Self-hunting birds

[ChicM]

What’s your definition of a self-hunting bird?

I have a great little male HH eyass and we have had a good (enough) season. He is a pretty feisty little guy though and can take off on quarry that he has seen and I haven’t. I don’t hunt him from the fist but have endeavoured to get him following on from trees, which by and large he does really well. Until, that is, he sees something and then he’s off after it, regardless of what I am doing. Then again I, in my inexperience no doubt, thought that was why I put him in the trees in the first place!

Self-hunting, I fully understand, is a vice that should be discouraged. This weekend, for example, I had two incidents where he chased something into gardens. Not great, not great at all!

But on the flip-side, three weeks ago he put in quite the most spectacular kill of the season on a cock pheasant; a kill that would simply never have happened if he’d come to the fist at a critical point rather than start the chase himself on quarry I hadn’t seen.

So, no advice on how to cure the problem, if it is a problem, initially please: I am interested initially in your thoughts on how you would define a bird that is self-hunting to see if we all have a consensus on what it is.

Then you can all tell me what I am doing wrong! :D

[Sparrow Hawker]

Hi ChicM,

Very Good post ChicM, hope you don't mind but I'd also like to include a possible solution to help the problem as I 'm sure there are people out there who are currently have probs with there bird self-hunting.

My definition of Self-hunting is a bird that chooses to go off in search of it's own sport and having no interest in the falconer what so ever. They will most probably be a nightmare to call back because there flying weight will possibly be to high. Particularly with a harris it might be a difficult habit to overcome as there very intelligent. I believe It's far easier to rectify the problem early before it becomes a habit.

With a harris they have a larger margin for error in terms of hunting weight compared with other species of bird. So they will actually fly quite well at a higher weight than ideal, even the slightest drop in weight may well lead to a better performance.

Help to reduce self-hunting tendencies - More manning maybe, possible slight weight adjustment and off the fist flights will help to condition the bird that near the falconer is the best place to be. Personally in my first flying season of flying my harris I concentrated on off the fist flights only but have given my harris more freedom now by following on. I appreciate I probably missed a lot of chances of a flight being he was on the fist and not perched up high in a tree, but I resisted the temptation.

It is perfectly natural for a bird of prey at hunting weight to spot something in the distance and go for it, in fact its good as it shows the bird's confidence and capabilities, more often than not you get the best flights at distance as well :)

All The Best,

HH

[Jack Merlin]

I didn't really understand self-hunting until I read Edmund Bert's book on training and flying the passage goshawk, "An Approved Treatise of Hawkes and Hawking" -- first published in 1619!!

This is a shameless plug, I'm afraid, because I was so impressed with the book that I've transcribed it into a modern style that is quite easy to read and understand and it is at the printers now.
Bert says it is hunger which forces a bird to self-hunt (perfectly described by HH above by the way) rather than being too high. I hadn't thought about it from this angle but it makes sense. If the hawk is not convinced it will occasionally be called down and get a reward from the falconer, it will start to look for a kill on its own. As HH says, flying quarry is not the same thing as the bird going off looking for quarry on its own rather than following on.

The book is called "Training the Short Winged Hawk" and it also contains a transcription of a book on the sparrowhawk written in 1575! I promise you, both books are brilliant and contain a lot of tips!

More about the book, which will be out next month, at http://www.adviegundogs.co.uk/FirthProductions.htm.

Jack

[LanczSpringer]

Hi Jack

the link above doesnt work!
I am quite intrested in your work I bet its a good read.

[Darryl]

This link might work, scroll down to near the bottom of the page.
http://www.adviegundogs.co.uk/FirthProductions.htm#O

[Jack Merlin]

Damn! Now why didn't that work?

Try this one. You may have to cut-and-paste but it should take you straight there.

http://www.adviegundogs.co.uk/FirthProductions.htm#Training

Jack

[ChicM]

Thanks for all your plugs Jack...maybe you could take this to Sparrow as a sponsored link and earn the site some cash on your advertising?

[Jack Merlin]

Thanks for all your plugs Jack...maybe you could take this to Sparrow as a sponsored link and earn the site some cash on your advertising?

I have no problem with that. Maybe you should run it past Hawkmaster first as this has already been discussed.

Jack

[Kevin Massey]

i quite enjoyed the grouse hawking in scotland and pointers and setters videos :lol: :lol:

kev