Hotter that Hot!

The falconry itch caught me 2 weekends ago....when it was cool. This weekend was true to Texas weather, a blistering 90+ degrees when we set out to hunt. We set out to one of our favorite fields from last year, and all I can say was wow. The cover was so thick, that we could not even fing the brush piles. I released Katana, and she immediately perched in a low nearby tree. We worksed the area beneath her and continued on towards the brush piles. It took her a few moments to follow, but she then took to the wing and began flying circles overhead. It almost seemed like she was remembering how to fly, and after a few moments she settled ahead of us into a tall tree. We worked the area and finally kicked up a rabbit. It immediately took off across the open field and Katana followed in hot pursuit. She flew long and hard but the rabbit made cover before she closed the gap. I did get to hear the familiar crash that I have grown to love. She got back up and settled over head once again, and followed us relatively well as we continued working beneath her. She had 2 more flights, probably rats, as she crashed the brush once again. After about half and hour, I called her to the lure and she was amply rewarded for her efforts on the first hunt of the season. By then we were all melting, as the heat was pounding down upon us. I am very happy with her performance, and hope this will be a great forshadow of the upcoming season! Weight 945 grams

So much closer...

Due to the fact that school keeps me out past dark, I have to work Katana in the house on most weekday evenings. I came home and immediately perched her in the living room for about an hour while I did some homework, and then I set her up to do some jumps ups. This time there was no hesitation, and her response was immediate everytime. We did about 25 jump ups before I pulled the lure, and she immediately came to it. I had her tethered on a long leash in the house as I don't want to run the risk of her flying free and hurting herself. The lure flight was a short one due to this, but I think that she is definitely remembering the game. I will put her back outside on the creance on Friday, with hopes to take her to the field Sunday. I know that her hunts will start short (especially after learning my lesson from last year!) but I will be happy to get her back in the air for some excercise.
Weight: 995 grams

Moving outside

On Friday, I can home from work a little early, so I had plenty of time to get Katana acclimated to the living room. I set up a perch for her to sit on for a few hours, and when she finally calmed down we tried some jumps ups. At first, she stared at me like I was crazy, but after the first jump the light bulb went off in her head. Her response became instant, and I could tell it was all coming back to her. The lure response at the end way iffy, but she still jumps to it 5 feet away. All in all I must say her performance was good for this early on. She is also still a little fat.
Sunday, I went ahead and moved her outside on the creance. I only set up a 20 feet line, as I did not want to push her at the higher weight. Again, she was hesitant at first, but her response got better with each flight. There was also a lot of surounding noise and distraction, so I think where I creanced her worked out great. Her lure response at the end of the session was instant, but I use the term response very loosely. I think I work my little girl out, considering she immediately ran to the lure when called. We are getting closer to her weight, and I hope to have her out in the field by next weekend. Weight today was 1030 grams.

Getting There

I took Katana out of the mews this evening, and after chasing her down I decided to weigh her. She is losing weight nicely, down to 1170 grams. I went ahead and switched out her perma-stiff jesses, lol and will change her anklets this weekend. On Sunday when I went to check on her, she had pulled her transmitter from her back pack and unscrewed the top. I finally found if after 10 minutes of crawling around in the pea gravel, and will replace the antenna this weekend as well. She is still pretty mean, but by the end of the week we will begin jump-ups and she will once again return to earning her food. As the weather cools, I am very anxious to get out there. I should hopefully have her going in the next 2-3 weeks, as I want to get her back into shape and drop her weight slowly.

My Little Piggy

This past weekend I counted Katana's feathers and it would appear that her molt is coming to an end. So now begins the long journey of trading the fat for muscle using a well regimented routine of diet and exercise. She definitely has a large amount of weight to gain, so I am going to begin dropping her slowly as the last few feathers push their way in. As fat as she is, she will still be fat as the feathers finally pen. Once the feathers are in, we will begin jump-ups to get her back into flying shape. I plan on taking my time, as it is still extremely hot and Katana has not performed as well in heat during past hunts.
She completed her molt in her new mews and the transistion went very smoothly. She continued her molt with no regard to the change of scenery, something I am very happy of. My English Pointers were just fixed and as soon as they recover from the surgery, I plan to look for some new fields in my part of town as well as close to work.
I am grow very excited as the upcoming season draws near....I guess it is time to go get my new hunting license in preparation!