Gunless (mostly) season

Toad

Toad

Active member
Just received my falconry license from KDWPT today, so my focus this season will be on putting my hawk in a position to catch game. I'll be flying a red tail hawk (hopefully) by November, and looking for rabbits. If you know of any bunny spots you would be willing to share, or landowners with too many rabbits, please let me know.

I'm working on building enough spots so I can reliably put the hawk on bunnies 4+ days a week for 4 months, and that takes a lot of spots. :laugh:

I apologize if it upsets any of the regulars that I am asking for help getting access to land, but I promise I'll do right by anybody that helps me out.
:cheers:
 
Toad....that is cool. You don't hear much about the falconry season. We have one here in PA but don't see it or hear of successes. Wishing you great success this season. Please keep us posted.
 
I saw a ton of rabbits earlier this summer, but haven't noticed any at all here lately Lots of cover this year. let me know if you end up around Pitt during a hunting trip. would love to see how it works.
 
Awesome, Toad and congratulations!
 
That's awesome!! I'd love to go with you sometime! quite a few rabbits around the past couple of years though.
 
How long did it take to get your license? Here in Missouri it takes 2 years. Have to go out and capture your own raptor. My first class is on Monday at University of Missouri.
 
My front yard has a ton of them. :) Congrats, and good luck. I look forward to hearing how it goes.
 
PheasantWhisperer said:
How long did it take to get your license? Here in Missouri it takes 2 years. Have to go out and capture your own raptor. My first class is on Monday at University of Missouri.
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The regulations are mostly federal, but managed by state game departments, so some are even more restrictive. I would guess KS and MO have very similar laws.

It took about 4 months from the time I committed to doing it, and I'm not saying publicly how much $$$, to get me to this point. I'm now officially on day 2 of my 2 year apprenticeship. I think probably all states require you to trap your bird(s) during your apprenticeship.
 
Toad said:
The regulations are mostly federal, but managed by state game departments, so some are even more restrictive. I would guess KS and MO have very similar laws.

It took about 4 months from the time I committed to doing it, and I'm not saying publicly how much $$$, to get me to this point. I'm now officially on day 2 of my 2 year apprenticeship. I think probably all states require you to trap your bird(s) during your apprenticeship.
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Yeah I havent technically started yet and I have an idea on cost. I appreciate it, keep me posted if you dont mind. Im still on the outside looking in.
 
Cool stuff Toad! I doubt anyone will have a problem with a regular like you asking for spots, especially rabbit spots.

How long before you can keep a quail hunter like a Cooper's or Sharp Shin? Is that something you're trying to work towards?
 
Lots of jack rabbits on the east side of Dodge where the old two mile motorcycle flat track was(1914-1922). There are out-of-state falconers that hunt between there and the airport annually.
 
quail hound said:
How long before you can keep a quail hunter like a Cooper's or Sharp Shin? Is that something you're trying to work towards?
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I am limited to a red tail or a kestrel during my 2 year apprenticeship. After that, I could fly about anything I can catch or buy. I'll just have to see how it goes with the red tail. If I am successful at putting it on a lot of game, I may not ever want to switch to anything else. But if I struggle at finding enough rabbits, it would make sense to fly a different bird.

I think it would be easy for me to keep a Cooper's hawk on game because I know birds better than rabbits, but they are supposedly a much more difficult bird to train, handle and care for. But the idea of quail hunting with a hawk is very appealing.
 
M. R. Byrd said:
Lots of jack rabbits on the east side of Dodge where the old two mile motorcycle flat track was(1914-1922). There are out-of-state falconers that hunt between there and the airport annually.
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I'm going to make a couple trips to Dodge this season to visit family with the dogs and hawk in tow. I'll definitely keep you in the loop. :thumbsup:
 
Good stuff Toad!! I have a friend with a Red Tail and it doesn't miss very often and I am surprised the darn thing doesn't kill itself going in on the Bunnies in the sage and rocks. Last year it snagged a bunny near a rock crevase and the bunny drug the Hawk into the tiny crevase. Could not find the hawk for a bit and then finally heard the rabbit and had to fish the hawk out with the bunny. I would of said no way a hawk could of fit into that crevase if asked. Hawk was a little bloodied up, but otherwise in good shape. I guess you have to weigh it quite often for some reason. Guessing you don't want to fly a well fed hawk.. Looking forward to some photo's!!:thumbsup:
 
BleuBijou said:
Good stuff Toad!! I have a friend with a Red Tail and it doesn't miss very often and I am surprised the darn thing doesn't kill itself going in on the Bunnies in the sage and rocks. Last year it snagged a bunny near a rock crevase and the bunny drug the Hawk into the tiny crevase. Could not find the hawk for a bit and then finally heard the rabbit and had to fish the hawk out with the bunny. I would of said no way a hawk could of fit into that crevase if asked. Hawk was a little bloodied up, but otherwise in good shape. I guess you have to weigh it quite often for some reason. Guessing you don't want to fly a well fed hawk.. Looking forward to some photo's!!:thumbsup:
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Your friend can explain weight control better than me, but yes, I already have a very accurate scale and detailed records for recording feeding times and amounts.

The gist of it is that hawks in the wild will eat a large meal and then sit until they are hungry again, possibly over 24 hours. So you closely monitor their meal schedule so they are ready to hunt when you go hunting. As a newbie, I'm probably not qualified to go into any more detail than that. :cheers:
 
Like other have said, it sounds really cool! I hope it works out for you. You can have all you want in my neighborhood too, but that's probably not allowed. I think I saw 4-5 on my jog with the dog this morning...
 
Toad said:
I'm going to make a couple trips to Dodge this season to visit family with the dogs and hawk in tow. I'll definitely keep you in the loop. :thumbsup:
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The jack rabbits are east of this sign all the way to the airport.

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