In this episode Al talks to Ed Pitcher about his  philosophical approach to falconry in general, and, how he prepares his birds for a life of hunting with him, in particular. We use his book, “the Flying of Falcons”, which he co-authored with Ricardo Velarde to structure topics of conversation. Ed recounts how he and Ricardo settled on the title for the book, and he defines some terms that the listeners may initially misunderstand (Self actualization, Genetic push, Predatory mindset, Wild mindset, Hunting mindset, and Fueling the motor).  Ed then takes the listeners through his view of the developmental sequences, as follows:

1.1. Genetic Push

• urge to survive and reproduce achieved through predatory mindset

1.2. Early Development 

•  Skill and cognitive development is age-dependent
•  nothing succeeds like success
• successful predators survive and reproduce
• successful predators are also sought after by falconers
•  do everything to let your falcon succeed 

1.3. Categorical Thinking

• concrete/categorical thinking is associated with early cognitive development
• negative experiences can cause fear response and may become fixed
• do everything to ensure new experiences are also positive
• positive interactions also become fixed
• positive concrete thinking is the precursor to trust and fidelity

1.4. Fear Factor

• some fear is good but avoid significant fear response when reclaiming a falcon
• sweet spot is tolerant but slightly fearful and slightly wild
• wild caught falcons are already self-actualized and are more fearful, captive-raised are not self-actualized but are less fearful
• use of water to gauge anticipatory behavior

1.5. Fidelity Factor

• fidelity factor is the propensity to repeat favored behaviors that lead to success which leads to increasing survival probability
• falcons show fidelity for hunting locations, roosting sites, nesting sites, prey species, wintering locations
• appealing to a falcon’s propensity to repeat favored behaviors that lead to success is an alternative strict weight control.
• contributes to the falcon managing it’s own weight

1.6. Trust

•  stems from categorical thinking and fidelity
• leads to co-operative hunting, 2-way trust
• incorporate building of trust in management scheme.

Part 1 of this two-part episode ends with the Ed recounting the story of how a neglected falcon named Buddy reclaimed his status as a self actualized avian predator.

This is the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I’m Al Franke coming to you from central Alberta, Canada, on Falconry Talk Radio. I’m a Longwinger, flying a gyr/peregrine tiercel over a German wire-haired pointer, on ducks and upland game birds. 

The goal of this podcast is to thrash out alternative viewpoints on topics ranging from training philosophy, husbandry, and health of birds and bird dogs to conservation and management of raptors, their main prey species, and the respective habitat that they rely on. 
 In addition, I’ll cover-off themes related to hunter ethics, fair chase, and access to public and private land. I’ll outline efforts that falconers can make to contribute to all of these topics of conversation.

Why “Fat Bird, Ugly Dog”? Well, as unfair as some make think, the “Ugly Dog” moniker reflects my preference for wire-haired pointers within the versatile hunting breeds, and Fat Bird reflects an ambition to fly my falcons as close as possible to what would be considered their natural or ideal body mass, and to do it in a style that mirrors the “wild mind set”, to borrow a phrase from Ed Pitcher!

I hope you’ll tune-in each week to listen to what I anticipate will be persuasive points of view for you to think about.  In Episode 2, Ed Pitcher is my guest, and using his book “The Flying of Falcons” co-authored with Ricardo Velarde as a jumping off point, Ed and I discuss his philosophy in general and the “wild mind set” in particular.

For book purchase:

1. Ed Pitcher -  idahobirds@live.com
2. Ricardo Velarde - flyingfalcons@me.com
3. Marshall Radio
4. Western Sporting Falconry

1.    Managing Towards Self-actualization

1.1. Understanding My Approach

• move beyond “waiting-on overhead” to flying of falcons
• important concepts
  •  success leads to success
  • use categorical thinking to form positive associations
  • use fear levels to manage feeding and weight
  • use fidelity to develop anticipatory behaviors
  • build trust to develop co-operative hunting

1.2. Getting Started

• Main tools
  • seeling, hood, and patience
  • steady hand/routine

1.3. Making Choices

• Primary goal is to choose to allow cognitive development to occur along age-appropriate timeline
• Allow learning by observing other falcons
• wild falcons know they can survive without the falconer; choose to encourage tolerance but not reliance in captive-reared falcons
• choose to allow the falcon to eat rather than to be fed

1.4. Preventing Bates

• use fear level to judge food intake; re-hood and set aside a falcon that stops eating.
• Same with bating; re-hood and set aside a falcon that wants to bate
• ounce  of prevention better than pound of cure
• skipping days is better than skimping on meals
• track g/hr of food processed

1.5. Leaving the Fist

• Not coming to fist; going away from fist to eat
• While feeding on the fist, slowly remove the food from the falcons feet, she should grab it, let her take a few more bites.
• Repeat, but make her reach for it.
• Repeat, but make her jump to retrieve it. Feed her well.
• With each session, progressively increase the distance until flying a few feet
• She is ready to kill her next meal

1.6. Introducing Prey/Quarry

• Mimics the process followed by wild parents
• Falcon on left fist, live prey in right hand
• Falcon will grab and administer lethal bite (cervical dislocation)
•  Leave the falcon for several minutes to pluck and eat
• Gently remove the dead prey from talons
• Re-hood with braces open
• Take dead prey away, unhood the falcon
• Repeat with prey tethered allowing the falcon to pluck and eat for several minutes
• Pick the falcon up on freshly prey, gutted and skinned
• Use tidbits
•  With each session, progressively increase the distance until flying out of the hood without creance across 1/8 mile
• Feed well…avoid flying daily and managing strict weight control as this will later encourage self hunting, which is reinforced when self-hunting is successful.

1.7. Weight Gain

• Time to begin adding weight
•  Falcon should:
  •  immediately search for prey when unhooded
  • Fly strong
  • Chase hard
  • Kill with confidence

1.8. Flying Free

•  Never jumped to fist
• Never called to the lure
• Never relied on the falconer to be fed
• Always been fed well…fly when empty.
• Only flown from A to B ¼ mile to live quarry away from the falconer
• Now the falcon leaves the fist looking for quarry
• Serve as far away as your courage allows (Serve wide).
• Gone from 1.5 g/hr to 3.0 g/hr
• With time and longer periods on the wing, horizontal distance when served transitions to height of pitch – genetic push.
• Serve when the falcon shows deliberate intent in mind set and style

In this episode I talk to Scott about how he uses the drone to shape high flying behavior in his falcons.

Scott Larsen email:
idahofalconer@gmail.com

YouTube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vP6YnvrdxRk

Quick release clip
https://www.westernsporting.com/FE3017/balloon-kite-quadcopter-release-parts-complete-or-replacement-parts.html

E. ($15.95): Black Sure-fire Bait Release works flawlessly and is easy to adjust. It is used for food items on the kite or balloon and will give you the confidence to know it will release easily when the hawk grabs the bait. This contains the release clip, snap swivel and custom-made Sampo swivel.

6 instructions for the Perfect Pigeon setup:

1. Never fly your falcon to the drone without bait .  
2. Always have a full charged battery .  
3. Use the “home” function on the drone 
4. Use care and caution in big wind .  
5. Use about an 18” to 24” diameter parachute with about a 20’ to 25’ leader  
6. Make sure the chute can slide out of the release tube with almost zero effort .

