Tame Hacking A Gos

[Goldie]

I am giving serious consideration to tame hack an imprint gos this year.
Do any of you guys have any thoughts on the advantages or disadvantages of doing so. what would you see as the benefits if any.
Do you know personally anyone who has done it and what there feedback was.
I recall reading an article somewhere about two years ago of someone in England who HAD done it but dammed if I can find it :( I must be honest and say that if I had to pay for the bird, i might not be so keen but as i expect to breed some youngsters i don't see it as a financial risk in the same way.

[OhMyGod]

Some goshawks will have poor footing, they will catch alot of quarry but let it go. Surely the tame hack would solve this problem.

The tame hack will take about twice as long to get the same effect as a wild hacked bird so you can have a parent reared bird out for half the time with similar results. With the tame hack you can see the bird on your window ledge (or similar) every night so you know she is safe, If she is not around on a perticular evening you can go find her and bring her in yourself giving you piece of mind.

If your breeding project goes well, I would say why not give it a bash

[Coedhirion]

Being thick again... I undestand about hacking out... and hack pens, but where does 'tame' hack come in, surely you either hack out or not?? or is it because its an imprint ???? :?:

[Varmint]

Tame Hack comes from the fact that the imprint will be reclaimed either every day or every other day, rather than left out indefinatley.

Goldie, Andrew Knowles Brown did it a about 12 yrs ago, and it was a waste of time, the bird got very nervy and started Quickly to revert back to wild ways, making the social imprinting excersise a waste of time.
The following year he Hacked several Gos's, all of which were in no way better or worse than the PR birds he kept in the aviary.

Speak to him, and save yourself a lot of trouble.

Our ancesters were not stupid and if Hacking Gos's were a benefit i think it would be common place today?

I tame Hack Imprint falcon's here every year and even then only marginal benefit is gained.

I just like to see them floating about, but that doesnt help with pitching and finding favourite roosts, all habits that need to be broken later?

No so a prob with the Gos, but leave food out and they are lazy or deny food and they are off.

[RabbitHawker]

Hacking is not about improving the footing, as the birds shoud not be taking quarry, you are looking to reclaim them before then, of you run a high risk of losing them. It is more obout improving flying skills for falcons, and I guess you could find that with a gos in the woods, but a sthey are born killers you would have difficulty in reclaiming the bird

[HawkMan69UK]

dave jones tame hacked his in the imprint gos 2give him a ring through the welsh hawking

[OutFlying]

dave jones tame hacked his in the imprint gos 2give him a ring through the welsh hawking

Goldie, You seem to be going against the whole point of social imprinting, also will the gos be killing whilst at hack (don't think Dave's were doing this, more like free lofted in the garden area). If it isn't killing how will footing, flying ability be improved.

Problems I see are :-

Feeding in isolation, always feed the gos in your company - not possible if the imprint is killing at will.
Maintaining weight to reduce aggression on kill and carrying - same as above.

With an imprint it should be possible if you want, to have it flying and killing at the same type a wild young goshawk would be. So if it can kill for itself - why not fly it yourself and watch it kill.

[M & J Raptors]

Goldie

Worst thing you could do with an imprint gos is to hack it, teaches the hawk to self hunt ? feed away from his mum, also you will have a good chance of losing him, fat accipiters soon go wild again, you will lose all discipline with the hawk, after all why would he need you,
if you can afford to risk losing a gos then go for it but i cannot for life of me see what you will gain but trouble.

Mick

[Hawkmaster]

The only benefit would be to gain some fitness, but it has to be a fine balance between hunting and just flying to gain muscle. I did it for about three days and it is a nightmare.

[OutFlying]

The only benefit would be to gain some fitness, but it has to be a fine balance between hunting and just flying to gain muscle. I did it for about three days and it is a nightmare.

Hm, at this stage you could be flying it at hunting weight at game - why would a hawk that isn't hunting be as fit ?

[OutFlying]

I am giving serious consideration to tame hack an imprint gos this year.
Do any of you guys have any thoughts on the advantages or disadvantages of doing so. what would you see as the benefits if any.
Do you know personally anyone who has done it and what there feedback was.
I recall reading an article somewhere about two years ago of someone in England who HAD done it but dammed if I can find it :( I must be honest and say that if I had to pay for the bird, i might not be so keen but as i expect to breed some youngsters i don't see it as a financial risk in the same way.

wasn't the article in the BFC mag ?

[Hawkmaster]

Hm, at this stage you could be flying it at hunting weight at game - why would a hawk that isn't hunting be as fit ?
True, only if you have the game, remember this was my second year without a dog and finding bunnies was a nightmare and the season was not open for pheasants yet.

Personally I would also rather be out hawking but there surely must be time to prep for it too.

[OutFlying]

With a fresh imprint, from 6/7 weeks old its old enough to fly and kill. By this age its already wed to the lure and if you haven't let it get fat will already return, why would you want to lose the bond you have with the gos that you've socially imprinted and why not start hunting on selected slips. What more prep do you need, its manned to perfection and comes to the lure - it has a natural level of fitness that will provide success if your careful with your slips. It doesn't need to be rabbits or gamebirds, why not try it at corvids (plenty of them).

[Hawkmaster]

Unfortunately I never had mine from that age.

[OutFlying]

I was only answering from the point of Goldie initial post regarding tame hacking a fresh imprint. From what you have stated with your situation beforehand regarding no quarry available i.e rabbits, no dog or waiting for the pheasant season to start - I understand how much an imprint would have been VERY hard work. I found once it was killing regulary everything seemed to kick into place but without game it wasn't a good experience.

[Goldie]

Thanks for the input guys, I knew when I posted this topic I would get words of wisdom :lol: as I said, ever since reading the article I had a notion to try it but couldn't quite get my head round the benefits but at the same time couldn't put my finger on the negatives. Perhaps I couldn't see the woods for the trees so to speak :roll: Consensus of opinion leads me to the conclusion that it aint worth the time and effort.

Outflying. I have been informed the article was in the Falconers magazine, but it may well have been in the BFC mag as well

Jim

[OutFlying]

Hack one at my house :lol: :lol: :lol: for a season.

[Goldie]

:finga: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[OutFlying]

is that a no then :tonqe: ?

[Goldie]

don't suppose it took you long to work it out then :lol: :lol:

[OutFlying]

the red face gave it away

[Goldie]

if you don't ask you don't get :lol:

[OutFlying]

if you ask you still don't get :lol:

[Goldie]

I'll drink to that :drinkers: :lol:

[OutFlying]

who's round

[Goldie]

Yours, now you've got your fourth stripe :lol:

[OutFlying]

i've opened you one, but if you can't make it - i'll look after it for you.

[Jastreb]

One question: You said that Dave Jones didn't tame hack his gos for real? :shock: :?: