is… John Byrne

Club member for? 16 years and an Honoury Member for services to the club.

Years in falconry? 30 Years

Birds kept? 7/8ths Gyr/Saker

Dogs used? Bruno a Brittany X Setter.

Ferrets, love them or hate them? Don’t mind them

Other field sports involved in? Bit of shooting, fishing and ferreting

Vehicle used for falconry? Anyone who will give me a seat in their four wheel drive

Favourite bird? Merlin and Sparrowhawk

Favourite game to eat? Muntjac and Wood Pigeon

Profession. Pest controller

I gave a game despatch and preparation demonstration of Pheasant and Rabbit which was vacuum packed ready for the freezer.

The March meeting was the clubs AGM. The current committee stepped down and nominations were received.

Paul Gray has decided to take a much deserved break as social secretary and stood down after many years.  His contribution will be missed and all members thanked him for everything he has done for the club.

The new committee is:

Chairman : Jem Pettit

Secretary : Nicky Forrest

Treasurer : Alan Greenhalgh

Hawk Liaison Officer : Steve Forrest

Social Secretary : John Byrne

Following this meeting after learning that Alan had never tasted rabbit before, we had a tasting session of the game that was prepared at the last meeting which consisted of cold roast pheasant and a rabbit and mushroom pie.

This proved very popular and after several requests as to how I cooked the pie I have included the recipe in this newsletter.

The new committee will now look at what we can organise over the next year and report back at the next meeting.

If there is something you would like us to organise please let a committee member know.

Many thanks

Jem

Club Website

We would welcome some articles to put on the site from members, so if you feel that you have something worth while to write about please do so and email any articles to Stuart or Kelly at the site or hand to a committee member.

April 19^th, May 17th, June 21st, July19th, August 16^th, September 20^th, October18th, November 15^th, December 20^th.

Easy way to remember is, it is the Third Tuesday of every month.

Ingredients

1 rabbit

1 onion

Field or chestnut mushrooms

1 can Campbell’s condensed chicken and mushroom soup

1 can Campbell’s condensed chicken and white wine soup

Packet of puff pastry

Packet of short crust pastry

1 egg

Cut the rabbit into pieces, two back legs, two pieces of saddle and two forequarters. Place in a pan of boiling water with a pinch of salt and simmer for forty minutes.

Throw the water away and allow the meat to cool.

When cool (I help by running under a cold tap) peel the meat off of the bone.

Roll out the short crust pastry and line the bottom off your pie dish.

In a bowl empty both cans of the soup, the meat, the onion chopped up and the sliced mushrooms.

Roll out the puff pastry and place over the top of the pie

Take the white of the egg and a splash of milk mixed together and brush the top of the pie.

Place in an oven on gas mark six for between thirty and forty minute( check regularly after thirty minutes to ensure it does not burn).

Wanted. The use of a small male ferret that is working well to breed with two of my ferrets. If you have such a beast please contact Jem on 0786 3339074

Club member for? Five Years

Years in falconry? Three Years

Birds kept? Barn Owl, White Faced Scops Owl and I share a Harris Hawk with my husband Steve.  I am getting my own Harris Hawk this year

Dogs used? English Springer Spaniel

Ferrets, love them or hate them? Love Them

Other field sports involved in? Clay Pigeon Shooting

Vehicle used for falconry? Share Steve’s Mitsubishi L200

Favourite bird? Barn Owl and Harris Hawk

Favourite game to eat? Venison

Profession. Proposals Co-Ordinator

The weather has not been kind with the snow which was on the ground for ages. However I have had some good days out.

I had a day’s hunting on the Kent marshes hunting rabbits, this was a big meet which had about eighteen falconers flying Harris Hawks and Goshawks on rabbit. The two groups had a bag of 34 rabbits.

I have had several bags of 10 and 6 rabbits even though they have been in short supply this season. Mxymotosis seems to be rife this winter!

From what I have been told of members birds, Paul Gray’s Redtail has entered and is catching rabbits regularly, Steve Wises male Harris has been performing well. John Lucas’s female Harris has been catching quite a few pheasants. Stuart and Kelly’s new Redtail’s are entered and taken pheasant and rabbit. Steve Forrest’s female Harris has been flying very well and taken three rabbits twice in the times I have been out with him.

Even Ryan has managed to catch the odd rabbit although on one occasion I bolted a rabbit for him and although it nearly ran into his leg he failed to see it. Sorry Ryan I had to tell everyone about that!!  Another amusing occasion occurred when a rabbit bolted from a warren and bolted up a bank with Paul Gray’s Redtail in hot pursuit, for it to run straight into the mouth of my dog. All caught on video much to Paul’s disgust lol.

Club Website

The address for the club website is www.homecountieshawkingclub.co.uk.