10-step routine from start to finish

1. Phase 1 - drone then falcon

• Only fly a Falcon to the drone that has learned to kill and feed itself.  Get that accomplished first.
• Get your Falcon “made” to the drone to where she will chase it up with gusto every single time.  
• Make her chase the drone up.  Make her miss it and have to keep mounting up to catch up to it.  (Don’t over-do it though.  Let her be successful each day before she gives up.  You have to watch this very carefully.) 
• Once she is very fit and taking the bait either in an angled stoop or just on level flight, but enthusiastically every flight, switch her to flying with no drone in the air.

1. Phase 2 - falcon then drone

• Cast her off, with the drone totally ready to launch over behind your truck or somewhere close by.  As she is leaving and wondering what’s up, launch the drone and make her chase it up.
• Each day wait longer until the day when she has the height to overtake the drone in a stoop.  Count that flight as your first real big success.  You WANT her to catch it!
• The next flight, place your drone a couple hundred yards away from where you think she’s going to be mounting up and launch it over there and make her chase it up.
• Keep increasing the time you let her fly and mount up and keep increasing the distance away from you that the drone is launched.  I’ve launched my drone from 500 yards away, no kidding.
• Once she is going the height you want her to mount to, either go hawking, or throw her a bagged “something-or-other” and then, Go Hawking with her!  
• Get her off it as soon as you can .  Don’t let her get Drone Bound!  

In this episode, I run through fundamental terms associated with operant conditioning. This episode is presented in preparation for future guests that use the approach to train their falconry birds and/or bird dogs.

For questions or comments, please visit Fat Bird, Ugly Dog on Facebook.

Primary reinforcer - any motivating factor that is essential to survival.  

Secondary reinforcer - also called a Conditioned Reinforcer, is any neutral factor that when paired with a primary reinforcer inherits the reinforcing properties of a primary reinforcer.

Cue - a signal asking for a specific behavioral response that leads to receiving a secondary reinforcer that leads to receiving a primary reinforcer. 

Variable reinforcement - a reinforcement schedule where the secondary reinforcer is provided after every correct behavioral response, but the primary reinforcer is provided randomly or irregularly.

Free shaping - the process of using an animal’s voluntary behaviors to teach it which behavior is desired. 

Structured Shaping - the process of establishing a more complex behavior by selectively reinforcing and building on an existing behavior.

Extinction - the gradual weakening and disappearance of a behavioral response, either wanted or unwanted, due to lack of reinforcement. 

Generalize - the process of ensuring that the wanted behavior is offered consistently under multiple environmental conditions even when distractions are present.

Luring - a method of directing behavior using a primary reinforcer to entice the animal to offer the desired behavior. 

Developing a wanted behavior is just a straightforward application of a 5-step process, as follows:
1.Free shaping
2.Reinforcing
3.Cuing
4.Generalizing
5.Structured shaping

Ultimately, there are only two types of behaviors: those that are wanted and those that are unwanted.

We want to increase the frequency of wanted behaviors and decrease the frequency of unwanted behaviors.

Frequency of wanted behaviors can be increased in 2 ways:

1. You can add something good to the training environment as a reward for the wanted behavior – which is typically referred to as positive reinforcement,
2. You can remove something bad from the training environment as a reward for wanted behavior – which is typically referred to as negative reinforcement.

Similarly, frequency of unwanted behaviors can be decreased in 2 ways:

1. You can add something bad to the training environment as a punishment for the unwanted behavior – which is typically referred to as positive punishment,
2. You can remove something good from the training environment as a punishment for unwanted behavior – which is typically referred to negative punishment.

Note that the terms positive and negative do not equate to good things and bad things, they just mean that a rewarding or punishing reinforcer is added or taken away.

1. Positive Reinforcement – giving a treat as a reward for sitting.
2. Negative Reinforcement – turn e-collar vibrate-mode to off as a reward for recalling.
3. Positive Punishment – turn e-collar vibrate mode to on as a punishment for leaving bed without being released. Once the dog returns to the bed, vibrate mode is switched to off.
4. Negative Punishment –  “retrieve denial” where the opportunity to make a retrieve is taken away as punishment for not remaining steady.

To conclude, it’s not a prerequisite of operant conditioning to use all four reinforcement options in equal proportions. In fact, many dog trainers and likely all falconers do not use positive punishment as part of their training regime.

In this episode Brian Millsap (USFWS-retired) and Gordon Court (Province of Alberta Species at Risk Biologist) join me to discuss aspects of peregrine natural history, events surrounding listing and de-listing, and the events that led to a limited harvest of hatch year peregrine falcons in the United States.

In this episode, Al talks to Nick Adair of the "Gun Dog it Yourself" Podcast. Nick tells us about his dogs, and why he selected the breeds he did. We discuss his training philosophy, and a recurring theme of his podcast - "Trainer Fights"! We discuss the use of Positive Punishment (listen to Fat Bird, Ugly Dog,  Episode 5 "Operant Conditioning 101", if you are unfamiliar with the term) . Confusion often exists between "whoa" and "steadiness" - Nick gives his definition of "whoa", and indicates how it differs from  "steadiness".  We have all heard the saying "birds make a bird dog" - Nick modifies the saying, and explains his reasoning for doing so. We conclude our conversation with Nick recalling one of his most memorable hunts. And, of course, Al's Rapid Fire Questions.

GDIY website - https://www.gundogityourself.com/

 In this episode Brian Millsap (USFWS-retired) and Gordon Court (Province of Alberta Species at Risk Biologist) join me to discuss aspects of peregrine natural history, events surrounding listing and de-listing, and the events that led to a limited harvest of hatch year peregrine falcons in the United States.  

Steve Layman joins me to have a conversation about application of Operant Conditioning to training of raptors (primarily goshawks) for falconry. We quickly go over some terms that are addressed in more detail in Episode 5. We discuss Steve's underlying philosophy to the practice of falconry, his first exposure to, and application of Operant Condition as a university student.  Steve then explains how to shape behavior using three examples (looking away, hooding a new bird, and hooding a hood shy bird). We discuss how Steve dealt with balancing a busy family life. work, and  falconry.  Steve's explains how he put screaming on cue. And, of course, I ask Steve my usual Rapid Fire Questions.

Matt Rinella joins me to tell us about the Hunt Quietly Movement and the Hunt Quietly Podcast.  Our discussion was precipitated by an opinion piece that Matt wrote for Free Range American entitled “Unfollowing Hunting Social Media Will Make Hunting Better” which was published in December 2021, Matt defines R3 for Canadian and international listeners, and outlines why he thinks R3 bears some responsibility for over-crowding of public land. He then walks us through his reasoning for his views of social media and outlines his solutions. We finish the interview talking about Matt's Welsh Corgi, "Shifty", and my usual rapid fire questions.

 This week British falconer, Simon Tyers, author of  "The Specialist Falcon – A Personal Approach to Lowland Hawking”, joins me for a wide ranging discussion on his philosophical approach to falconry in general, and, more specifically,  how he prepares his hunting birds, including a description of his "Perfect Day". Simon explains some terms specific to UK falconry, constraints that falconers in the UK must face, and the uphill battle to re-initiate a peregrine falcon harvest despite total recovery of the species. He provides an example of just how costly it can be to participate in hunting, given that landowners retain shooting rights on their land - North American hunters will likely find it difficult to comprehend the costs.

