran over him. He got up with some pretty big eyes and took off flying for safety with the hen right behind. All Karen could do was roll up in a ball laughing. She didn't even try to get a picture. While disappointed, I couldn't blame her too much.
Yesterday evening followed the same routine, but this time I was prepared. I guess I don't have to worry about him becoming a Chicken Hawk.
https://vimeo.com/171220610 password- owyheeflyer
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Day 45 - 46
Yesterday, the 15th I took Lee outside and put him in the window. It didn't take long and he was over on the old BBQ, then to the spare tire on the 5th wheel. Then on the hanger and weathering area roof. He played there most of the day eventually moving to the roof of the house. He showed signs that he wanted to come to me, but did not. I did go out and gave him a bit of Quail for lunch. A storm came up and he took refuge under the overhang of the hanger roof. Finally around 6 PM I went out to offer him my fist and he ran down the roof to me. I brought him in and tied him to his playpen perch. He spent the rest of the day and night in quiet contentment.
This morning (16th) I gave him half a Quail for breakfast as I have done all along. He ate a bit, not near enough for my liking, and got back up on his perch. The day had dawned looking great. A bit cool at 41 degrees. I took all his jesses off and took him outside, sitting him on the BBQ. I went back in, fixed my own breakfast, and did a bit of reading while listening to the crap going on around the country.
When I got up to check on Lee, he was nowhere to be seen. I went looking and was quite surprised to see where he had gone.
The pool cover had puddles of yesterday's rain, and Lee was happily flopping around in them getting as wet as he could. He eventually made his way back to the BBQ to dry.
I went back in the house to return to my reading and coffee. As I do often, I went to check on Lee. I opened the window in front of the Hot Tub and was talking to Lee, still on the BBQ. When he saw me, he began peeping and flew over to the ground in front of the window. With my encouragement he leapfrogged up various things until he could get to the window sill. He then jumped on my fist and we went back to my chair inside.
Brick took the opportunity to study Lee some more, and get a bit of love along the way.
It didn't take Lee long to close his eyes, lift up one foot, and relax. I eventually put him on his perch again where he is now sleeping.
I was surprised that he searched out the water on the cover and took another bath. Prairies are not known to be fond of bathing. After all they are true Desert Falcons, and rarely take more than a dust bath in their natural habitat.
I put him on his perch and he promptly went to sleep. He stayed for quite a long time at least until it warmed up a bit. When he woke and started to get restless, so I put him back outside on the Hot tub cover.
https://vimeo.com/170991472 password- owyheeflyer
I made this video of the first part of his outside adventure, and came back in the house, as it was still a bit cool. About an hour or so later he flew up to the dining room window. Josie had killed a Pack Rat, and I had put it in the window, promptly forgetting it. He was dragging it around and trying to find some way to open it up. I gave him the rest of his Quail, and left him there. After finishing it he came back in and went to sleep again.
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
42 to 44 days
Lee has been a bit of a pain in the butt going through what I term the equivalent of the "terrible two's". He really wants to be with us all the time. He doesn't quite know what he wants, he just wants it now! He tries to get into every thing. Much of the time the things that he wants to do are the very things that he should not be doing, such as rummaging around on the dining room table.
The remedy seems to be to pick him up, carry him around for a bit, then stick him outside on the window ledge and close the window.
I try to sit with him as much as possible, and he enjoys the company. On a whim I got a rubber bath and filled it with about 2 inches of water, and put it on his playpen. I was quite surprised when after a bit of inspection he went over to examine it. He jumped in and seemed to like it quite a lot. He eventually took a bath. It is surprising that there are certain things such as bathing that seem to be pre programed into their memory.
Then its off to the Hot tub for a good flat play area. He got to examine Josie and give her a few nibbles on the leg. She doesn't seem to mind.
The sun got a bit hot so he took refuge behind my coffee cup.
Later when we go inside, he is quite content to lay on the top of the playpen while we have dinner, and perhaps take a nap or two.
After a particularly irritating bout of " I don't want to behave" Karen decided that it was time that he was taught some restraint. I dug up a leash and some jesses and he learned to sit on a perch like a big boy. I have to say he accepted it with very little trouble.
I spent the evening trying to cut an hour of video down to an acceptable length. My first cut was 12 minutes, and then I finally settled on about 7-8 minutes.
I have to say, raising an eyass Falcon properly to the point where the result is a sane and well adjusted hunting partner is a daunting task. I have not ever succeeded in my earlier attempts, to my satisfaction, though I haven't tried all that much simply because there were factors that could not be overcome in that time and place.
The task, while so far looks good, is far from complete. Although if I were living where I have been all my previous life, this point would be the finish line. What would happen from here on would be that he would stay on a perch until he became "hard Penned" and then we would attempt training. Of course he would then have to learn all the nuances of flying and pursuit of game. Not an easy task. He would in the wild get about 30 days of support from his parents to get to the point that flying became automatic and thought becomes action. Pretty hard to get good at something like that with about 30 minutes of flying a day.
Although it is pretty labor intensive, he will have that 30 days or what ever he requires to learn that skill. The only hazards here are the ones put here by nature, and they are plentiful. So while the risks are great, the goal is worth it. So far we are about 1/4 of the way through the process. There is still a lot to go wrong.
As I sat here typing my thoughts, he began "peeping". It is morning and he has had 1/2 a Quail to break his fast. Karen is on her computer catching up on overnight catastrophes. I got up to see what he wanted. As I got to the playpen he jumped down off the perch and came over to nibble on my fingers. I put the glove on so that I could survive his attention. He climbed on the fist and fluffed out his chin feathers in contentment. After holding him a bit I took him out to the window.
He is now out rummaging around in Karen's rock garden. She would like me to go pick him up, but I have chosen to let him do as he wants. Hoping that he will keep out of trouble. The next week or so is one of the choke points.
https://vimeo.com/170732380 password owyheeflyer
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