What is the Best Way to Raise a Bird of Prey?

[@mindfueluk]

smashed it again , really enjoyed helping with this video and its great info on the diffrences , and my legs made the cut lol

[@MercerFalconry]

Straight into the next couple on Monday, if we work hard I recon we can get 2 done at once

[@geoffhirschi803]

Awesome video. Especially liked some of the subtle training queues given while you are just casually talking to the camera, like when your Harris' just comes to you as you are talking.

[@MercerFalconry]

Thanks, they don’t always work first shot, sometimes I try it and no bird appears and I turn round to find they have been distracted by something else! 😂

[@geoffhirschi803]

@@MercerFalconry no doubt. I have trained hawks long enough to know that would be a frequent occurance.

[@DavidSL64]

that was very interesting, and really helped me understand the differences well.

[@MercerFalconry]

Thank you! 😁

[@tyresesp9696]

"Special baby falcon creating fluid" 🤣

[@MercerFalconry]

I couldn’t say the word out of fear that KZbin would demonitize the video, I’m surprised they let me say sexual imprinting really 😂

[@jantirpak7902]

Hi, great video. The problem with inprints is aggression and vocalization. If you can handle aggression, then everything is fine. Have a nice day.

[@MercerFalconry]

Not all imprints are aggressive and vocal, that only really happens when people don’t know how to do it properly. My imprints are lovely

[@Falcon48]

@@MercerFalconry How to properly imprint a goshawk?

[@NilDey]

thank u for using my music!

[@MercerFalconry]

Thank you for providing quality royalty free music! 😁

[@NilDey]

@@MercerFalconry anytime. do check my other songs.

[@Charliew.ww2024]

Hi dan, loved your vid btw, but i am looking to become a falconer and wondered what would be the eastiest bird to start with and what GCSEs i would need to take to become one

[@MercerFalconry]

I couldn’t say what you should start with, that’s something you should discuss with a mentor or someone who can help you, in terms of GCSEs, as long as you have good science, English, and maths the GCSEs don’t count much, it’s what you study at college and uni that counts!

[@dannyboy7086]

well done . hi from Canada

[@SinzPet-]

Interesting stuff :)

[@jakemurray8080]

Very Interesting, I've found those differences between imprints and parent reared really change the way you have to look at the training process

[@MercerFalconry]

Yes it’s a massive change

[@rifaatisk1061]

@@MercerFalconry What are the steps to train a parent reared adult kite? Its previous owner did no training and the bird didn't fly nor excersise

[@MercerFalconry]

I would just start from the begging as with any parent reared hawk

[@donmac8907]

Really interesting video , nice to see your red tailed kite , always a pleasure watching you and your birds , I have kept bop all my life since a was 16 am 64 now ! , I still love the challenge flying my goshawks and sparrow hawk , I call them mad hawks , just because they are so temperamental!

[@MeMarios]

Would you have a PR kestrel or imprint kestrel

[@MercerFalconry]

I have worked with both and don’t really have much of an opinion for this particular species, mine is parent reared but if I had another I would probably imprint it

[@chrisoliver6169]

Hi Dan Great video. Would you use the female peregrine for breeding if a donating male was found?

[@MercerFalconry]

Thanks, I actually couldn’t for a couple reasons, one being the fact that she is a disabled wild bird and the gov document I have for her doesn’t allow commercial breeding. And something I didn’t actually go into in this video is something we cal mal imprinting, and this is when the imprinting is done wrong and it can create a lot of really negative behaviours for the adult bird. My peregrine shows lots of traits of mal imprinting so I don’t think she would stand and present for breeding

[@PlayusTheGreat]

I’ve never seen peregrine before in your videos, must be cool owning the fastest animal on earth, and having it partner with you.

[@MercerFalconry]

She hasn’t featured in many of my videos because she’s quite a unique bird, she is a disabled wild peregrine that behaves like and imprint so she’s had to go through a lot a training before I could start showing her in videos

[@PlayusTheGreat]

@@MercerFalconry wow, still an incredible bird and great to see you’re there for her

[@MercerFalconry]

Very grateful to have her, it’s taken a lot of work but I’m so happy I have the chance to give her the best life!

[@jezza4338]

I have a imprint Harris hawk, I have had him since he was one day old, he wad raised with a brother and and a sister , he was the oldest and took the leads teaching them, im in south africa and the quarry i have is Guinea fowl and plenty of them, the issue is he is to brave...and this i feel is the true downfall of a imprint... guinea fowl are one thing but latching on to a 25kg duikers face is another, he's also pretty vocal,its not food begging but more a" call to arms"as in lets go hunt, put it this way its not a song bird, any advise?

[@MercerFalconry]

With a noisy imprint you need to try spending a lot more time with him without any food involved. If he sees you without food more than he does with food then he will learn there is no use calling to you

[@matthewlong8569]

Interesting topic clearly explained, thanks. The question I find myself asking is have you worn the 'specialist' imprint hat during your career?! Be an interesting day for sure...