Links to the book
The Specialist Falcon Website
Marshal Radio

 This week British falconer, Simon Tyers, author of  "The Specialist Falcon – A Personal Approach to Lowland Hawking”, joins me for another wide ranging discussion. In Part 2, Simon discusses his philosophy of matching the falcon to quarry, lure and drone training, dogs, field craft and quarry.


Links to the book
The Specialist Falcon Website
Marshal Radio

 This week British falconer, Simon Tyers, author of  "The Specialist Falcon – A Personal Approach to Lowland Hawking”, joins me for another wide ranging discussion. In Part 3, Simon details two hawking stories, offers his views on the future of UK falconry, and talks about those to whom the book is dedicated.

Links to the book
The Specialist Falcon Website
Marshal Radio

Author and falconer, Steve Chindgren joins me to talk about his career producing and conducting bird shows, his camp on the Big Sandy, and how he began hawking sage grouse. Steve talks about basic sage grouse biology, the sage habitat they rely on, and the threats to the species. He compares hunting sage grouse to hunting red grouse and sharp tailed grouse. No conversation about hawking winter sage grouse could exclude the topic of golden eagles - Steve shares his experiences with golden eagles, and how he goes about trying to minimize lethal encounters with them. 

In this episode Steve compares and contrasts the various species of falcon that he has flown on sage grouse, and why he believes that the tiercel gyr/peregrine hybrid is the ultimate sage grouse hawk.  He also explains how he trains and conditions his birds to hunt sage grouse, how he uses his dogs when hunting, and he also tells us about two  his favorite falcons, BBG (a wild-taken gyrfalcon harvested in Alaska), and Kallikak, his spectacular prairie/peregrine hybrid.

This episode brings my discussion with Steve Chindgren to an end. We began the episode talking about a club that Steve and his childhood friend, Jim Hutchins, established as very young boys. Steve tells us about hist 25-year relationship with his gyr peregrine tiercel, Jomo, and tells us about a few close calls. including one where Jomo was lost in the sage without telemetry.   We then hear story of "Rocky",  who was killed by a golden eagle after along tail chase and killing a sage grouse. "Tava", was an absolutely gorgeous falcon, also killed by a golden eagle, seconds before Steve could reach him. Steve recounts a hawking story of how "Somach" flew prairie chickens at the 2012 NAFA Meet in Kearney, Nebraska. We hear how Steve introduce "Zander" to the drone in his eleventh season, and get an update on his progress to date. Steve tells us about "Comet", a white Jerkin, his physical condition, and how it contributed to his death. At the time the book was published Steve was flying "DC"; we hear about "DC's" love of chasing pigeons, and his struggles with late-season grouse. Steve introduces us to "Badger", who he acquired since publishing the book.  The episode concludes with Steve's outlining his thoughts expressed in the final chapter of the book (a dedication to the art of falconry", and his answers to my rapid fire questions.

 Buy the book here.

 This week I am joined by Doug Manzer of the Alberta Conservation Association (ACA). Doug  is well-known for his Sharp-tailed Grouse expertise, but he has also spent about two decades working on other wildlife species and, of course, habitat conservation and management in the province of Alberta, Canada. We talk a little philosophy and ask the question, "Why Hunters Hunt", we also talk about upland game birds that primarily inhabit open areas including Doug’s own work on sharp tailed grouse. Tune is to hear just how successful the ACA has been in regard to managing farmed landscapes...the densities of grey partridge that are achieved will amaze you.

In this episode Vickie Joseph joins me to talk about Clinical Avian Pathology Services and she tells us which items falconers should carry in a Med Kit.  We also talk about "supportive care" and what it entails. We talk about the importance of hydration, the various types of fluids that can be administered, and how to administer them.  We talk about diet and discuss the quality of wild food compared to quail. We talk about impact injuries and bite wounds including those associated with venomous snakes. Vickie walks me through a basic triage protocol, and talks about use of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medications.  We conclude our discussion with two cases involving falconry birds that were injured whilst hunting, and my rapid fire questions.

CAPS contact page  

Email Vickie - vickie@goscreek.com

In this Episode Ronnie Moore joins me to tell us about his early childhood experiences and how they led to his love of the outdoors and hunting pursuits.  Ron describes how he came to acquire one of his first falconry birds, a European buzzard he named "Mort" - Ron released "Mort", but that was not the end of their time hunting together.  Although  Ron is likely best known for his golden eagle “Ailsa”, he also flew goshawks and falcons achieving much the same standard of falconry with them that he achieved with "Ailsa".  We talk about his goshawks, "Ratty" and "Kojak", his falcons "Alice" (a prairie falcon) and "Nasty Louis" (a tiercel peregrine) - Ron is natural story-teller, and his adventures with his birds are most entertaining to say the least.

In this episode, I am again join by Ronnie Moore, author of "Memoirs of a Hunting Falconer".  At the end of Part 1, Ron described how he came to acquire “Ailsa”, We start this conversation today with Ron's first interactions with her as he began the process of training her for falconry.  Once he had gained Ailsa’s trust, and she was ready to fly free, he encouraged her to hunt from the soar as he had done with “Mort” many years prior, and he recounts how he got her entered on quarry.  Ron tells us the story where he feels that all his Christmas’s came at once.  Initially Ron had typically allowed her to take a full feed off of her first kill, but he eventually got to the point that he needed to remove kills from her if he was to be able to hunt for long periods over which multiple kills had been made...he tells us how you went about that process.  As with all training of all hawks, setbacks and mistakes are inevitable, Ron recounts once such experience, and explains why he opted to stop using his dog "Linnet" while hunting with "Ailsa".  Ron recounts  how lucky he was  to be allowed into Ailsa's world. and follows that with a tale about why hunting alone is not without its risks. We learn about Ailsa’s first encounter with a blue hare, and conclude the episode hearing about Himalayan monkey skin, burning arm pits, the downside of wearing a damp tweed  jacket.

In Part 3 of my series with Ronnie Moore, we discuss Ron's  recollection of  implementation of the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act, how it came about, and its pitfalls for practicing falconers.  Ron talks about his second shot at immortalization after he received an invitation to fly Ailsa on  Bleasdale Towers estate. He recounts how the largest scotch and lemonade turned into two, and the unfortunate events that followed.  He tells us about an outing where he and Diana Durman-Walters were caught out in less than ideal weather while hunting "Ailsa". Ron describes one particular flight where he believes that after flying into the next dale to find better wind, Ailsa followed two hikers and their dog. "Ailsa" typically took fur, but on least one occasion she obliged her taste for feathered quarry…Ron tells us that story. When transporting "Ailsa", Ron initially had her on a perch in his vehicle…he tells us why he had a change of mind, and switched to using a transport box.  Ron acquired "Ailsa" in his early thirties, and was still hunting her into his sixties; he tells us how decades of hunting began to take its toll. Ailsa’s death marked the beginning of the end of Ron's falconry career – he tells us about the period of time after Ailsa’s death. In closing, Ron recounts the  “three big ups” of his life, and he answers my rapid fire questions.

Welcome to the first episode of Season 2 of the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast.  In this episode I talk to Kevin Harcourt of Marshall Radio Telemetry.  Kevin tells us a little about the company, its philosophy, and how he came to be part of the Marshall Radio team. We then distinguish between Radio Detection Finding (RDF)  technology and Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, including components of each system and the way in which each system combines component-specific functions that allow users to keep tabs on a hawk's location. On the GPS side of things, we talk about the LED displays, how to interpret the various LED colors on the transmitter and the pocket link, and how to get additional information from the LED display on the pocket link when trouble shooting or tracking a lost hawk.  Kevin also describes raw data and derived data.  We finish out Part 1 of this 2-part episode discussing the trade off between battery longevity and data acquisition associated with each of the four user-selectable modes (HD, ECO, EXT, and SLEEP).  

Kevin Harcourt of Marshall Radio Telemetry and I continue our discussion on the Marshall GPS system. We turn our attention from what Kevin refers as the user-selectable modes (HD, ECO, EXT, and SLEEP) to the two automatic modes that users do not have direct control over, those being Turbo mode and Reserve mode.  We talk in detail about the factory settings associated with Reserve mode, including the implications associated with battery longevity in the event that the factory settings are modified.  We conclude our discussion on the system with a brief reminder that the GPS transmitter also houses an RDF beeping module, and we discuss the temptation to forgo use of a backup transmitter. Before turning our attention to various field scenarios,we go over the system start-up sequence (start AV, then power-up the PL, followed by the transmitter, then allowing a 5 minute soak time, starting record, and then releasing the bird); I ask whether the start-up sequence critical, and if not, why should falconers still follow the recommendation? We close out the episode discussing several field scenarios that encompass varying degrees of uncertainty ranging from a typical straightforward flight with low uncertainty to an extended chase where uncertainty is high. 

Heath Garner (North American Falconers Association Vice President) joins me to tell us about trapping of passage peregrines in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) of Arkansas. He tells us about the MAV, and the challenges associated with trying to find and trap passage birds in the region. Heath briefly reminds us of the timeline from listing of the species to the events that led to re-instituting of a legal harvest, and describes the role that NAFA played in advocating for legal harvest. It took a few trapping seasons to build sufficient local knowledge that now makes Arkansas trappers regularly successful each trapping season; Heath leads us through that learning curve. He talks about the influence of weather on migration timing, and offers up what he has learned about trap sets and best locations.  Heath has trapped, trained, and flown his fair share of passage birds since 2009 (when they first became available to our generation of falconers), and he tells us about the birds that he has hunted with, and the ups and downs that he has been through.

Ethan Pippitt of Standing Stone Kennels joins me to talk about training of bird dogs. Using my 2-year old female German wirehaired pointer, Ethan and I step through the various stages of training that I completed from the time I received her at 10 weeks of age starting with the basics, including something Ethan refers to as "charging the clicker". Ethan explains why he uses "tug-of-war" play with his pups, and tells us why it shouldn't lead to a "hard-mouthed dog", if done correctly. We talk about impulse control and how it's a precursor to steadiness. We briefly talk about heeling and loose-leash walking before moving on to the concept of "teach, condition, generalize", and what collar conditioning is. We conclude episode one discussing the use of the "positive pigeon" drill as an introduction to "whoa" and it's use to bring out both pointing behavior and prey drive. Thanks for listening.

https://www.standingstonekennels.com

In Part 2 of my conversation with Ethan Pippitt of Standing Stone Kennels we continue talking about training of my 2-year old female German wirehaired pointer. After discussing the Positive Pigeon  Drill as an introduction to whoa from Part 1, Ethan and I pick up the conversation on my use of the steady lead and the place board to develop steadiness.  We then turn our attention to the use of pigeon launchers in combination with the “whoa” cue. Ethan describes use of the belly collar to condition whoa, and we talk about introducing a dog to gunfire. We talk about the off season, the tradeoffs associated with spaying and neutering, and then turn our attention to "taking away the chase" in an effort to teach steadiness to wing. Before asking Ethan my regular rapid fire questions, he and I finish up part 2 discuss how to avoid collar dependence. Thanks for tuning in the show. I hope you enjoy the remainder our conversation.

 Matt Mullenix, falconer and author of three books joins me to talk about his most recent book, "Four Falconry Fundamentals". We begin our discussion with Matt acknowledging the people whom have be instrumental to his falconry and writing. Matt tells us what his goal was for the book, and then provides a brief outline of each of the fundamentals (prey base, husbandry, recall, and slip management). Matt then describes various hi-lights of each, and we spend time discussing an important link between the concepts of 'husbandry' and 'recall', that being 'weight management'.  Matt outlines the school of thought he learned from Harry McElroy, and contrasts that weight management system with one that's a little less precise.  We conclude this episode with discussion regarding a Matt's rule of thumb when it comes to hunting weight.  Thanks for tuning in to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast; I hope you find this episode useful and enjoyable.

In Part 2 of my two-episode series with Matt Mullenix, author of "Four Falconry Fundamentals",  we continue where we left off in episode 1 with Matt’s answer to a question regarding slip management and re-flushing of quarry. After getting Matt’s ideas on hunting and the future of falconry, I asked him to tell us about a very recent addition to the Four Fundamentals Project,  one-on-one tutoring sessions he calls "Fundamentals Coaching". Thanks for tuning in to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog podcast. I hope you enjoy listening to this episode with Matt Mullenix.

Get Matt's  previous two books plus (signed) copies of Four Falconry Fundamentals and the Concept Cards from Western Sporting here.

To those who purchase the Fundamentals materials, get one-on-one "Fundamentals Coaching" via Zoom, sign up here: https://www.missionmedia.biz/fundamentals 

Vickie and I begin our conversation discussing her "Wellness Program" in recently-trapped birds, which for obvious reasons, the falconer has no medical history and there is the potential that a recently captured raptor is carrying a sub-clinical parasite load, or has a bacterial or viral infection. Vickie starts by classifying types of pathogens that a falconer should be aware of, and describes  typical symptoms that may be present and which organ systems are most commonly implicated. We then turn our attention to physical injuries, nutrition deficiencies, and how the stress of capture can exacerbate injury and disease.  We then discuss Vickie's three main concerns when it comes to wellness of eyasses, and issues related to nutrition and tethering.  We conclude the episode with Vickie's recommendations for annual work-ups for intermewed hawks.  Thanks again for tuning into the "Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast, and I hope that you find this episode both interesting and useful.

In this episode Jeremy Bradshaw author of the "The Passage Merlin" joins me to talk about his love affair with small raptors, in particular, the passage merlin.  Jeremy begins the episode giving us some insight into the three sub-species of merlins in North America, and tells us how Jack merlins differ from female merlins.  I then ask Jeremy about his views on weight management, and how it can make one a better falconer. We then talk about the benefits of keeping a merlin in the house rather than outdoors. Before discussing technical aspects of lure flying and how much fun it can be, Jeremy provides us with his views on merlin equipment,or furniture as some call it.  We then talk about the importance of telemetry, and get Jeremy's views on which of the various mounting methods is his preferred choice. Jeremy built a solid reputation as a maker of merlin hoods - he tells us what makes a good merlin hood, and references several other falconers that took the time to become proficient in making merlin hoods. We close out the episode talking about the importance of water and feeding whole-bodied avian prey.  Thanks for tuning into the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode.

In this episode Jeremy Bradshaw author of the "The Passage Merlin" returns to me to talk about his love affair with the passage merlin. We begin this episode with Jeremy recollecting the events surrounding the first Merlin he trapped with, and for, fellow falconer and friend, Jeremy Roselle . He then tells us about trapping merlins in urban versus agricultural settings, including the various trap types, and his go-to favorite. He tells us about some hard-earned tips that have improved his trapping success, and some way to distinguish a passage bird from a haggard. We conclude the episode discussing Jeremy's preferred approach to the first attempt at un-hooding, feeding, and then, more importantly, that first attempt to re-hood a newly trapped passage merlin. Thanks for tuning into the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode. 

