Squirrels

[Addi]

out hunting this morning .. saw a squirrel in the open ... my mate unhooded his goss and i got the camera at the ready to try get an action shot

got this great upclose picture just as the goss took the slip and left the glove




























....

[HunterPaul]

brilliant..... I have the greatest respect for squirrels, they can kick anythings arse, and if there was one as big as a cat it would be the most feared creature on earth... you'd have to watch your nuts then my friends

[Addi]

paul .. do you have an acid habit? .. u crack me up with ur posts mate!

[Tim Laycock]

If you choose to hawk squirrels with a goshawk than you should realy have your head examined by a qualified expert.
This is by far the most stupid thing I have heard on here this week, but its only tuesday and I suppose there is plenty of time yet!

[HunterPaul]

blackbird mate I think you are missing the joke... did you not get the pic of the squirrel opening his fur to display a superman logo... well when the gos saw that it crapped itself then flew three fields to get away... but luckily for all of us the squirrel using its super hearing heard a scream two miles away and with super speed shot off just in time to prevent a rather sexy female hedgehog being run over by a range rover.. the hedge hog gave him a peck on the cheek to which he blushed, "no need for that kind of thing ma'am just doin' my job then flew over the horizon to change back into the clever disguise of tree rat. ... sorry for the sarcasm befare you start taking me apart..lol

[Addi]

If you choose to hawk squirrels with a goshawk than you should realy have your head examined by a qualified expert.
This is by far the most stupid thing I have heard on here this week, but its only tuesday and I suppose there is plenty of time yet!


use the scroll bar on the right hand side of the screen ... take it back to the top of the page and take a long hard read of that post again ....

[HunterPaul]

oooh fisticuffs at dawn...lol

[HunterPaul]

two yorkshire lads having a brawl...lol... while your at it I'll be over your houses comforting your laaaayyydddeeeeees

[Addi]

u not getting any at the mo paul? u seem to be far too interested in my missus .. however she is avalible at very reasonable rates and can accomadate ...


P I M P
lmao

[HunterPaul]

what d you mean rates..she's giving it away fella... no not getting any at the mo'...but if you saw my missus you understand...I cant afford the three to four viagra it takes to overcome the natural bromide affect she has on most men... if the fat bitch got her arse on a tread mill in the millenium dome she light it up like a lava lamp...

[Addi]

i just fell off my chair laughing once again!

[HunterPaul]

a chair in our house would be a bonus.. what I want to know is how she manages to get those short stubby arms with those little sausage fingers around that fat arse to wipe it... the hawk got me in the face this morning....I yelled get this f...ing bird off my face its killing me ... it took me back to when we were courting...

[Attmonk]

Reading this at work, never laughed so much while supposed to be working!! :)

[Addi]

oh how lovely marrages are!!

[HunterPaul]

cant comment on that mate ...says it all

[Addi]

neither can i as i dont plan on getting into one for as long as i can help it ... im just gunn abe engaged forever! its less complicated when things go belly up! lol

[HunterPaul]

untill she decides different mate

[Addi]

i can try!

[GDN]

Fisticuffs at dawn. Your having a laugh. Sounds more like hand bags at dawn.

[HunterPaul]

theres nothing beats a good handbag slapping contest...Ive seen addi's handbag mate there is a pic of it. funnily enough on the thread about his hawking vehicle. So my moneys on him

[IAmTheWeasel]

oh how lovely marrages are!!
Best two days of my life.....The day I got Married and the day i got divorced.......

[Wightwings]

now thats cynical........................................... ..but true pmsl

[HunterPaul]

the minute most people aquire a bird of prey they are looking at potential D.I.V.O.R.C.E.

[HunterPaul]

thought the squirrel pic was funny though

[IAmTheWeasel]

One of my favs!!!

[Harrisii]

brilliant..... I have the greatest respect for squirrels, they can kick anythings arse, and if there was one as big as a cat it would be the most feared creature on earth... you'd have to watch your nuts then my friends

going back to a more serious note on squirrels, ( dont want to get involved with the "my wifes a big" thing).
a ferret would kick any squirrels ass easy. i used to hunt these tree rats with my ferrets before i got into hawking.
i would love to sample some squirrel hawking but am a little dubious due to the knashers on these ****ers. occasionally my ferrets would take a bite but then the squirrel would end up dead. not the same thing with a hawk though.
i have squirrel chaps but am open to as much advise as i can get on this type of hawking. i hear its pretty special.

