Tag Archives: Falconry

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The First Step of Believing

A Step of Trust

There it is! That first step of trust and the bond that will grow between two very different creatures. One creature is a very wild hawk, the other creature is …….me.

“Dak” has experienced being trapped from the wild, tethered to a perch in his new home, and placed repeatedly back on my glove. I gently work with him for hours (called manning) to get him use to my presence. From the very beginning, all he knows if fear. In his previous wild world, it’s eat or get eaten. It’s kill or be killed. Nature is cruel, nature is tough. It’s truthfully the survival of the fittest.

The first few hours, I place “Dak” on my gloved fist. He will try to fly away, but I have him leashed to my glove. He attempts to fly, I gently swing him back on the glove. All the time, I don’t look directly at him. Think about why I don’t. You see, in the wild, when a hawk (with that intense eyesight) looks at another animal, he’s either looking to kill it……or it’s looking to kill him. Dak must learn to trust and believe in me as someone who is not going to hurt him. Incredibly, hawks trained in falconry learn in just a few days that I am not a threat, but someone who actually protects and feeds them.

It’s easy to tell when the hawk is calming down. As I walk around his mews (the fenced pen) with him on my glove, I feel his talons gradually relaxing on my glove. Thank goodness, because when he clamps down with those talons it’s with a surprising amount of strength. If that thick glove wasn’t there, I’d be getting plenty of tattoos from those claws. I have a few scars from the past to prove it!

Gradually, this wild creature begins to accept my presence. In Dak’s case it’s happening very quickly. In less than five hours from being trapped, he’s eating from my hand! It could be because he has a gentle personality. All the hawks I’ve flown over the years were different. Some were gentle, some acted nervous, some aggressive. “Tama”, one of my best hunting hawks from a few years ago could only be described as Wicked!!!

But Dak is very calm. I place a small piece of chicken in front of him. Remember, I don’t look directly at him during any of this training. (Just looking at him from my peripheral (side) vision.) He actually doesn’t eat the chicken. What I do is touch the sides of his beak with the meat. He bites at me and the meat gets caught in his mouth. FREEZE!  I don’t move. For however long it takes, I don’t move. He is standing on my glove with a piece of fresh meat in his mouth. Amazing what his body language shows. See, Dak’s not moving either. He’s still scared. But the whole time he’s sitting (on my glove) he is now tasting fresh food that is resting in his mouth. That’s when it happens……….. He swallows a nourishing morsel of food. The body language? Suddenly from fear to a small step of trust. His talons relax, his wings are not rigid, his eyes are no longer focused on “kill or be killed”. What next? Quickly another piece of food is placed in his mouth. FREEZE! Again, don’t move until he swallows his meal. Then quietly and gently I exit his new home. I’ll return in the morning. He’s been given plenty to think about.

The next morning I return with more time spent manning Dak. He’s still getting used to me. Learning to trust and believe in me. I spend this time walking around with him on my glove. I make noises, pick up items and move them. Sit down, stand up, walk backwards…….. doing any and everything. All the while Dak is riding and resting on my glove. He needs to know he can feel comfortable standing on the glove. Occasionally he will attempt to fly from the glove. I gently place him back on for more training. Now for the next big step! Literally!!!

Dak remembers that I fed him yesterday. Today I show him a piece of chicken by placing it in front of his beak. Today he snatches it from my hand. No need to try to get him to bite me, he’s hungry and he’s eating from my hand. Success!! Now for the next step and I do mean a step.

Since Dak knows there is food in my hand he readily wants to eat it. But I now want him to come towards me, to take a step towards me. There is a giant leap involved in the hawk’s mind in doing this. For him to step towards me is so foreign to his way of thinking. He has all this time been trying to get away from me. I am a creature he is afraid of. For him to take even one small step towards me……….involves a decision. It’s a decision of trusting and believing. Dak has taken his first step to believing that I no longer want to hurt him, but that I want to help him.

The first step!

Dak is taking his first step to me! Notice the body language. (I can feel it as well.) The claws are clamped, the wings are ready to spring into flight, and the eyes are filled with fear. In spite of this natural fear of me, the belief that I am not a threat but instead someone to trust has taken over! This thrills me to no end!

“Dak” now believes in me!

The picture shows the same bird but with a totally different mind set. A change in his way of thinking. His trusting and believing in me can even be seen (and felt). Claws are relaxed, wings in the resting and calm position. You can even see a different expression on his face. Two entirely different creatures are now beginning an adventure based on trust and believing in each other.

Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Mark 5:36

This is a great scripture talking about believing. (I’d encourage you to read the whole chapter. Several instances of unbelievable miracles that Jesus is doing). Here in Dak’s situation it was a remarkable thing for me to see. Once Dak believes in me and no longer is afraid of me,……. well, it’s game on!!! The excitement I have of interacting with this magnificent creature is one of my greatest thrills! He has taken one small step to me. This will quickly lead to him taking 3 steps to me. Then he will jump to me. Then he will take a short flight to me. Then in such a short time period, he will be free flying and hunting WITH me. I am DELIGHTED!!!!

Just like God delights in you trusting in Jesus and taking a small step of belief towards Him! (stay tuned, till next time, Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher, having taken a small step of belief of my own towards my Lord and Saviour!)

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The Devil Uses What You’re Good At Against You

Meet Dakota (means friend)    Dak for short  A wild red tail hawk.  Incredibly he’s eating from my hand just 6 hours after being caught

I caught a wild hawk by using what he’s good at…… and using it against him.  Here’s how. [Note: Possession of any bird of prey requires a permit and falconry license.  They are not pets!!] 

