Deep SPRING CLEAN MORNING ROUTINE of a FALCONER | Part 1

[@cherylmclaughlin8652]

Off subject, but curious. I'm in Arizona and we fly all winter, approx Oct to May, and then the "feathered ones" are put up for the moult. You have real winter up there - When do you fly/hunt? Also, do you weather them during the moult?

[@TheFalconLady]

Good morning Cheryl; Thanks so much for the great questions - I'll do my best to offer some good answers. 😊 My approach on "when to fly" has always been whenever and as much as weather-conditions will allow, inclusive of early Winter flying (or even mid-Winter flying - provided the Feathered are fit enough to do some). We do not fly in 'extremes', that is, exceedingly high wind conditions, air temperatures of over +20°Celsius, or air temperatures below -17°Celsius. Naturally, flying in a light rain has a "life-span" - that is, once they've decided they're too wet to fly, they'll park up in a tree (or what-have-you) and wait the deluge out...which _naturally_ means you'll be waiting it out too! 😉 In answer to your second question, yes, I weather "Team Feathers" out during the moult, the rationale for this being two-fold: First, its been my experience weathering-out during the moult produces _stellar_ results (provided you can protect them from their "bouncing-about" habits when they're 'high'!), and closely resembles what wild birds-of-prey have no choice but to do during the moulting season. Wild raptors are moulting - and producing fine feathers - whilst providing for young, protecting their territories, etc. To be clear, I _respect_ the perspective some practitioners have with regard to the process of intermewing their companions, but don't agree with it owing to the proof Nature provides us where the contrary position is concerned; wild raptorial birds produce beautiful moulting results while having to "make a living" at the same time. Its inarguable. Secondly, recalling - _always_ - that Falconry is the practice of *relationship* between ourselves and our companions, weathering-out during the moult allows us to keep some measure of day-to-day interaction with our feathered-ones, albeit on a more low-key basis, than during the schooling or flying/hunting times of the year. Some modest amounts of manning, feeding on the fist, or just basic chores like keeping their feet clean during the moult keep us connected with them, which is ideal for both sides of the equation. 🙂 In my view, leaving a falcon/hawk/buzzard, etc. in the mews for five or six months with the only interaction being mealtime, or ( *hopefully* !) the occasional "gross-debris cleanup session" is a backwards step in developing, and deepening, the relationship with one's companion. They're half wild after brooding for so long with little or nothing to do for such a protracted period, and one has little alternative but to start _almost_ from the beginning with them ahead of the flying/hunting season. Naturally the steps go much more quickly than with a brand new or newly-trapped individual, but...why go backwards at all...? Finally, Cheryl, I'd be remiss if I didn't make note of our reality as contributors to projects in the film and television world; I quite literally _never_ know when a script could drop into my inbox, thus necessitating the development of camera-skills in one or even several of the Feathered at almost any time. This means the connection with 'Mohave', 'Halo' or 'Scirocco' must be nurtured at all times. 😊 I hope I've offered some useful perspectives - please do let me know if you've any other questions. Have a great afternoon, Jo

[@cherylmclaughlin8652]

@@TheFalconLady Thank you so much for your very detailed reply! Sorry I'm late in my reply back to you, but yours went to spam in my email and I haven't been back on here to check. I am always interested in other falconers' ways of dealing with the moult, etc. I keep my Harris's Hawk in a 24 ft flight chamber with swings and perches during the moult and have him fly to me for tidbits or to get his meal. This keeps my connection with him pretty well for manning him again in the Fall. Cheers and happy flying!

[@pakfloormaintenance.6428]

Very nice

[@JasonKenzie]

Very nice. I hope you are staying safe. Miss yeah.

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Jason! Great to hear from you - how are things with your "OTL" crew? Would you share our latest episode with your friends and connections to help us build our community? I'd definitely appreciate the help and support! We'd love to have you up for another visit when things are mostly back to normal - let's chat soon! Best, Jo

[@4englishlies875]

My word Jo, you make it look so simple,but we know it is not. Buy hard work is always a good thing. I've read through some of the comments here so I don't have to ask now. (Save you from typing) you are doing right by her. I will be looking forwards to then next Monday for the next one. Take care and please be safe.

[@Hollycat50]

Jo: I know for a fact that, for you, there are few things more enjoyable than spring cleaning! It was a pleasure to watch! 🤭 I look forward to the complete elimination of c-19! Until I can visit, I look forward to seeing more videos of my favourite Snow White from her magical kingdom, known as Falcon's Rest. Tralala! For anyone watching, if you ever have the opportunity to visit the Rest for lessons, do it!!