[Moses]

Best two days of my life.....The day I got Married and the day i got divorced.......


as the saying goes marriage is a bitch :D


man is doomed as long as he is a slave to a vagina :D





lol addi nice squirrel pic mate :D

[Allan]

Hi Harrisii......Your talking my language now.
As far as Im aware,I,m the only Squirrel Hawker in South Wales and therefore was asked to do a speech on it for the WHC last January.My East Texas triple lined Chaps were featured on Moochers Hunting 3 years ago and was a member of American Apprentice Falconry Squirrel Hawking until it packed in last year.
Someone mentioned about a Squirrel the size of a Cat.........My mate Noel hunts the Ground Fox Squirrel over in Arlington Texas with his RT......theyre weighing three and a half pound plus!!!!!!
Thirteen Tree Rats this season so far and only one bite.I dont use the Chaps no more..thats whole different thread.If anyone wants to start a thread on Squirrel Hawking UK....go ahead......as far as I know,thers hardly anyone doing it........Just pre.empting the replies.......
YOU NEED A PSYCHIATRIST AND A GOOD VET TO FLY A HARRIS AT SQUIRREL
Dont bother...its all in my article AN EVENTFUL SEASON in the Austinger magazine 3 years ago...Squirrel Hawking...Now that IS the Sport of Kings.

[Allan]

Just realised.......Noel.........Youre already on here...IAMTHEWEASEL......
How you doing.Was talking to Terry Large about you and Mellisa at the NAFA meet when I bumped into him last time.Did you pick up a Harris after?Hope your site is still up and running.Give me a PM and well have a chat...
Cheers Allan..
If youre still ging over to the Isle of Man TT this year let me know and we,ll meet up.

[DavidS]

hi allen, i would be interested in your views on squirrell hawking. i have caught a few myself and find them exciting quarry and they're quite a smart animal. i fly a RT and a harris. i see in your post that you don't use chaps anymore. Is there a reason?

[Barbary Boy]

going back to a more serious note on squirrels, ( dont want to get involved with the "my wifes a big" thing).
a ferret would kick any squirrels ass easy. i used to hunt these tree rats with my ferrets before i got into hawking.
i would love to sample some squirrel hawking but am a little dubious due to the knashers on these ****ers. occasionally my ferrets would take a bite but then the squirrel would end up dead. not the same thing with a hawk though.
i have squirrel chaps but am open to as much advise as i can get on this type of hawking. i hear its pretty special.
how the f**k did you kill squirrels with aferret,did they ride on the back of your h/hawk?

[Allan]

The adult grey squirrel is UNDOUBTEBLY to craftiest,cunning and evasive little ****er that you can Hawk.Everyone that is flying a Harris will catch the odd Squirrel now and then and think theyre easy prey.These tend to be the second batch of young that leave the dreys with their parents mid Sept till mid Oct.Its quite easy for your Hawk just to rip these off a bough an bring to the ground.Once mature its a different ball game......They can just dissappear into thin air,can bail 40ft out of a tree,bounce off the ground and belt away as if nothing has happened.....They can freeze like a statue and the Hawk not see them,this will improve your catapolt skills.They,once caught,can inflict serious injury,the worst being to break a Hawks leg.....hence the use of Squirrel Chaps.To answer Barbarys question in advance..........a bolted Squirrel will take refuge ANYWHERE once bolted.......Rabbit and Badger earths,under woodpiles,under cars,holes of any description in or under trees,woodpecker holes,under tin sheets,dry stone walls and I even spent 20mins once trying to move a Squirrel on which I found froze in the inside of a dumped car tyre.
They truly are great quarry.........but not everyones cup of tea.
My record weight so far is a Dog Grey at 1lb 9 1/2 oz......
His tail is hanging pride of place next to my Hawking Bag.

[DeathFromAbove]

how the f**k did you kill squirrels with aferret,did they ride on the back of your h/hawk?


:grin: hehehe pmsl......the mental image i got when reading this...lol :lol: nice one

[DavidS]

hi Allan, i've read gary brewers book on bushytails and he advocates always use chaps. i noticed on a previous post that you don't use them anymore. why? do you think they interfere with your hawks footing ability?
i've caught a few squirrells - some young , but also some mature and my hawks have received a few minor bites [ maybe not minor to the hawk ] and i was going to put on chaps to try and prevent this. do you think they work?
cheers david

[Stephen]

Me and my mate fly a cast of three harris`s at tree rats one goes up the tree after it ,rips the dray till the treerat breaks cover .
Then all three criss cross the tree till it hits the bottom and all three get it once its on the ground
The two females have chaps on they do the most work one of the females
gets one nearly ever time she is out
dont no how to add pic or video clip says files to big if some one could help,
let me know what to do

[Minty]

the minute most people aquire a bird of prey they are looking at potential D.I.V.O.R.C.E.

Its not the Bird of Prey the old womens moaning about but the the gun i have just bought as i am partially blind in one eye and have one foot shorter than the other.
Perhaps i should take grenades!