[@MercerFalconry]

I am quite happy to say I have not worn the hat at any point, I’ll leave that to the breeders 😂😂😂

[@Slamdunc]

Ha ha Matthew. It’s called a copulation hat, but does make you look a bit ‘special’

[@MercerFalconry]

Matthew search ‘falcon copulation hat’ on Google images, have you ever used one Duncan?

[@matthewlong8569]

I'll pass but thanks for the info, my search history is dodgy enough without falcon copulation hats in there as well.

[@Slamdunc]

@@MercerFalconry Not yet, my wife thinks I’m weird enough already 😂

[@armonia9758]

Very informative video with a lot of interesting facts. I think imprinting works the same for most bird species from my experience with chickens, ducks, and parrots. Nature is indeed magnificent. May I ask are you planning on making a video about their enclosures? For example how they should be made, how you are cleaning them etc?

[@MercerFalconry]

Thank you very much! Yes, that’s actually my most requested video so I will be starting on that on Monday!

[@armonia9758]

@@MercerFalconryOh that's great. Thank you for responding

[@steNOT3]

2:28 can u put a music a little louder, I could almost hear you.

[@danc5734]

I think imprinting is often better for owls and birds you will treat more like a pet and spend more time with on the glove. However parent reared I think is better for flying and hunting birds.

[@MercerFalconry]

Yes everyone has their own opinions and ways of doing things, imprinting is definitely necessary for owls if they are going to be trained and flown but you can also have a lot of success hunting with an imprint hawk and falcon

[@danc5734]

@@MercerFalconry one of my friends has an imprint Harris hawk. It flies in our display. But the main part of it flying is how focused or impressive it is, it’s more about how intelligent and playful the bird is with its handler. With our parent reared falcons and hawks its all about how fast and focused they are. I think if you want that kind of bird it might be better to go for parent reared. But it’s definitely possible with an imprint.

[@JokerMajnoon]

ای کاش مال من بود😍

[@MeMarios]

Would you imprint a harris hawk?

[@chrislecky710]

imprinting is like walking the thin straight line, as with design less is more as their parents would naturally ween them at an age. One must resist the temptation to force the animal in question to be reliant yet at the same time maintain a familiarity that allows a relationship to develop beyond the parenting role....

[@jusdon8711]

Do birds who are monogamous get jealous if their falconer has a significant other?

[@hashirasad2599]

A question from me. Is artificial insemination the only way to make them (imprints) reproduce?

[@MercerFalconry]

As far as I am aware yes, as they do not see other birds as sexual mates

[@raptorgaming5964]

I have heard also that imprints have a tendency to attack. For example there was a female red tail i heard about wanted to mate with its owner not knowing the difference. She then attacked for him not coming to her mating calls.

[@MercerFalconry]

They can get a little aggressive with hormones around the breeding season but so can parent reared birds, I think it’s just important to know your bird

[@raptorgaming5964]

@@MercerFalconry o ok. Amazing video by the way editing is top notch and everything is clear and shows you know alot!!

[@MercerFalconry]

Thank you I really appreciate that, I know it’s not just a case of giving a load of information, it has to be an enjoyable watch too so I put a lot of effort into how it’s filmed and edited

[@watermelonFlight]

i have indian black eagle raised from chik... now he is 2 years old...

[@johnwilkes7190]

What are your thoughts on minimsing the chances of producing a "screaming imprint" ?

[@MercerFalconry]

As long as you spend more time with the bird without the presence of food, and don’t have patterns, surprise the hawk with food when it is being quiet and not expecting it

[@johnwilkes7190]

@@MercerFalconry Thanks Dan that makes a deal more sense than some peoples over complex ideas

[@warrenjosephb.fernandez1993]

Can I get some?

[@MercerFalconry]

Some what?

[@DivineAzubuleAmarime]

Can you raise birds of prey with parrots?

[@gQ87punk]

The background music is distracting.

[@MercerFalconry]

Thank you, it’s been pointed out many times over, I was still learning how to edit videos at the time, my newer videos shouldn’t have the same problem

[@gQ87punk]

@@MercerFalconry Pleasantly surprised you responded. Overall your videos are exceptional & informative. Thank you.

[@MercerFalconry]

Thank you I appreciate that 😁

[@deusvult8251]

is this not beesdeeallatty?

[@ricardoalas8134]

En Español por fa

[@jujucattys156]

my old giil alled peggy sue she pr but tipikle hh imprint to me

[@MercerFalconry]

Not entirely sure what you are saying I’m afraid!

[@tinnnytintin]

Hmm, don’t think I want imprints anymore

[@sniperhood7243]

What you displaying is irrelevant to what you talking about or your self talking no body knows what you talking about, if you feel that your subscribers are not worth to know what you talking about they will leave and find someone who is well organized

[@MercerFalconry]

I have no idea what any of that means