In this final episode of my three-part series discussing passage merlins with Jeremy Bradshaw, author of "The Passage Merlin", Jeremy shares his views on having a merlin share the comings and goings of one’s home,  his views on weight management, and how he steps through the training sequence from hopping to fist to undertaking that first free flight, and ultimately to regular gamehawking. We also  talk about "carrying", and taking advantage of the natural tendency for merlins to cache their prey. And then before turning to my rapid fire questions Jeremy tells us how Al Ross shaped his ideas about flying merlins and influenced his life in general.

In this Episode I am joined by John Organ,  Chief Emeritus of the U.S. Geological Survey’s Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit Program,  to discuss the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation.  John begins by telling us about the people that were responsible for consolidating the model, He then describes the ecological and historical context that ultimately led to modern wildlife management.  We go back to the late Pleistocene to provide a sense of what the mega-faunal community looked like prior to the arrival of humans on the continent.  We then step forward in time to the wildlife fauna of the North American frontier, and outline the main species that were hunted, exploited, and those that were driven to extinction or near extinction. John tells us about the early advocates of wildlife conservation, and describes their major legislative and institutional milestones.  We then turn to detailing the seven tenets of the North American Model. We close-out the episode discussing what John sees as the three biggest threats to hunting, and given that hunters make up about 5% of the population in the NA, and that it would almost certainly be outlawed if the question of its legitimacy were put to a simple referendum,I ask John what he would advise hunters to do to encourage support for hunting in the non-hunting community.

 

In this episode my guest is Tony Wasley, President of the Wildlife Management Institute (WMI).  We begin the episode talking about the Institute itself, what is does and when it was established. I am interested in the way that wildlife values are characterized, how they have changed, and how those changes in wildlife values potentially affect the future of hunting and hunters. Tony discusses the dichotomy between areas of focus for wildlife management agencies; the task of tag allocation and the broader responsibility for conversation.  Before turning our attention the "America's Wildlife Values Report" (what it is, what is it's purpose, and why hunters should care about the findings), Tony shares his views on what he sees are the main eras of the way that American society has impacted wildlife.  Tony tells us about the way American society can be broadly categorized by the way in which individuals relate to wildlife, and he outlines how people are distributed among the each of the categories. Tony then tells us how values have shifted over time, and he explains the underlying reasons for the shift in wildlife values. We talk about the main funding streams, and how people believe wildlife conservation programming should be funded. We spend some time discussing potential underlying causes for an apparent decline in hunting interest. We conclude the episode discussing those things that Tony believes are important factors driving support for hunting in the non-hunting population, and what he believes are the main threats to hunting today.

After talking to me about trapping of passage peregrine in Arkansas (Episode 24), Heath Garner returns to the show to talk about snipe-hawking. To set the stage for the conversation,  Heath reminds us of his falconry background, the group of falconers that typically focus on snipe in Arkansas, and some similarities and differences of snipe hawking in Arkansas compared to the U.K. and Ireland.

We then turn our attention to the snipe themselves, and Heath tells us why the Mississippi Alluvial Valley is particularly good for overwintering snipe, plus he outlines a little natural history on the genus, provides a comparison with the American woodcock, and he give us some insight into shorebird conservation.

Turning to game-hawking of snipe, Heath describes how Arkansas long-wingers discovered that the local snipe population was huntable., including the way that they use their dogs. Heath describes where snipe are typically found, and compares snipe-hawking to dove-hawking. He then give us a sense of what he feels are among the best falcons for flying snipe, and details the way that a slip is typically orchestrated. We conclude this section of our conversation discussing opportunities for ringing flights.

We finish-up learning a little about the Arkansas Annual Snipe Hawking Invitational.

In this episode I welcome Tim Williams to the show. Tim is the developer of the Falconry Journal App that he describes as a digital replacement for the pen and paper journals that many falconers use to maintain records associated with keeping falconry birds.

After introducing himself Tim describes the app and highlights some of the features that are built into it.  He also tells us what motivated him to develop the app. and provides some rationale for why a falconer may want to use the app.

Tim then outlines use of the app to track data on multiple birds, and we discuss a feature that I like in particular - the ability of the app to forecast when a hawk will be at hunting weight. He explains why he believes this feature to be inherently important to successfully hunting a particular hawk, and we discuss the accuracy of the forecasting algorithm.

We conclude the episode discussing the data export function, the ways in which users have applied their data to managing their birds, and before telling us how to contact him, Tim outlines what he sees a potential future development for the app.

Arnaud Van Wettere, falconer and veterinarian, joins me to talk about avian influenza.  After introducing himself, Arnaud reminds us of the definitions of some basic terms associated with immunology, and describes the manner in which different strains of avian influenza are named. 

Arnaud outlines the historical timeline for most recent and on-going outbreak of the H5N1 strain.  He then outlines which bird species are most susceptible, describes routes of infection and transmission, and provides details with regard to survival of the virus under varying environmental conditions.

We continue our discussion regarding the clinical signs of infection, including the duration between infection, onset of clinical signs, and death. Arnaud then tells us what how  diagnosis is confirmed, and what to expect from veterinary- and public-health professionals if your birds are infected.

Given that the prevalence of the disease and that it typically runs its course is very quickly, we discuss the temptation for falconers to forgo necropsy and simply assume that the cause of death can be attributed to avian influenza, including the likelihood and implications of misdiagnosis.

Arnaud the outlines how falconers can assess prevalence in the areas where they typically hunt, how to manage the risk when hunting waterfowl, and steps that one can take controlling indirect exposure. He then outlines what can realistically be done treatment-wise, and outlines the challenges associated with implementing an immunization program. 

We conclude our conversation with Arnaud outlining what falconers should most likely expect for the 2024/25 hunting season.

In this episode Kent Carnie, Curator Emeritus of the Archives of Falconry, joins me  to discuss an account he has written which he refers to as an “eventful period during which American falconry evolved”, and our sport “came of age”. That period spans the years from 1965 until 1976, and is what Kent refers to as “The Twelve Turbulent Years”.  The objective of this episode is to detail highlights that transpired during that time frame. 

Kent provides a nice description of the background that gave rise to North American Falconry, and highlights the landmark event responsible for describing the magnitude of the decline of the peregrine falcon at the 1965 conference in Madison, Wisconsin, organized by Joseph Hickey. 

Kent tells us that by 1966 the preservation lobby was looking to lay the blame for declining peregrine populations somewhere; falconers and falconry were easily identifiable as the de facto cause. Kent Tell us about NAFA’s  response and in particular, Fran Hamerstom’s warning that American falconry was tied closely to the fate of the peregrine falcon.

1967 saw the National Audubon Society become involved, also raising concern that falconry posed a threat to the well-being of raptors. Kent details how NAFA responded to the concerns expressed by the Audubon Society, an in particular, the communications that occurred in the fall of 1968 between Roland Clement of the Audubon Society and NAFA representatives.

1969 looked grim for peregrine falcon populations, and again falconers were front and center of the efforts to assess and reverse the apparent declines. Kent steps us through the events that occurred at the Audubon-sponsored "Meeting Concerning the Conservation of North America Falcons" in March of 1969, and then explains decisions that were made at the November symposium that focused of the status of peregrine falcon populations and availability of birds to falconers.