[Allan]

I decided after half way through the first season to cut them off.By then she had learned to mask.I dont like chaps and the Harris likes them even less.If you download Gary,s patterns of the east texas chaps you will see he uses the same measurements as a male red tail.You will find that his measurment is totally incorrect and generally the chaps will be sloppy.What you must remember is that in the states they are hunting the ground fox squirrel which can do serious damage.I dont really feel that if you have got a made harris flying without chaps
youve got a problem.My hawk only had six bites last season.Only one put her out of action for three days.I always use ten vol proxoide for the wounds.Gary said that flying a hawk on squirells without chaps was like a parachutist jumping out of an areoplane without a parachute.I must admit if you seriously want to do this fly initially with chaps ( they take five hours a set to make) and once she is made cut them off.I find it is like a hawk flying with a pair of rugby boots on.
This is my own opinion...But remember.......in the States,many many people fly without chaps.

[Pitbull]

never flown at the critters but watched one of the videos, and it shows the squirrel had bitten straight throw the chap instead of the leg mmmmmmmmmmmm

[Allan]

Yeah....the trick is to put 2 shiny studs on the front of the chaps.....They say it resembles a pair of eyes to the Squirrel and its the first thing they go for if theyre not masked.The Squirrel will generally get to hang on to the lower flags if its caught by the back end and the leg and toes if caught in the middle back.If masked its ****ed...........Get the bradawl out....another one bites the dust.

[Harrisii]

how the f**k did you kill squirrels with aferret,did they ride on the back of your h/hawk?

now, now barbary boy, dont be foolish, the ferrets are scared of heights.

catching squirrels with ferrets aint as daft as it sounds. quite the opposite as you will see when i explain to you. (maybe).
firstly and formost you must know your woodland. know it well. over time and by exploring it well you will get to know every hole in every tree which the squirrels use as cover. every hollow log, tree trunk, and so on.
once you discover these holes you will notice each and every one will have squirrel teeth marks around the entrance to enlarge or keep open or just for the sake of it. these are the places the squirrels hide when you walk the woodland and you cannot see any. you will find them easily enough in the midts of winter when there is no cover and you can watch the squirrels make their way to them.

(i must say that this style of hunting only works in winter, for obvious reasons).

now. this can be done alone but is much better with 2 or 3 at the most. one person climbs the tree to shake the ****ers out their drey, the others follow the squirrel, staying behind it all the way. never go in front of it as you will stop it in the high branches and it will stay there till someone climbs the tree to move it on. stay behind it but keep up with it and dont take tour eyes off it!! throw branches and sticks to keep it paniced and running. if you just follow, it will not see you as a threat and will just stop in the trees, clap, shout, throw sticks at it.

the squirrel is heading for the safety of a hollow tree. let it go to its destination.


the same can be done for squirrels which are found out in the open foraging. same applies, panic it into heading for safety. stay behind it and never go in front.

once the squirrel is nearing the hollow tree (which you will have found) hold off and circle around making sure it goes into the hole. once in the hollow, go and block it off with a suitable stick which ensures it cannot escape. you now have a trapped squirrel. sit back and have a smoke.
the ferret can be entered but the hole must be blocked off immediately as to stop the squirrel escaping. leave alone for 5 min' and if you must check then remove the stopper v.v. slowly. they can take a while to kill.

a word of warning. if you chase a squirrel into a hollow and insert the ferret but do not block the hole, the squirrel will escape quickly. however, this aint the only problem. You will not get this squirrel and any other squirrel in this particular wood to enter a hole whilst you are in the wood again. (or for a while).
It takes a long time to get them to enter a hole whilst humans are in the wood if they escape. they must be killed or it wont work again.
dont ask why. maybe they tell each other who knows, but it wont work again if they escape.
also. it wont work if you enter the ferret first before bolting a squirrel towards the hole. they maybe see the ferret and not go for the holes. or if they do head for the hole they smell the ferret and are out of there fast before you have a chance to block the hole. squirrels know what ferrets are and they quickly work out what they are for. keep them out of sight till they are needed. walking through a woodland holding a ferret will deter squirrels from going to a hollow.

only enter the ferret into a hollow if you have searched the wood and shaken the dreys but found nothing. the chances are they could be hiding in here.

obviously the best woodlands for this type of hunting are grazed mature woodland with plenty of oak which are great for hidy holes. but this has worked for me in loads of woodlands with plenty of ground cover. if you work out and find the holes, which they use for cover, then, when they hit the ground you will know where they are headed.


happy squirrel hunting.

[Allan]

What a WELL written,accurate,factual and imformative post.I wish they were all like that.

[Harrisii]

What a WELL written,accurate,factual and imformative post.I wish they were all like that.

why Mr Allan, what a kind thing to say. here, here old boy.

[Seals]

jolly good show old pip lmao