Yogi is back in the groove again.

A cold front is blowing through and all around us is foul weather, with snow and wind. As is usual we got the wind, but no real moisture. It was a bit cooler however, and the Harris Hawks are noticing it.

Karen and the gal next door went to McDermitt, Nev. to pick up supplies, ( gamble ) leaving me here at the house to fend for myself again. They still had not returned by flying time for Jessie. Tami was assisting her husband Dave, so Jessie and I went to try our luck alone. I thought that I had a chance with the puddle that had held the Geese the other day, but on arrival found that a new bunch of weaned heifers were in the field and were as jumpy as first time alone heifers can be, so I tried the ditch. It was good exercise for Jess, but nothing flew over the dry ground, so it was lure time. No big deal, and part of the game.

Dave was missing an adapter for the stove that he is installing in their house, so we went to my shop to cobble something together that would at least enable him to start a fire in his new stove.

After that Tami and Isabel joined me for a bit of Rabbit hawking. The wind had come up and I discovered  that I had neglected to put my spare glove  back in my vest, after Karen had washed the lice out of it. Puddy at least was pretty puffed up, and not enjoying the cold cutting wind at all.

We got into the field and after a short walk, a Jack burst from cover, and Yogi nailed him before he had covered more than 30 yards.

 I tossed them their rewards after the Jack was dead, and while they ate, I cleaned the rabbit. I have not found any more diseased ones since the two that we found early in Oct. I am noticing that the girls are not catching any young ones any more. All the Jacks that we have caught in this field are at least a year old. Perhaps all the young ones died of what ever killed the two that I found. Perhaps I am jumping to conclusions too. It is just strange that all the Jacks are the older ones. Young is stupid, so if they were in the field it stands to reason that they would be the first to die.

We went on and had a couple more chases, mostly at long distance, and neither bird could manage to connect. We had walked up on top of a knoll that was mostly grass. Yogi was off after another long distance runner. Pud was riding with Tami, and suddenly she flashed off the perch and slammed into a lone bush, hard. She tore out a patch of hair, but apparently ripped out of the flesh as well. The Jack wasted no time in crawling into a rock outcropping. It was getting late and my hand was getting frostbitten, so we started back towards the part of the field that we had not hunted yet. Yogi as always was the first to see the Jacks, and the first to begin the chase. Puddy was just reacting as is usual. I am not casting aspersions about her, it is just that the lessons learned in the wild can never be taught to a bird raised in a pen. Yogi has one goal, and that is to kill something, and she never strays from that thought. She has the uncanny ability to know if the Jack is hiding somewhere, and will not leave until she has either caught him or lost him.

As we got into the part that we had not hunted in today, we jumped another Jack, and Yogi pounded into him, with Puddy close behind. She had hit him in the side and torn open his side with the force of the blow. Yogi, whether it is the size of her talons or the strength of her feet has killed more Jacks than any other hawk that I have flown. I cannot recall any other Hawk that has killed its prey by any other method than eating it to death. Generally they will tear open the flesh and the prey bleeds to death. Yogi rips big holes in the ones that she catches with her talons.

This time I tossed them their meals. Two Jacks are enough. I would prefer that each hawk makes a kill, but the last time I tried that Yogi caught four Jacks and Puddy still didn't catch anything.
I have just about run out of room in my freezer to store more Jack meals anyway. We still have at least 30 more hunting days before it gets really nasty. I have put about 47 Jacks in the freezer now. I am going to have to get creative if I am not careful.