A hawk survives by catching his food.  He has an unreal ability to see.  Their eyesight is phenomenal.  Put it this way.  They could read the print on this blog from four football fields away.  They use what they are good at (keen eyesight) to find and catch their prey.  I want to catch a wild hawk, so I will use what he is extremely good at …….. and use it against him.  Here’s how.

 

A Bal-chatri trap used to catch birds of prey

That’s the picture of the trap I use to catch a hawk (permit required remember?).  I place a hamster, or mouse into the cage. ( No harm comes to the bait animal on this adventure. )  The mouse will walk around in his cage.  This movement will catch the hawks attention.  What I usually do is drive the roads and highways looking for a hawk perched on a light pole or utility wire.  I’ll drop the trap out the car door and drive down the road for a ways.  Hawks instantly see the movement in the trap……. and begin their descent from above to attack their potential meal.  I’ve seen hawks try to literally tear the cage apart to get to their prey!

Notice the picture again.  See the nooses on the top of the trap?  As the hawk dances around on the cage, they entangle their talons in these snares.  Such great eyesight, but the focus is on the prey not on the trap with snares.  I only need a toe and this wonderful creature that was soaring high in the sky is now caught in my trap.

Notice the black snare around the leg.

Amazing how I used this magnificent creature’s outstanding ability (eyesight), but I used it to trap him.  That’s what got me to thinking.

What are you good at……… how are you successful?  Some folks are successful at making money, some are great around people,….. so many talents and abilities out there with you guys.  But what if the devil/ evil/ sinful human nature, (call it what you want, but you better call it cause it’s out there), what if the devil used what you are good at against you?

Here’s the trap.  Good at making money?….suddenly becomes greed.   Great interacting with people?….. suddenly becomes something inappropriate.   All the trapper needs is a toe.  Whatever is going on in your life that may be good can be used to trap you.  

Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me and from the snares of evildoers!  Psalm 141:9

So use your God-given talents and be what you are designed to be.  But remember, traps and snares are out there in this world.  Traps that will tie you down and keep you from flying high (spiritually).

In this case, the trap  caught a young red-tail hawk who is now my companion in the sport of falconry.  He already knows how to hunt, he will just have to get use to me being around him.  This is called manning.  There will be several blogs written over the next few days/weeks about my hobby of falconry.  How two very different creatures will bond together in a relationship that I’ve found so rewarding.  Hope you keep coming back to read, join in with me on  this adventure, and enjoy tagging along as we watch “Dakota” fly and be what God has created him to be!   

"Dak" the red tail hawk just hours after being trapped from the wild. He will be eating from my hand shortly.

Stay tuned…….  See Ya!  Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher and falconer

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Ready,…. Set,….. now Wait

Here is the picture of  “Shadow” the red tail hawk I trained for falconry a couple of years ago.  When I’ve completed the log house construction, (in a few months), I’m looking forward to getting back in  my hobby of falconry, which I’ve done for 18 years.

These birds are amazing.  The skills they use to hunt, the abilities they possess for flying, their keen eyesight, all make these birds of prey a creature of beauty to be around and fly. They already know how to hunt, they just have to get use to being around me.  Every bird I’ve used in falconry over the years quickly adjusted to flying to my glove, allowing me to “partner” with them on their hunting adventures. What do I admire most about hawks and birds of prey?  There ability to wait. Huh?

Take a look for yourself.  When do you normally see a hawk or eagle or other bird of prey?  Yep, you see them casually sitting in a tree or on a light pole.  Maybe you see them effortlessly circling high in the sky.  They are waiting.  Waiting on the next opportunity to catch a meal.

They are sitting on go.  The bird is very much prepared for the next move.   I’ve never noticed any of my falconry birds (ten different hawks and owls the past few years) act as if they are anxious, or fretful,………. or worried.  They just wait…….  I wish I could be more like that.

[Confession time] I get in a hurry sometimes.  I get anxious and even worried for what is usually no reason at all.  But I’m ready to go.  Get the show on the road, hit the trail, move it.  But what is truly necessary is for me to WAIT.

Last week we were full steam ahead on the log home moving and construction.  This week,…….. a delay.  Probably the first delay of many to come..  My construction guy in Colorado is building a house currently.  He will have to get finished with it before he starts mine.  There is a problem with the painting of his current project, and it’s pushing everything (including my log home project) back two weeks. (or more).   So, I got to wait.

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.  Isaiah 40:31

Waiting on the construction of my log home is a good physical example of my also waiting on God in my spiritual journey.  Don’t you sometimes feel like God could be moving at a faster pace in your life?  I mean if you could do this, or have this to happen, then you could go ahead and get this, that, or the other done.  I’ve even had times where I’ve suddenly felt closer to God, and that’s when I wanted to go out and DO something good.  But wait……..

God’s got a much better idea and plan for your life.   Wait on Him.  I’m not saying wait on the couch with a sack of ‘tater chips!!!  I’m saying that you and I need to be like “Shadow” the hawk.  Be prepared, be in tune, be sitting on go!   Opportunities are provided to us by God Himself.  Opportunities to show others His love, opportunities to Be a Christian in everyday activities.  But the most important opportunity is when our Lord and Saviour gives us a chance, or allows something to happen that helps us draw closer to Him.  Many times that involves waiting.

So, wait,…….wait on the Lord,……… then fly my friend, FLY!!!

See Ya!  Dan Ainsworth  wilderness preacher