Storm!! - Trouble or what?

[Steve Wise]

Hey guys
This is Netti here!

Now listen I will take no scoldings from ppl so dnt try (reasonable help will be taken but rude and ignorant comments will just be ignored) but I just wanted to discuss my Male Harris Hawk called Storm. Now this bird of mine is very antisocial lol. He seems to hate ferrets and dogs as well as rabbits!!
As far as the rabbit is concerned I have been advised to throw small amounts of rabbit to him on certain nights making it bigger gradually - open to suggestions!
Next the dog. My dog Lucky is very docile and I have been advised to tie the dog 6 foot away on a stake and let them sit the afternoon out continuing this for as long as it takes for him to realise the dog will not hurt him. My adviser told me that by the end of the whole procedure he will be allowed by Storm to sit next the perch quite happily. The only problem he has is he screams at them - not being aggresive, no bating or wanting to hurt the dog but just screaming - again open to suggestions.
And finally with the fezzies I have been advised to get Storm to learn to associate the ferret with producing the food for him. Now when I take him out with the fezzies he again takes the same attitude as with the dogs - no aggression just screming - open to suggestions.

All I want from you guys is if you have extra advise or help I would like it, but quite frankly I will not put up with rude and nasty comments and so they will just go straight over the top of my head. OK??? As a 15year old girl who has just recently started hawking I really, really, appreciate peoples help and advise.
CHEERS GUYS. XX :supz: :rolleyes: :supz:

[ScotsFalconer]

not meaning to be nasty but take a chill there are alot of people hear to help. wat i wud do is just man the bird/feed in front of the dog. with the ferrets just sit with the bird and the ferret in the other hand and they will get used to each other. hopefully. best advice i can think of at the moment. if i com up with any other stuff ill let u know

[Steve Wise]

Thanks very much for that x Yea I shall calm it x

[Pitbull]

When I manned my MHH he sat on the Coffee table and the dogs and cats would walk round him, and he has got quite used to them all now.

The ferrets we bring inside so they are in the same are as each other at times. when we are out in the field I tend to carry them outside the box so when he is flying around he sees them in our hands rather than just taking them out the box and chucking them down the hole. also at the moment I tend to hunt from the fist with the ferrets, which I also find helpull as he tends to be the first one to see the ferret but does not bate, his neck just extends. But the falconers that I know of keep the hutch near the wethering / aveiry.

[UKJay74]

another option with the dog as stated so niether can go near each other is out on a screen perch out of reach of the dog ..

this could instill the thought he is higher and safer and make getting used to the dog easier..

seen this done before in a couple of afternoons and worked a reat sorry i cant help with the others

[Steve Wise]

Cheers for all your help! x

[Gary.B]

another option with the dog as stated so niether can go near each other is out on a screen perch out of reach of the dog ..

this could instill the thought he is higher and safer and make getting used to the dog easier..

seen this done before in a couple of afternoons and worked a reat sorry i cant help with the others
I used a post perch, it worked for me.

[Hardcore Hawker]

Hi Netty my opinion is this. Your bird will not learn to tolerate the dog and ferrets until he is hunting and then will realise that they both bring thier own benefits to the hawk he may well improve slightly but still cannot see the point of thier existance until he sees them flushing quarry someone else mentioned that they handle thier ferrets infront of the bird as they only ever see them being dropped in a hole when out in the field this is exactly what they need to see a ferret going in one end and a rabbit coming out of the other. I would concentrate on getting the bird killing before concentrating on the dog and ferrets. This is just my opinion.

[Pitbull]

Hi Netty my opinion is this. Your bird will not learn to tolerate the dog and ferrets until he is hunting and then will realise that they both bring thier own benefits to the hawk he may well improve slightly but still cannot see the point of thier existance until he sees them flushing quarry someone else mentioned that they handle thier ferrets infront of the bird as they only ever see them being dropped in a hole when out in the field this is exactly what they need to see a ferret going in one end and a rabbit coming out of the other. I would concentrate on getting the bird killing before concentrating on the dog and ferrets. This is just my opinion.

I agree but one thing I found though I have an older bird was when I took the bird out in the field with the dog at the start was he would just sit it the tree sceaming, and as the dog was running around out side near me would not entertain landing on the fist or following on. but as time goes on things are getting better. Ferret wise yeah get them down the hole to bolt the rabbits, but I tend to let the hawk see where the ferret is coming from and going too.
We cant get everything going at the same time. Rome wasnt built in a day.:lol:
For dogs really i think the best thing maybe is to pm someone that has had success with their dogs ie Big Joe Joe.

[Hardcore Hawker]

Pitbull my male harris is totally wedded to my dogs and follows them wherever they may go he has never even screamed at any dog and will work with any type of dog as he knows that quarry is not far away from the end of its nose maybe im just lucky as other people i occasionally fly with have real trouble with thier birds when in the field with a dog but these birds are not really at the correct hunting weight therefore thier attention is not focused on hunting so the dog is just seen as an annoyance by them.

[Jenet15Hawker]

Hi this is Jenet under my own username and just wanted to post an update!! Storm is doing great now and tolerates the ferrets and dogs, he is even now flying free above them. He is totally bomb-proof and he is really pleasing me!! We (Storm and Me) are now in our second season together and yesterdaywe wen tout flying and he perormed really well, i have him coming down to the lura and the dummy bunny, but only if he can see food attached. Ther is only one problem and it is getting him switched, he has been fed plenty of carcassees, both rabbit and magpie, pigeon, pheasant but take him out and he doesn't want to know. It is not a neccessity to get him hunting as he was a thrid clutch bird and relatively small which I feel may add to the fact that he doesnt feel he can do it! If you could give any feedback that would be great!! Cheers xx