Exciting news!!

[Featheredsamurai]

In May I'm going to start the process of getting my falconers license!!! I'm so excited, I'm going to learn so much. I already have a good amount of hands on experience with raptors, and have wanted my license for a long time but havn't been able to yet.

I'm going to be VERY busy all the time, three birds will be a handful! Especially when one has completely different needs. I'm planning to get a red tailed hawk as my apprentice bird since they have few predators when free flying compared to the 100 gram conure sized kestrel. Plus red tails are one of my favorite birds. it will be exciting to trap this young first year bird, raise it a few years then release a strong healthy bird back to the wild as a experienced hunter after a few years. Sadly the majority of raptors die before their second year, because of falconry the populations are strong and doing well.

If I go with the red tail the bird and Rosie & Kenji will never see one another for obvious reasons! A wild red tailed is a real danger for parrots and I won't risk Rosie of Kenji thinking red tails are safe. Kestrels I don't care if they see, in fact if I had a kestrel it would sleep in my room on a perch, Rosie's already been around kestrels and she is more of a danger to the kestrel than it is to her.

Rosie and Atlas my friends kestrel. Atlas was afraid of Rosie when I put her nearby for a photo and kept baiting(jumping off the glove and trying to fly), so Rosie's watching him carefully hoping not to be touch with a flapping wing again even when he further Way XD


Anyway had to share because it's exciting. Should take 1-3 months to get my license.

 

[Bundiibird]

Wow that is exciting news. You sound very excited!!! I love the photo of Rosie and Atlas. Such a difference in the birds.

 

[Mattroma]

That is pretty exciting indeed. You will need to keep us up todate on your training. I personally don't know much about falconry but would love to hear of your adventure.

 

[BACON]

That's amazing. parrots and raptors. My 2most favourite bird types. There's something majestic an superior in raptors.
Always wanted to do falconry, so we'll done for going for it good luck with it!!

 

[JerseyWendy]

Great and exciting news, Ashley! I'm so happy for you!!!

If you find time, please update with photos, ok??

You can do this, you WILL do this, and you will be GREAT at this.

 

[crimson]

that sounds really exciting! good for you.

 

[ruffledfeathers]

Cool, great news! I love red tails too, on their own, but when i see them outside and i'm out with Gilbert, i get kind of mad at them!! LOL. At my old house, there was one of the largest hawks I had ever seen who was often on our property. He was truly magnificent (but i kept my 1.4 lb puppy away from him!!!) A healthy respect there. BTW i LOVE Atlas. Such a beauty.

 

[RavensGryf]

I'm excited for you Ashley! Wow, that's great to hear... and YOU really deserve it.
The Kestrel is so cute! I had no idea there were tiny little raptors out there haha.

 

[jenphilly]

Congrats, that is so exciting!!! Can't wait to see photos of the red tail!

I would still be careful with kestrel, they are tough little monsters too. I don't know if I still have the video, but my husband watched one come in and take a rabbit while he was working. He was getting shots of the outside of a building for work when he saw a flash and caught the kestrel coming in and nail the rabbit. Then he had to walk past the thing to get out and it hopped and drug the rabbit (3 or 4 times its size) all the while threatening him, guess he thought Byron was up for lunch too

They are all awesome and amazing. I had shared some photos and video when Victoria and I did the hawk walks in Ireland. We went out with Harris hawks, was an amazing experience, so jealous you will be training and living with one everyday!!

 

[Anansi]

@Copperarabian: Exciting news, indeed! But I honestly don't know much about being licensed as a falconer. Aside from raising and training a falcon, what else is involved? You mentioned returning the falcon to the wild as a strong and healthy bird, and that many don't live past two years, so I can tell this goes beyond keeping a pet. But what are the specifics, exactly?

 

[getwozzy]

WOW!!!! Congrats!! That's super exciting!

Can't wait to hear more about your falconry and of course I hope you post lots of pictures for all of us to drool over

 

[Featheredsamurai]

@Copperarabian: Exciting news, indeed! But I honestly don't know much about being licensed as a falconer. Aside from raising and training a falcon, what else is involved? You mentioned returning the falcon to the wild as a strong and healthy bird, and that many don't live past two years, so I can tell this goes beyond keeping a pet. But what are the specifics, exactly?

The definition of falconry is to use trained raptors to hunt quarry. Although as you said it's much more than that! Falconers can get permits to use their birds for education, in bird and pest abatement, and the joy of creating a partner ship with a wild bird

Generally wild caught birds are released, but you can also purchase captive bred birds who do well as a life long falconers bird. My friend who will be sponsoring me has a peregrine falcon, hand raised/imprinted applomado falcon, 3 augur buzzards, 2 Harris hawks, 2 hybrid saker falcons, a Lanner falcon, Merlin falcon, red tailed hawk, and 2 American kestrels. Keep in mind falconry IS his job, he has the time to maintain all these birds and get them flying. It's a LOT of work, but the birds are awesome and a are well trained and well cared for.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

WOW!!!! Congrats!! That's super exciting!

Can't wait to hear more about your falconry and of course I hope you post lots of pictures for all of us to drool over

For sure! I'll definitely be sharing lots of photos

 

[Nathan1]

it will be exciting to trap this young first year bird, raise it a few years then release a strong healthy bird back to the wild as a experienced hunter after a few years. Sadly the majority of raptors die before their second year, because of falconry the populations are strong and doing well.

I want to be a falconer too and I found this pretty funny because I do the same thing, every time I talk about falconry(especially online) I have to say something like this(I usually say 60-80% of raptors don't make it past their first year). People seem to think that falconry is the most cruel thing in the world or something, even when you explain this people accuse you of abusing animals or being a psychopath or something. They seem to be unable to get passed the fact that you're enabling a bird to do exactly what it would do in the wild, kill.


Anyway, Red tails are great birds(I'd probably say one of my favourites as well), but personally my dream bird is a Goshawk Of course, Gyrfalcons are great too...Unfortunately the start up $ is too much for me to get into falconry, maybe some day...I also have 4 parrots now which doesn't give me a whole lot of time for falconry...Let me know how having a bird of prey and parrots works out for you.