We would welcome some articles to put on the site from members, so if you feel that you have something worth while to write about please do so and email any articles to Stuart or Kelly at the site or hand to a committee member.

February 15^th, March 15^th, April 19^th, May17th, June 21st, July19th, August 16^th, September 20^th, October18th, November 15^th, December 20^th.  Easy way to remember is, it is the Third Tuesday of every month.

Many thanks.

Present were Paul Gray and his two sons Tim and Chris and myself.  We started by hunting some pheasants but had no success. We then moved into a wood and started ferreting. There was still snow on the ground and it was bitterly cold.

The rabbits on this day were not playing ball and we ended up digging out five with the ferrets.  We did manage to bolt some and my Harris caught two, Chris’s Redtail caught one and my pointer caught two! The total bag was ten rabbits and although there were quite a few rabbits there, there were also many dead ones which had died of myxy.

Attending were Chris Gray, Ryan and myself.  The weather was very warm on this day.

The first place we went to which normally holds a lot of rabbits had been ferreted by a local ferreter about a week prior to our visit. A fact we were unaware of until we arrived.

It still produced rabbits though with my male Harris proving that he has balls of steel by hitting rabbits any where he could and hanging on for grim death.

We ended with a total bag of four rabbits, one to my male, two to my female and one rabbit to Ryan’s female Harris.

As the picture shows, it was an eventful day starting with Paul’s son Chris driving his Discovery into the back of mine! Luckily for me, mine was unscathed, although Tim and I are feeling a little stiff in the neck Paul lol. However no one was hurt and we did manage to continue to the hunting ground and hawk for the rest of the day.

We had some good flights and Paul, Chris and I all caught. The ferret also managed to catch one as well and this resulted in more digging out.

I think this season I have dug more times than any previous years.

Paul also had a spectacular long flight with his Redtail going through a fence and still continuing after the rabbit. This was caught on video and we hope to be able to show this at the next club meeting.

Club member for? 6 months.

Years in falconry? 2 years.

Birds kept? Female  Harris hawk.

Birds flown in the past? None.

Dogs used? None, not allowed the mother in law won’t let me keep one.

Ferrets, love them or hate them? Love them, lost with out them…

Other field sports involved in? Lurcher’s and Terriers, shooting and fly fishing

Vehicle used for falconry? Izuzu Trooper.

Favourite bird? Harris hawk.

Favourite game to eat? I don’t eat game.

Club Website

The address for the club website is www.homecountieshawkingclub.co.uk.

We would welcome some articles to put on the site from members, so if you feel that you have something worth while to write about please do so and email any articles to Stuart or Kelly at the site or hand to a committee member.

At the October meeting we managed to get Simon Whitehead to do a talk on ferrets so we had to cancel the equipment making night. We hope to rearrange this at a later date. This was a very informative talk and enjoyed by all except I think Wrinkly who at one time could be heard snoring!

November Meeting

Terry burden of Kentish falconry will be talking about the breeding of birds and artificial insemination.

November 16^th Terry Burden from Kentish Falconry, December 21^st Christmas auction.

Easy way to remember is it is the third Tuesday of every month at The Royal Swan, Blackwater, Camberley.

My first meet of the season and Paul and Chris Gray and myself made use of a piece of club land at Hartley Witney.

We had with us my two Harris Hawks and Paul’s immature female red tail which was there for some manning and Chris’s male Redtail.

The first bury we did held nothing. The second produced a young rabbit that sat outside the hole. Chris’s Redtail spotted this and nailed it at the entrance despite

Chris not being able to see it from where he was.

From the same bury bolted another which my female Harris caught in about 50 yards. Straight after that another young rabbit bolted to be caught by my male Harris. Ten minutes and all the birds had caught and as it was early in the season fed up.

Present were Paul and Chris Gray and myself on a disused golf course courtesy of Ashley Barnes.

We were ferreting rabbits and I did not expect a big bag as it was quite a difficult place.

Lo and behold there were rabbits aplenty.

Paul’s female Redtail had the first flight and narrowly missed the first rabbit it had ever chased.

My male Harris was the next up and managed to catch but it was so small I do believe he could have flown off with it.

Chris’s Redtail was next and was unlucky just missing its rabbit by a fraction. My male Harris then caught a full grown rabbit but this one had myxy.

Chris’s bird missed again and he was getting frustrated. Mean while my Male Harris caught another and this time it was healthy and full grown.

I put this bird away and got my Female Harris out and had just rejoined them in the wood where she caught a Grey Squirrel as soon as we got in the wood and then a further two rabbits.

Chris’s Redtail was the last to catch and he finally cheered up!

Harris’s versus Redtails, no contest!!!!!

Total bag 7 Rabbits and 1 Squirrel.