I was given a bit of good news that other day concerning an enquiry we had for a event in August. An e mail came through from a gentleman asking if I could do a static display at a event he was organising and he mentioned in his e mail that he had read my blog (always good to hear) and that he agreed with my views on certain types of work with birds of prey - namely the way certain people seem to think it is ok to stand somewhere and charge for photographs while people hug/stroke the birds and why it is wrong. I like to think that is why I got the booking.
I mentioned my views on this subject in my last blog entry and I am going to mention it again. As I said it is something I feel strongly about. I feel it is just pure cruelty. When I see pictures of birds of prey tethered for hours on end on concrete/ paving slabs with no access to water in some street/shopping centre with donation buckets scattered about for members of the public to make donations for the up keep of the birds (that in my opinion is begging and these groups are not charities) and charging for photographs, I find it really upsetting. there is no honour or skill in what is being done. There is no concern for the birds welfare in my opinion.
I admit I make a living from birds of prey and I could make an even better living if I stopped flying my birds got a pitch somewhere or trailed around the local gala days charging for photographs but I have always said NO to this type of work and I will continue to say NO to this type of work in the future. Getting to work with birds of prey everyday is an honour and I know how lucky I am to be able to do it. For me it is being about them, interacting with them and working with them. It is about flying be it Jerry my Tawny Owl flying perch to glove and back again or 1 of the Harris Hawks following on through the trees working with me like I am part of his pack if he was in the wild or watching 1 of the falcons getting ready to make a pass at the lure. That is where the magic is not standing somewhere charging a few £££ for a picture holding a bird. I know I have missed on jobs because I won't stand and charge for photos but if that is the price for giving a damn then so be it.
I would like to point out that I do allow people who come out on sessions or who see me at events with the birds to take photos. The difference is that the bird is being flown for a food reward or is sitting on a perch and does not care about the camera. There is a massive difference between taking a photo of a bird flying to the glove for a food reward or sitting quietly on a perch with members of the public staying a respectable distance and the poor birds that are taken off their perches placed on a glove for someone to get a photo with it to then be placed back on the perch to maybe picked up a few minutes later for the whole process to happen again.
While I love the interaction with the birds I know there are limits to the relationship. I view the relationship between me and the birds as a business or working relationship. There are limits. Ultimately the birds are still wild in their minds and this means you can't just take liberties with them and stroking them is taking liberties. They are not social so they don't enjoy being touched or stroked. They deal with me because they trust me up to a point and I have food for them. This limitation in the relationship is part of the attraction. I never expect any loyalty or affection from my birds.
I said when I first started doing the blog that I wasn't going to use it as a soap box and after 2 years I guess I have kicked that rule into touch with this entry in the blog. Oh well.
Anyway back to what has been happening at Strathblane Falconry.
Things have been steady. I would say that is the best way to describe it. I suspect the weather has something to do with that. Today was the longest day of the year and it rained most of the day. I had to cancel today's booking because of it. So much for summer.
When the weather has been dry things have been busy with a few interesting events. In my last blog entry I mentioned we were going back to Kelvingrove Art Gallery. The event went well and there was a lot of interest. The flying display was interesting due to the local crows and magpies not being to happy to see Brel (Harris Hawk) flying about and they had plenty to say about it.
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| Myself and Brel (Harris Hawk) doing pest control at a well known venue in Glasgow |
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| Sanda (Lanner Falcon) on a photo shoot |
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| Myself and Bob (Gyr x Saker) at Kelvingrove Art gallery |
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| Myself and Artemis (Steppe Eagle) at Mount Stewart in the rain |
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| Myself and Bob (Gyr x Saker) doing a historical talk |
As you can see never a dull day in the day to day running of a bird of prey centre.
The other big news is that Cooper (Harris Hawk) who has been flying really well over at Cameron House and I mentioned in my last blog entry that he had been flying with real purpose and intent. So much purpose and intent that he took 3 rabbits in 1 week in the grounds of Cameron House. We are normally lucky if the birds catch something every 5 weeks on average. So to take 3 rabbits in 1 week was a bit unusual and I didn't have a camera with me for any of them. Coopers form has been halted for the moment due to the fact he needed to have a operation on 1 of his toes which had been cut and become infected. The operation was a success and he should be flying after the weekend again after having 3 weeks rest for it to heal.
On a hunting front I feel I should mention Brel (Harris Hawk). As I mentioned earlier I have been doing a bit of pest control work this month and I decided to use Brel for it for the simple reason I only wanted to scare the pigeons.That was the plan and on the first night that is what happened . On the second night Brel had other ideas - he caught a pigeon. After that there were a few close calls for the pigeons as he tried to catch them. Even though I don't use him for hunting and never have if the opportunity presents itself the boy is straight in there. I have to admit that while I don't want him for hunting I was cheering him on when he was chasing a flock of pigeons.
Well I have been a bit slow with updating the blog this month and it is almost the end of the month of June. The coming weeks are looking ok with several large events in the next 2 weeks to think about which is great. Hopefully the weather will improve as it makes such a difference. I will try and update the blog a bit quicker next month.
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