[@kristinjackson3728]

Very cool! Another really interesting behind-the-scenes look into life with raptors. I enjoy the insight into your world with the Feathered Ones! ❤️

[@TheFalconLady]

Hey you! Lovely to see you here today, Kristin - thanks so much for stopping in! Can't wait til you can come up for a visit and hang out with us for a week! Best, Jo

[@alessandrodejongh7147]

Nice video again love your channel so much i hope you are staying safe

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Alessandro; Thanks so much for stopping in - "Team Feathers" and I are all safe and well, thank you some much for thinking of us. :0) Would you help us get the word out about today's episode, and share us with your friends and connections? Thank you for supporting us! Best, Jo

[@ornithologydude8649]

I shall use "feathered one" Religiously

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Ornithology dude; Love it! 😁 I've always felt "bird", or "bird-of-prey" is a label. It doesn't actually _say_ anything about who this being *is*, and certainly does not acknowledge their personhood. "Feathered-one" feels more respectful, truthful, and accurate, in my view. Since hitting on the terms years ago, I've just felt so much more comfortable when I'm referring to one of my feathered companions, be that in general discussion, or directly. Thank you for stopping into the channel - I hope you'll stick with us as we move into some exciting episodes in the weeks ahead. Have a wonderful afternoon, Jo

[@richardjones4080]

get the basic but important husbandry right and you should have a very healthy feathered friend hopefully for many years

[@TheFalconLady]

Good morning Richard; You've hit the nail right on the head - couldn't have put it better. :0) Best, Jo

[@nancyignacio7378]

Hi Jo, loved watching the baths and cleaning routines, I was hoping to see Pfeiffer though or to have an update on him. Any progress? And you mentioned Sabre again as you sometimes do. Though he is no longer with you I would love to hear more about him, Im sure he has a story, as you had mentioned before what a big personality he was! Stay safe!

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Nancy; Thanks so much for stopping in to the channel today - I definitely appreciate your support. :0) 'Pfeiffer' is still with us (he'll be appearing - briefly - in the second-half of this instalment); we're doing our best, at present, to keep him calm in order to have a ghost of a chance at him seeing a successful moult this year, so I'm interacting with him and filming him as little as possible. The reality is 'Pfeiffer' just doesn't want to be bothered (ie: picked-up, manned... _anything_ ). Keeping his stress level to a minimum is the goal now. I continue to explore possibilities for finding him a "retirement home" where his interactions with anyone will be consistently low-key. I've been contemplating how to go about filming the 'Sabre' episode, and mapping out some ideas on how to share his story with all of you. I'm optimistic I can pull it together as a "story episode" in a couple or three weeks. As you might expect, its a highly emotional topic for me...'Sabre' was quite literally a "one in a million" being, and passed away far too soon. There are days when his absence is keenly felt...the truth is, I miss him, _every_ day... I hope you and yours are safe and well - please share the link to today's episode with your Facebook friends and connections, and please let your Falconry and wildlife friends know about us. :0) Chat soon, Jo

[@larryfunk9429]

Really enjoy your videos. Have a couple of quick questions. First, I may have missed a few episodes along the way, but I notice Pfeiffer was not one of the birds included in today's video. Is he still with you and how is his progress? Secondly, was looking through some materials, and came across a book coauthored by Frank Beebee. I was wondering if you ever encountered him and shared information. Again, keep up the good work.

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Larry; Thank you for your questions and for the opportunity to respond to them. 'Pfeiffer' will (briefly) appear in the second half of this segment on "deep Spring-cleaning". He is still with us, but hasn't made much progress (internally) in terms of wanting to make a connection with us. Given his advanced age, and damaged psyche, he'll never be able to contribute to the work "Team Feathers" and I are usually engaged in, thus my continuing efforts to place him in a "raptor retirement home" with reputable rehabilitation staff. Also, because I'm working hard to support the admittedly remote possibility of 'Pfeiffer' producing a good moult this year, I'm handling and interacting with him as little as possible to keep his inordinate stress levels as low as possible. :0) At the end of the video is a photo of Frank Beebee and myself from back in 2004; I visited him at his home, and met 'Blue' - his *massive* female Gyrfalcon, and saw his little Harris hawk and juvenile (wild-trapped) Gos. He was 91 years old at the time...I'd hoped to visit him again, but he passed away a couple of years later. Wonderful man - full of fun and energy _even_ at the age he was when I met him. Thanks again for sharing part of your day with us - chat soon! Jo

