Sue's first taste of fresh Jack Rabbit.

As the evening zephyrs subsided to gale force, I picked up Sue for her evening lesson. I could see the Jack Rabbits coming into the field below the house and it was my plan to shoot one for her,  to let her know that they were the preferred item on the menu. I had the 22 rifle and pistol set up and ready, so I weighed Sue and activated her transmitter. As I got back to the patio, I could see a Jack just past the garden fence, so I put Sue on the barbecue and got the rifle. Now once upon a time I could shoot well enough to make almost anyone envious. That  was then, and this is now. I missed that rabbit twice, and killed it stone dead on the third shot. Not what I was trying for, but better than nothing.

I called Sue to the fist, and started walking through the gate. She found another rock jack to fly to, so I called her again. She came to me quickly, and I walked to where I had seen the rabbit last. It was dead, so I picked it up and gave it a toss to an open spot in the weeds. Sue looked at it, and swooped down on the rabbit, and began doing her best to kill it. She was excited! She had her wings mantled out, head down with all her crest feathers standing straight up. I picked a spot with no thorns or Goat heads and sat down to watch her. After a few minutes I  started flipping pieces of meat to her and giving the food whistle. She finally came back to earth and started tearing at the Jack. I let her eat most of the shoulder and rib cage before I moved at all. I would take a few steps and she would drop her head, looking at me from the side. I would stop until she started to eat again. Finally I was close enough to reach her, and started giving her tidbits that I had prepared for her earlier. She would stop and take them from my finger. I got one of her jesses and secured her with the leash. At that point I just sat back and allowed her to eat all she wanted.

When she started slowing down, I offered her the chunk of rabbit that I had prepared earlier and picked her up on the fist while she continued to eat my offering. I stepped over the rabbit and put the remainder in my bag. I took her into the shop and secured her to her perch with the rest of her meal. She showed  her appreciation by trying to foot me. I chose to ignore it.

All in all the falconry Gods have smiled on her training. So many things can go wrong, that will adversely shape the birds attitude and be very hard to overcome. Every thing has gone smoothly with Sue.

It will take her at least a day to put all that food over and be hungry enough to fly again. That should be Monday. Since it is so hot, I may change her feeding time to mornings when it is a bit cooler. That way she won't have to set on her perch watching the other two birds eating all they can hold, ( I feed them in the mornings ) and the temps and winds will be a bit more comfortable. I will walk with her in places that the rabbits frequent to see what her reaction to running rabbits will be. If necessary, I will shoot another rabbit for her. It will take several setups like this before she learns enough of their tricks and evasions to actually be able to make any contact with running rabbits.