1970 was a pivotal year in the efforts to avoid over-reach due to the Endangered Species Act, and vilification of falconry and falconers due to a self-inflicted  misstep that literally left the existence of falconry in jeopardy. Kent leads us through the circumstances that unfolded and explains what NAFA did to mitigate the fallout for falconry.

 Kent Carnie, Curator Emeritus of the Archives of Falconry, joins me for Part two of his two-part series to discuss an account he has written which he refers to as an “eventful period during which American falconry evolved” and our sport “came of age”. That period spanned the years from 1965 until 1976, and is what Kent calls “The Twelve Turbulent Years”.  

We begin Episode 2 recalling 1971 which saw efforts by falconers to draft formal falconry regulations. Kent describes the main objects of three meetings that took place, the first at his home in El Paso, Texas, the Portland Meeting in March, and the Salt Lake City Meeting in September.  

Historically, 1972 was a year arguably as pivotal as 1970, and could perhaps be considered the turning point for the framework that was to become the basis for falconry regulations in the United States.  Kent tells us about the effect of the North American Migratory Bird Treaty Act on falconry, and highlights the instrumental work of Jim Ruos. 

There were three major developments in 1973; a notice pertaining to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), followed by the Fish and Wildlife Service posting of the proposed falconry regulations for public comment, and the passing of the 1973 Endangered Species Act. Kent highlights some of the  implications to falconry of each of these developments.

1974 was a busy year for NAFA, in particular, navigating the anti-falconry positions that had arisen as a result of comments generated during the period that the proposed regulations were open for public feedback.  At issue were 13 main concerns – but of special significance was prohibition of use on an endangered species (i.e., the peregrine falcon) in falconry.  Kent recounts the way in which falconers responded. 

Kent describes 1975 as a year of waiting and outlines some of the events that precipitated delays in completion of the final regulations.

Kent describes the “Momentous Year” (1976).

With the “Twelve Turbulent Years” now almost six decades behind us, we conclude the episode with Kent's message to the cohort of falconers currently practicing falconry in United States and Canada.

In this Episode, my guest is former NAFA President, Ralph Rogers. Ralph argues that the practice of falconry hinges of three prerequisites (i.e., the legs of his metaphorical stool); legal access to the raptors with which we hunt, a fair regulatory framework, and access to abundant quarry. Ralph points out that both "access" and "regulations" are now historical challenges that a unified falconry community worked to overcome. He says we need to do that again to solve the much bigger problem associated with the widespread declines in quarry that have affected populations of game species in the United States and elsewhere.

After introducing himself Ralph begins describing some of the historical aspects that affected access to raptors, and he points to times when the regulatory framework for legalized falconry was absent, as well as a period of time that the framework was considered to be overbearing. He argues that things have never been better from the standpoint of both access the regulatory framework 

Ralph then describes the way in which he sees contemporary falconry, and to use his words, says it has been “redefined, drastically altered, or has disappeared.  He then provides some international examples for why he believes this to be the case. 

I then ask Ralph about his experiences, and those of his North American colleagues, including how the decline in quarry has manifested itself when it comes to practicing the sport.

Ralph then provides what he believes are concrete actions that falconers should take to reduce the current rate of declines in game species. We conclude the episode looking back to an occasion when Ralph was most worried for the future of falconry, and counter that with an occasion that he believed that North American falconers had never been more unified.

 In this episode Ted Koch joins me to discuss prairie grouse conservation and the North American Grouse Partnership (NAGP).  After introducing himself, Ted describes the falconry-related legacy of the NAGP, and gives us an overview of the organization itself.

Ted then outlines some of the unique features associated with grasslands, including the manner in which they are distributed geographically, the natural disturbance regimes that they rely on, and some of the main threats to these ecosystems. He follows this with a description of the overall diversity of wildlife fauna that are associated with grasslands.

We then talk about the legal status of prairie grouse species in the United States, and Ted explains why avoiding endangered species designation is critical from from a funding perspective. 

Ted explains why restoration of prairie ecosystems is so tricky, then follows-up with the work that the NAGP is doing to conserve grasslands, and explains the way in which listeners can contribute the work that the NAGP is doing.

We conclude the episode with Ted recounting two stories, the first involving an an occasion when he felt most pessimistic for the future of prairie grouse, and the second when he felt most optimistic. 

In this Episode I talk to Thomas Baumeister of "Access WILD" and "Orion - The hunters Institute" about the question of hunting and the way in which hunters can develop an ethical framework. 

We begin our conversation with a brief reminder of the four ways  in which society generally values wildlife  (Traditionalist, Mutualist, Pluralist, and Distanced). We then outline the ways in which hunters and anti-hunters can be be classified.

We then turn our attention to "ethics" and the ways in which ethical philosophy can be applied to the question of hunting. Thomas then explains whether killing an animal can be ethically justified, and we discuss the concept of "moral residue".

We then turn our attention to "Fair Chase", first by defining it, and then by examining its origins. I then ask Thomas about "optimizing advantage" - the idea that hunting can be neither too easy, nor too difficult. We then discuss the importance of the hunting experience, and the way in which moral residue is an important part of the hunting experience.

Thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode.

In this multi-episode series, I am joined by Matt Mullenix, Heath Garner, and Brian Millsap to discuss their views of falconry in the context of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation (NAM; see Episode 33) and the Wildlife Values Report (WVR; see Episode 34).

The episode begins with each guest reporting on progress of the molt for each of their birds (as of late August). I then take advantage of having Brian Millsap present to get an update on normalization of take of peregrine falcons, Heath gives us a sense of NAFA's activities in this regard, and Matt offers his insights too. 

We talk also of the affect of the recent Supreme Court ruling to strike down Chevron Deference, a decision that will affect the way that agencies such as the USFWS will be able to conduct business.  

We then turn our attention to discussing the manner in which falconry is affected by the first of the seven principles of the NAM, the idea that science is the proper tool to discharge wildlife policy.

Matt, Heath, and Brian then engage in a wide ranging discussion (gatekeeping as it relates to permitting, falconry schools, the value of the internet) on aspects of falconry as it relates to the NAM principle that every citizen has the opportunity, under the law, to hunt and fish in the United States and Canada (i.e., Democracy of hunting).  

Thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode with three prominent U.S. falconers.

In this episode Matt, Heath, and Brian return to the show to continue our conversation regarding the ways in which the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation (NAM) intersects with the way that North American falconers practice their sport.

We begin the episode talking about the principle that take of wildlife is allocated by law, which guides proper use of wildlife resources. Brian tells us about the ways in which take of raptors was established and is regulated.  Matt then offers insight into the way in which this principle influences his own falconry, and Heath adds to the conversation by telling us about the ways in which NAFA relies on the principle.

We then turn our attention to discussion of the Public Trust Doctrine which reflects the idea that wildlife is owned by the public, and held in trust on their behalf by government for the benefit of current and future generations. Discussion ranges broadly.

Historically, the need for management and conservation of wildlife was associated with the effect of market hunting on wildlife species. Inherent to the NAM is the principle that markets for dead wildlife were eliminated and the sale of wildlife was prohibited. Brian tells us how this principle is implemented within federal government regulation. We then talk about "ownership" of wild-caught raptors and commercialization of captive-bred raptors.

We close out the episode discussing the principles that wildlife is an international resource and that killing can be sanctioned only for legitimate purpose. Matt imagines another version of himself existing separately in the multiverse and posits a way that killing of species currently protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act might be legitimized. 

Thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode.

 In this episode Matt, Heath, and Brian return to the show to continue our conversation, this time to discuss the ways in which America's Wildlife Values intersect with the way that North American falconers practice their sport.

In Part  2, we discussed the UNESCO designation of falconry as a living human heritage. We were all under the impression that the U.S. was not a UNESCO member, but in fact, the US became the 194th member in July of 2023 – thanks to John Goodell, curator of the  Archives of Falconry for alerting us to this change.

We then remind listeners of the four wildlife value orientations (those being Traditionalist, Mutualist, Pluralist, and Distance), and we outline how each of the people who responded to the survey were then identified as belonging to one group or another. Heath identifies where he thinks NAFA fits within the rubric, and Matt tells us how his values have shifted over his career.

Brian gives us a broad sense of whether values of agency personnel reflect this  underlying distribution found among Americans, and weighs in on whether the makeup of agency personnel should reflect this distribution.

We then turn our attention to the "Distanced" group, and discuss ways in which the falconers can contribute to reducing the proportion of people who exhibit very low levels of interest in wildlife. 

Our discussion then turns to asking whether agencies should simply ignore ideas associated with Mutualism in favor of focusing on ideas that would better suit Traditionalists and Pluralists.

We conclude the episode examining the growing impact of conflict and mistrust that are associated with societal values that have shifted towards ideas and goals more typically associated with Mutualists.

In this episode, I am joined by John Goodell, Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Archives of Falconry located in Boise, Idaho. After introducing himself, John provides listeners with a timeline of the way that the Archives was established and how it has evolved. John also provides a comprehensive description of the depth and breadth of the composition of the collection held at the Archives.

We discuss acquisition of the Karl-Heinz Gersmann library. John explains just how significant the library is, and what it means to the falconry community worldwide. He also underpins the importance of current renovations in terms of ensuring that the collection is kept safe from catastrophic loss.

We continue our conversation outlining the nature of the virtual exhibits. John explains how clubs and falconers can become members of the Archives, and the ways in which the organization strives to be relevant to the falconry community, including a unique opportunity for apprentice falconers to take advantage of the benefits of joining the Archives.

John explains the various outreach programs that are available including the Masterclass Video Series, the Heritage Book Series, the Spring Rendezvous, and the book auction.

We conclude our discussion relating heritage work to conservation action, and the very real possibility that the future of North American falconry may be limited to micro-hawking.

Thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. I hope you enjoy this episode. 

Welcome to the  first episode of the "Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast Game Hawker Edition”. 

With the season well underway in northern latitudes of North America and Europe, I have pivoted from my regular long-form format to a shorter format that focuses on game hawking. The intent is to have periodic visits with several falconers to get a glimpse into the way the 2024 season is progressing for each of them.

In this first episode of Game Hawker Edition, I welcome Simon Tyers, author of “The Specialist Falcon”, back to show to tell us how his season has unfolded thus far. Simon starts us off by detailing the molt and the way in which he reclaims his birds. We continue the discussion talking about this years game bird release program. Simon then talks about his approach to maintaining pitch. We conclude the episode detailing the events of his day afield.

Thanks for listening to the show.  I hope you enjoy Game Hawker Edition.

In this episode of Game Hawker Edition, I welcome Steve Chindgren (author of “The Art of Hawking Sage Grouse), back to show to talk to us about his season to date. Steve gets the conversation rolling by telling us about the birds he is flying and the dogs he is running. He then talks about the summer molt, and the way in which he reclaims his birds. We then turn our attention to sage grouse, and Steve outlines his observations thus far. We talk pitch, and Steve emphasizes the importance of developing confidence even if it may mean sacrificing pitch, at least in the early season.   We conclude the episode detailing the events of his day afield, and the one previous to that.

Thanks for listening to the show.  I hope you enjoy Game Hawker Edition.

Corey Roelke, President of the Texas Hawking Association, joins me on this episode of Game Hawker Edition.  Corey gets us started by telling us about the birds he has in his possession, and his English springer spaniel, “Hela”. 

With help from Heath Garner, Corey recently trapped a passage peregrine in Arkansas. He tells us about that experience and trapping beach birds in Texas. We then discuss how he intends to reclaim his intermewed birds, and we get caught-up on how his newly-trapped falcon is adjusting to life as a falconry bird.

Before turning our attention to the events of the day, Corey describes the landscapes in which he hunts and the quarry that over-winters in Texas.

Jeff Broadbent joins me for this weeks episode of Game Hawker Edition. After introducing himself, his birds, and his dogs, Jeff tells us the back story that led up the acquisition of his current bird. Part of that back story includes a description of Jeff's trip to Alaska to fill his gyrfalcon permit.  We linger a little on the topic of Alaska, and the possibility of a return trip. We then turn our attention to the landscape and the quarry that make up a significant part of Jeff's falconry. Jeff then describes his approach to developing a high flying long-wing including his application of the drone and homers, including their potential downside. Before recounting his most recent outing Jeff outlines his views on whether the "serve" in and of itself is a reward. 

Simon Tyers returns to the show to update us on how his season is going thus far. We begin the episode talking about similarities and differences among the falconers that have already contributed to Game Hawker Edition, Simon then updates us with regard to how the work being done by the local Water Authority across his hunting ground has progressed. We then turn our attention to Smog's tendency to ignore the lure, how Simon addressed this, and whether the early season remedial work has solved the issue for Simon. Similarly, we get an update of whether Sonic continues to be distracted by wild peregrines. I ask Simon for his opinion on the utility of flushing game for a falcon that is out of position in the hope that as a consequence it learns that in order to catch game, it has to be “in position”.  Before concluding the episode with a a description of Storm's most recent flight, Simon describes some of challenges he has faced weather-wise.  Thanks for listening to Game Hawker Edition.  Once again, I hope you enjoy this episode.

In this episode of Game Hawker Edition, my guest is Dale Guthormsen.  After introducing himself, Dale explains why he is in the process of simultaneously starting two new falcons this season. Dale then describes his hawking ground and his primary quarry, including the distinction between fall and winter grouse. We then talk about the way Dale currently develops his game hawks, and he tells us how that has changed over the course of his career. We finish off the episode talking about how his last outing with each of his hawks unfolded.  Thanks for listening, hope you enjoy hearing about the start of Dale's hawking season.

Heath Garner joins me to tell us about his season thus far with the passage tiercel peregrine that he trapped in 2023.  Heath starts the episode telling us why he had to hawk snipe without the assistance of his two German short-haired pointers for a short time. We then talk about season start dates, how they vary based primarily on latitude, and when migrant quarry typically become available in Arkansas. Heath outlines the timing of his falcon's molt, and describes the transition from blond brown bird to adult plumage. He then talks about this passage peregrine in contrast to others he has trapped and flown. We talk about his hawking grounds and how environmental conditions have shaped quarry numbers. Heath describes his preferred approach to reclaiming a falcon from the free-loft mews post-molt. We conclude the episode recounting a couple of early season flights, and Heath praises the organizers and volunteers of the upcoming NAFA field meet in Liberal, Kansas in the first week of December.

