Some thoughts on ABA as it applies to working with birds of prey. This was a presentation I gave at the Association of Avian Veterinarians last summer and is mainly geared toward helping vets talk to their clients. Those of you who are Steve Layman fans may enjoy. Some of the points arose from a [...]
The thing is, my homemade backpack wasn’t all that. The peregrine ruined it with minimal effort and left it lying next to a regurgitated pellet on the floor, discarded just as easily and with similar irreverance. Damn I wish I had inherited the arts and crafts gene from my mom. That’s okay. After one [...]
…wasn’t really a flight, in all honesty. He sat on the roof of XB’s truck. Then he sat on a pole. And then he thought ponderously about coming to the lure, finally arriving, but protesting heavily that I wasn’t swinging it by strafing the stationary leather pouch five times before tackling it. At least he got in [...]
I’m really really slow to get started this year and am thinking that’s okay. The nasty weather only just finally pushed into the north, meaning that my quarry which is still wintering comfortably far away is about to get an eviction notice from Mother Nature. I’ll be in DC at the end of the week and by the time [...]
There is a place in Lift I often find myself reading from at bookstores that describes Anakin falling and refers to Ken Franklin’s video of sky diving with his peregrine Frightful. I remember the falconry meet when Ken was keynote speaker and showed us the raw footage of the soon to be National Geographic special. The [...]
I know I have some folks wandering in because they’ve heard about or read LIFT. (Yes, I realize it’s probably about two of you, but there’s no reason not to cater to to my fan club of two.) And I feel horrible that I’m not blogging about my falconry season. The truth is…well, I haven’t started my [...]
Last Saturday I had the pleasure of presenting at the International Society for Anthrozoology/ Human- Animal Interaction conference on falconry and how high level relationships with wild (rather than domesticated) animals have positive psychology and health implications. I know this all sounds very scientific, but mostly what I was saying in a nutshell that, “Humans ARE nature, [...]
One of the things that falconers learn to accept is that the animals we love the most are not ours to keep. Some we choose to have in our lives for a short period, lending them a helping hand and sending them on their way. Whether they are foster dogs on their way to a [...]
Every once in a while a falconer will take in a bird that has been injured in the wild, work with it as they would a “working” bird and give it an opportunity to regain its wings, hunting skills and return to the wild. Over the summer Joe O. took the time to use his [...]
It’s happening. The weather is cooling and it doesn’t matter that my days are packed with Ducks Unlimited, working out, writing, lecturing and traveling. I’m ready to fly falcons. My falcons, however, are not ready to fly. Last night I dreamt that I found the final two tail feathers, the outer two of the train shaken [...]