[@larryfunk9429]

@@TheFalconLady Well, if you are going to put the picture of you and Frank Beebe in plain sight, how will I find it? :-) I went away after the credits and good-byes. I was very fortunate to meet and talk with Hal Webster. Other than being very interesting, it was funny listening to his tales of when and how he caught Mach 1 for the Air Force Academy. One of the funniest facts was why he couldn't understand why the gyr was sitting about 10 feet away just looking a the flapping pigeon tied to his hand. The answer was simple. Where he was gyrs never see pigeons. Again, thank you for the interesting and entertaining videos. Larry

[@TheFalconLady]

@@larryfunk9429 Hi again Larry - what a fabulous experience it must have been to meet and swap "war stories" with Hal! And his training-story is wonderful! :0) Thanks so much for your support - I'll look forward to your thoughts and feedback after you've seen part two. Best, Jo

[@gregoryh4601]

Hi Joan Are your Redtail Hawks bigger then around the Great Lakes? Will you be getting a new Apprentice to help? Have you ever had a Gyrfalcon? Be good.

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Gregory; Great to hear from you today - I hope you and yours are safe and well? Both of the Red Tails I've personally stewarded came from Master Falconer Dan Paradis at the Quebec Falconry Centre. 'Thorn' was a decent-sized male, however 'Mohave' is a good 200grams heavier and a good-deal wider across the chest than his predecessor, for sure. Phenotypically speaking, both 'Thorn' and 'Mohave' are good representations of Eastern-seaboard Red Tail buzzards; their colouration and slightly angular-shaped heads differ significantly from those I've seen in both Alberta and here in British Columbia - the latter of which routinely feature much lighter coloured feathers on their heads in the middle region of our province. So in short, my educated guess would be both 'Thorn' and 'Mohave' are _reasonably_ representative of what you'd expect to see in a wild Red Tail from the Great Lakes region being they were derived from those bloodlines. My beautiful friend, 'Sabre', was a 3/4 Gyrfalcon who looked as though he were a full-blooded Gyr. Once I get 'Pfeiffer' placed in a reputable "retirement home", I'm giving considerable thought to acquiring another 3/4 Gyr, or possibly even a full-blooded Gyr (male). We'll see. 😉 I have several wonderful assistants, Gregory - Joseph, Andrew, Megan and Chris fill this role when they're able, and will doubtless be up to 'Falcon's Rest' again when its safe for them to return. Likewise, I've got a couple of great volunteers in Bruce and Erin - whom we rarely see, but are likewise valued contributors to my work. This being said, while I'm certain there'll be some _great_ contributions to future episodes by the folks I've named, and others yet to come, I highly doubt I'll ever again have a "full time" on-camera assistant with me going forward. The phrase "Once bitten, twice shy", comes to mind. 🤔 Have a great day, Jo

[@gregoryh4601]

@@TheFalconLady Joan a crazy question for you could you ship Pfeiffer to the State? Sho

[@gregoryh4601]

@@TheFalconLady Joan. One crazy question for you. Could you ship Pfeiffer to tha States? Could I ask the rehab Center where I will be working to take Pfeiffer for you? See I told you! lol. Wish this China Virus be gone. Bye Thanks for the reply back please check my first reply I fix it up.

[@TheFalconLady]

