The Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast

Andre Cilliers returns to the show with another update of his season.  After giving the listeners a brief reminder of Andre's situation. We then talk about what changes the rainy season have brought about and how more water on the landscape has affected his falconry.  Andre then clarifies what South Africans mean when they talk about a "vlei system".  We then turn our attention to Andre's update beginning with his passage lanner that he had acquired when we last spoke.  We then talk about the foils of hawking Cape francolin, and a focus that Andre specifically outlined as a goal for this season - a "waiting on" flight over grey francolin with his dog solidly on point. Andre describes the downside of a falcon confident that it can catch and kill whatever is flushed beneath it regardless of whether the quarry flushed was intentional.  With July half over, I ask Andre if he intends to extend his hawking season or put his birds up as he typically does when the days get hotter and his work days get busier.  We conclude the episode with Andre offering two some personal insight into the value that falconry can bring to a game hawker with good perspective.

Kyle Perrin flies an imprint black sparrowhawk. He joins me this week to talk about his bird, his dogs, and his desire to pursue helmeted guinea fowl, catching them on the rise after a long, open slip. Kyle explains why he chose to fly a black spar, including how he manages his hawk to ensure she remains feather perfect.  He also gives us some insight into the main differences between the African goshawk and the black spar.  Guinea fowl can be flown all year round and Kyle talks about how he manages the timing of molt to cater to available mid-winter daylight hours. We then turn our attention to his preferred quarry - the guinea fowl - and a description of his hawking grounds, and the origin story of this particular black spar. Kyle explains the approach that his is going to take in an effort to achieve the hawking style he prefers, and he tells us about his approach to developing a well-adjusted short-wing.  We conclude the episode talking about Kyle's most recent outing, and his hawk's sudden change in heart when it comes to chasing "fur".  I hope you enjoy this episode.  Thanks for listening.

Ed Pitcher joins me to announce that he and Ricardo Velarde have given me permission to read and publish "The Flying of Falcons" as part of the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. We begin the episode discussing Ed's use of mantras to guide the way he develops and flies his birds.  We then focus of two mantras that Ed used in the book, and now regrets to some degree - the first is “being touched by the Angel of Death”, a metaphor he used in the chapter about a female prairie falcon called “Amos".  The second is "a sharp hawk is a smart hawk", which Ed used in his chapter on "weight Management".  We conclude the episode talking about two people with whom Ed trained and flew falcons - Terry Heath and Steve Sanders - and we talk about the way the three friends influenced one another.  Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoy this prelude to the reading of "The Flying of Falcons".

Anton Muller, known for his expertise in hawking with lanner falcons, joins me to talk falconry in the Free State Province. After introducing himself, Anton talks about his farming practices, and how an experience with a spotted eagle owl influenced his decision to fly lanners. We then talk about his hawking grounds, his preferred quarry. Lanners naturally make use of thermals to gain pitch, and Anton talks about the way that they do so. Anton describes how the loss a particularly good peregrine falcon led to his focus on lanners.  We talk slipping a lanner on sand grouse and use of dogs when hunting sand grouse.  Anton provides some insight into the commonly held belief that lanners can be lazy.  We conclude the episode with a broad ranging discussion on gamehawking with lanners.  I hope you enjoy this episode with Anton - thanks for listening.

In this bonus episode of South African Game Hawker, I am again joined by Andre Cilliers, Thean Prinsloo, and Scott Mc Farlane Chase.  I talk to each of them about their flights of the day, and their plans once the meet is done.  Andre's birds connect, his dog earns a good rest day, and he ducks out a day early as work interrupts his falconry. Thean continues his strategy of putting game up under his falcon opting to provide as many opportunities as he can. Scott has a clear sense of his path ahead, and we speculate as to the origin of his lanner.