Steve Chindgren returns for Part 2 of his Game Hawker Edition series, and he brings along a surprise guest.  Steve gets us started by talking about the character traits of each of his birds.  We then talk about how the grouse have adjusted to the onset of winter. We then turn our attention to the effect of colder weather on pitch, and Steve shares a tip or two on how to get a bird to take a better pitch. I ask Steve when he thinks it's too cold to hawk, and we talk about cold weather weight management. Our surprise guest offers some additional insight too.  I wondered whether Steve had seen the usual influx of golden eagles since we last spoke, and he highlights some of the unanticipated problems that can occur. On this topic, our surprise guest offers an opinion on mobs, murderous mobs. Steve tells us about the various guests he has hosted at the House of Grouse this season, and then we conclude episode with our surprise guest recounting the events of a recent flight. Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoy Steve's update.

Jeremy Roselle joins me for Part 1 of his Game Hawker Edition series. We begin the episode describing Jeremy's wide ranging background including where he is located, the birds he flies, and the dogs he runs.  We then turn our attention to his current efforts and Jeremy tells us about the landscapes in which he hunts, the quarry that is available to him, and the importance of having a good dog that can work in either forested or open landscapes.  Jeremy tells us about some of the challenges associated with winter hawking at latitude 53 degrees north, his preferred game hawks and the styles he want to see from his birds. Jeremy then recounts his most recent flight with his long wing, and a memorable flight on ruffed grouse with his American goshawk.

Dale Guthormsen returns to give us his first update on his season. After telling us where his team currently stands, Dale details his approach to getting falcons to take and maintain an upwind position while waiting-on. He also gives us insight into the way that grouse use the wind to their advantage, and we talk about how to manage a slip in order to confer advantage to the falcon.  We finish of the episode talking about the way that Dale intends to manage "Whiskey Jack" for the remainder of the winter hawking season. Thanks for listening, here's hoping that you enjoy this episode.

Jeff Broadbent returns to the program to update us on his progress with "Jafar", his gyr-peregrine tiercel. We begin by reminding listeners of Jeff's team and how he is situated falconry-wise. Jeff's work requires that he endure a rather long commute - he tells us a little about why that's the case, and explains how he goes about ensuring that he experiences almost no down time at all. We then turn our attention to what has transpired hawking-wise since late October, and of course, I ask him about his most recent outing.  Jeff follows-up with his favorite flight thus far, plus others, including an uncharacteristic evasive strategy employed by a tricky sharp-tailed grouse. We conclude the episode with Jeff telling us about his addition to his hawking team. Thanks for listening,  I hope you enjoy his episode of Game Hawker Edition. 

Corey Roelke returns to the program to tell us about the progress that he has made with his three peregrine falcons. We begin the episode discussing Corey's dog, duck numbers, and local weather conditions. We briefly talk about "flushability" of diving ducks, before moving onto an accounting of the way the season has gone for each of his birds, starting with his tiercel "Sky Daddy" - yes, that's his name. We then turn our attention to "Beebe" (or maybe it's "Bee Bee", or even just "BB"), Corey's wild-caught, intermewed female peregrine, now in her 10th season, and causing a bit of grief for Corey. We then talk about "Veenar" or is it "Weiner", or maybe "Weener", Corey's 2024 passage female peregrine trapped in Arkansas. We refer briefly to the danger associated with golden eagles, which turns to discussion of Bubo, red tailed hawks, and cotton rats.  We conclude the episode talking about the NAFA meet and next steps for Corey's season.  Thanks for tuning into Game Hawker Edition, I hope you enjoy Corey's update.

Heath Garner joins me to give us his first update of his hawking season. Heath begins the episode by telling us about the way his dogs have adjusted after their brouhaha in November, and he tells us about a gift that was mailed to him, presumably  to help him manage his dogs. Heath and I then have the obligatory discussion about weight management before turning our attention to the hawking period leading into the NAFA meet.  I then ask Heath about managing his time at the NAFA meet given his responsibilities as NAFA VP and the need to maintain his hawking routine. Once back home from the NAFA meet, Finn (Heath's passage peregrine) had two separate adventures, which Heath details for us. We conclude the episode discussing the upcoming Arkansas Snipe Invitational.  Thanks for tuning in, I hope you enjoy this episode.

Well, Matt Mullenix is back, this time as one of the cohort of falconers participating in Game Hawker Edition. Matt trapped a passage jack merlin this season, and we begin the episode discussing the backstory associated with Matt's acquisition of "Artie the Artful Dodger". We then turned our attention to Matt's experience with "Artie's" training, beginning with feeding on the fist and hooding, and culminating with "Artie's" first free flight and then his first kill while Matt was on the road visiting friends in Texas and hawking in Liberal, Kansas at the NAFA meet. On returning home, Matt leads us through his time over the Christmas and New Year's break. We conclude the episode with "Artie" dominating his quarry and forcing Matt to work hard for the chaos created by each flush, which undoubtedly led to attracting the attention of at least one of the members of the local free-living raptors also engaged in securing a meal.

Well, the UK falconry season wrapped up for Simon Tyers on January 31, and he returns to the program to give us run down of the changes he made at the outset of the season, whether he believes they were of value, and what changes he might make for the 2025/26 season. I then ask Simon about his views on the importance of maintaining consistency among three aspects of gamehawking - the location where one hunts, the weight of the hawk, and the time of day. We then turn our attention to the process that Simon likes to follow when returning his hawks to the free-loft mews. Before concluding the episode with a book recommendation for the off season, I ask Simon about his most memorable day of the 2024/25 season. Thanks for listening to Game Hawker Edition.

Steve Chindgren joins me for the last episode of his 3-part series of Game Hawker Edition. We begin the episode with a brief discussion of what each passing season means to Steve who is now in his 70s and still hawking hard. We then talk about the attributes of a good falconer as passed down to Steve from his mentor.  Steve tells us why he switched from flying in the mornings to flying in the evenings, and we talk about the tradeoffs between managing for hunting weight versus hunting time.  We then talk about Gerald Richards and the Utah Sky Trials. Steve then outlines his plans for next season, and gives us his opinion on the quality of North American falconry today in comparison to what it was half a century ago.  Steve then describes his most memorable day of hawking for the 2024/25 season. I hope you enjoy this episode.  Thanks for listening.  

In this episode Dale Guthormsen joins me to finish out his three episode contribution to Game Hawker Edition. After I briefly remind listeners of Dale's hawking season, he and I discuss this season relative to others he has experienced and what he intends to do differently next season.  We then turn our attention to a common theme that I've been talking about with guests on Game Hawker Edition; the relative importance of keeping a hawk within a narrow range in body mass and the idea of maintaining a consistent hunting time. I then get Dale's opinion on managing hunting weight using ounces rather than grams. We then talk about what Dale means when he discusses the concept of "first day high" and "second day high". I ask Dale to comment on the quality of falconry today in comparison to what is was three or four decades ago, and I find out what are the "aesthetics" that Dale is looking for in his falcons. We finish off the episode with Dale's most memorable day this season.

Jeff Broadbent returns to wrap-up his Game Hawker series. I provide a synopsis of Jeff's accounts of his season told in Parts 1 and 2, and then we discuss progress of his recent addition to his team, "Captain Jack", his English setter. Jeff then describes the events of a particularly disastrous day for him and his hawking partner, Arnaud Van Wetter. We then turn our attention to Jeff's plans for next season, including some change he intends to make.  Jeff then offers his opinions on the relative tradeoffs between managing for hunting weight, hunting time, and feeding time. Before concluding with Jeff's suggestions for off-season reading, he recounts his most memorable day afield this season.  Thanks for listening to Fat Bird, Ugly Dog - I hope you enjoy this episode.