@@gregoryh4601 Hi again Gregory; Thank you for your follow-up questions. I would have to think very carefully before sending 'Pfeiffer' to the US. First, I'd need to learn a lot more about the rehabilitation centre you're volunteering at - how much experience they have, whether they'd be willing to take 'Pfeiffer' on, how he'd be housed, fed, etc. Then there's the cost of flying him to you; if our family of subscribers all chipped in, this expense _could_ be covered relatively easily. The bigger expense, which we could perhaps do a fundraiser for, is all the veterinary certifications we would have to acquire both on the Canadian side of the border, and on the US side of the border. Having twice gone through this process (moving a Feathered-one into a US location from Canada), I can definitively say its a challenging process, and involves a lot of work to arrange. Finally - and arguably most importantly, would be the questions of how far away are you? How long would 'Pfeiffer' have to be in a travel-crate to get to you? Would the stress of travelling a second time at this late stage of his life be too much for him...? I _do_ have a couple of options in terms of airports I could send him out from, but that's really beside the point. So... If you would like to gather the contact information for your rehabilitation centre, I'd be willing to speak with whomever is in charge - *provided* they would even be willing to take 'Pfeiffer' on. Since you've only just started there, perhaps you might want to have a conversation with the folks running the centre to find out if they'd even be interested in participating in something like this...? Keep in mind these are busy individuals doing incredibly important work. I wouldn't want to tie them up on the phone in what could ultimately be a fruitless conversation. Remember also, Greg, I _almost_ had a place arranged for 'Pfeiffer' last December, but when they realized how old he is, they declined to take him on because they couldn't guarantee he'd have somewhere warm to overwinter, and they felt the stress of being even on "light display" at their centre would be too much for him. With this in mind, I couldn't blame the centre you volunteer at if they weren't willing to take 'Pfeiffer' on for those same reasons. The fact is, its a *lot* to ask - anyone - to take on a living creature in the kind of state 'Pfeiffer' is in, which is a _material_ aspect of why I'm so outraged by the actions of the fraudster in Ontario who sent 'Pfeiffer' out to us! The malicious, deliberate dishonesty the fraudster undertook to both defraud me, and expose an aged falcon in poor health to cross-country travel is just shocking beyond words. 'Pfeiffer' needed to go into a rehabilitation centre of some description in Ontario; it is inhumane in the extreme that this wasn't done for him at the outset. I wouldn't completely shut the door to what you're suggesting if I felt the "random factors" could align to support an endeavour of this kind. This being said, I think it highly unlikely this would be an optimal option for placing 'Pfeiffer' somewhere safe where he could live out whatever remaining time he has left in relatively peace and quiet. Thanks again, Jo

[@gregoryh4601]

@@TheFalconLady Good Joan. Well I guess you and SoarinHawk are right they can help in taking Pfeiffer for you. I call Gigi and no but if Pfeiffer was better of the glove maybe. I try but sometimes my feelings for wildlife gets to me. I hope you find a good home for him. You do have a lot of helpers. Well God Bless take care Peace be with you. Greg.

[@JustMe-999a]

Is it okay to use pressure-treated lumber, paint, stain, or any other type of treatment on the wood used for perches?

[@ambriimoonstone4180]

Those leggings look great

[@PoizenLilly]

why don't you hood your red tails, I think it is very interesting? love your videos btw.

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Kaya; Wonderful to hear from you - thank you for stopping in to the channel today. :0) I'll offer you a two-fold perspective by way of answering your question... First, its been my experience hooding Red Tails brings the "worst" out in them, that is to say, it tends to make them even more aggressive than their in-wired nature all ready allows. The other aspect I'd offer you would be to say I do not feel its useful, or even advantageous, to hood one of these buzzards. If you've done your glove-work (ie: manning) well, having one of these fine beings on the fist as a hunting-companions is unlikely to be impacted - for the better, by hooding them when you're going out into the field. I hope this answers your question - please let me know if you'd like me to expand on my answer further. :0) Best, Jo

[@eugenetoledo4231]

Let them fly free

[@TheFalconLady]

Good evening Eugene; I do - often! 😉 Best, Jo

[@jantirpak7902]

Good evening, Joanne. You are excellent and consistently practice hygiene practices. I recommend your videos to my apprentices to watch. In your last video, I heard the wolf howl. In this video, I heard the voice of a wild goose. I assume your house is on the edge of the forest and you have a big lake nearby. Have a nice day. JT

[@TheFalconLady]

Good afternoon Jan; Wonderful to hear from you today - I'm so humbled to hear you've suggested our videos to your apprentices, thank you! :0) Our nearest neighbour is about 500 meters distant from my house - they have a Husky and some donkeys who sing to each other several times a day, and they often get two of my dogs (the boys) singing along with them - always good for a laugh! Yes - we had a pair of Canada geese pass overhead while I was scrubbing down the perches; they've been nesting in the larger of the two ponds in front of our home since we moved here. The two of them fly back and forth from the marshland we have at the back of the property to the pond several times a day...I'm going to have to take a hike back there to see what's so interesting to the wildlife. :0) Thank you again for watching - please share us with your Falconry community and friends! Best, Jo

[@eduardogarcia2595]

Love the video , where did you buy your awesome leggings i want some for my wife

[@eugenetoledo4231]

Why do those non natives handle those kind of birds those birds are not to play with have respect for them ,but seems like you don't have no respect

[@TheFalconLady]

Good evening Eugene; Do you have a Falconry-related question? Jo