Day four

What is behind bush number 1?

This morning was foggy, so I put off my departure to the rabbit field until 10:AM. It was still foggy here at the house and extremely foggy in Rome, but it was clear over the Lava field where we hunt. The temperature was 38 degrees. I had returned to the house after starting, to get a coat, but when I got to the field and found the sun shining I decided to leave it in the car.

The tall grass that is every where, was really wet, and it didn't take long for me to get that way as well. The rabbits the last time we were there, were being really sneaky and hiding, so I moved slowly keeping my eyes open for a chance to shoot one if I had to. As I said in my last post, I was starting to feel sorry for her and was worried that she might get discouraged and quit trying. I have seen it before, and it took a lot to change the situation. Of course I was going to give her as many chances as I could before I made it easy again.

Her weight was the same as yesterday, so my guess on the amount of food that I gave her to counter act the calories she had burned in yesterdays efforts, was right on. She was still doing her inexperienced best to catch one of the sneaky critters. They were hiding in the thick Sage and then sneaking or busting out when she committed herself on an attack. Each time I was angling for an opening, but I wasn't going to shoot unless I could be sure of pinpoint accuracy. If you have never hunted Jacks, you cannot know how hard it is to get such a shot at 15 yards or less.

I was mixing up my routes of travel as it doesn't take long for a Jack to profile ones travel habits, and start hiding in areas that you don't walk. It was paying off by us rousting out Jacks that had successfully avoided us in the past. Pud got several close slips at the sneaky critters and was making some serious committed shots at them in spite of their cover, and seemed to be right on the verge of getting her feet on one of them. I had just gotten finished combing two out of a pocket of cover normally not covered, when she took off after one that was at least 80 yards out. She of course was not able to catch up with it and took a perch on some rocks.

By that time I was starting to get seriously heated up. I kept the tee perch in my left hand so that she would not come to me. I walked to where I had last seen her, trying to flush the hiders out of cover so that she might get another shot. I dropped every thing and peeled out of my vest, rolling it up to put in the back of my bag. When I finished, I looked for her, but didn't see her. That is not that unusual as she is dark and blends well with the Lava.

I put the perch up in the air, which is generally enough, but no Puddy materialized. I started looking around for her. Faintly far off in the distance I heard a Jack Rabbit singing its death song. At first it didn't register. I thought of the various Eagles in the area, and the Coyotes, but the coincidence was a bit much so I started as fast as my now clumsy feet would take me in the last direction that it had seemed to come from. I was worried that if the rabbit quit screaming, I wouldn't be able to find her. She really likes the head and has killed almost every rabbit that she has gotten her feet on.

There was a small Lava outcrop back around the corner from where I had been standing. I got around the flow and could again hear the rabbit. Finally I saw a Jack sticking out of a bush. Only that, no sign of what had it, but it had to be Puddy. If you will notice in the first picture there was a hole in the rabbits head. I was not about to go anywhere near that rabbit. The last thing that I needed was for it to get so panicked at my wild eyed approach that it might tear out of her feet. This had to end in success for her. Since I couldn't see her and could see the other side of the rabbit, no problem!

 After I shot the rabbit, I still couldn't see Puddy. I had to peel away the brush layer by layer to uncover her.

 You will notice the rather large amount of blood on the Jack's hind legs. That is from her talons. The entire rear of this Jack was torn up and so blood shot that it looked as though he had been shot. I guess there wasn't anything to worry about as far as him getting loose. I would still do it again however.

I pulled her out of the brush after I uncovered her, and started giving her tidbits. She soon relaxed and I gave her a front leg saved for that purpose. She took it off under a bush to eat, and I took the Jack to clean. When she finished the leg I gave her, I called her to the fist for one of the hind legs to finish her meal.

I walked back to the car while she ate the rest of her meal, with tears in my eyes, almost overcome with gratitude with the way that it had all worked out. I have denigrated this hawk like no other that I have ever had, and it is an unquestionable truth that she has deserved it. However in spite of all her slowness and lack of maturity, I have maintained that if she ever came around she could be as good as any of them. I guess we will see over the next few months.

She still has a lot to learn, and a long hard road ahead to become what I call a hunting hawk, but she has a start. It only takes hard work and time in the field.