Advertise on podcast: The Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast

Kyle Perrin returns to the show to update us on how his season has progressed with his black spar.  After briefly reminding listeners of Kyle's falconry situation, he and I discuss the africanus breed - a dog that has originated in Southern Africa.  We then talk about Kyle's experience working at a falcon hospital in the middle east.  I then query Kyle about Callie's previously unexpected desire to chase fur, and whether that behavior has persisted.  We then turn our attention to Kyle's objective to catch a guinea fowl on the rise aided by his two dogs.  Kyle then explains his rationale for adjusting his planned approach to catching guinea in the way he prefers to hunt, including the influence of a local HPAI outbreak. We conclude the episode talking about Kyle's final outing of the season.  Thanks for listening to Fat Bird, Ugly Dog - I hope you enjoy this episode with Kyle.

In this episode I welcome Anton Muller back to the show. After briefly reminding listeners of Anton's background and learning a little about his lanneret's name, we discuss how a captive bred lanner could be developed to bring about the traits that Anton so appreciates in the passage birds he flies. We then turn our attention to what has transpired in Anton's falconry since we last spoke. We briefly talk about the propensity for passage lanners to come with a set of preferences related to prey type.  I then ask Anton what is next in his falconry. Before concluding the episode, Anton tell us about his last day afield with "Little Oke". Thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast, I hope you enjoy this episode.

In this episode I am joined by Francois Breedt. After briefly reminding listeners of Francois' background, he describes how the "Falconry Gods" intervened and brought was he anticipated would be a very good season with his four-times inter-mewed female Peale's Scottish peregrine cross to an end. Francois explains what he anticipates he will do in response to the setback, and he talks about his dog work plus his most memorable day in the field. 

Cam Coley returns to the show for his first update. After briefly reminding listeners of Cam's falconry situation, he and I talk about the progress that he has made with his new English setter pup.  Cam then tells us which one of the two options he was considering when we last spoke - going strait to flying wild quarry or opting to transition to Phase II of the Perfect Pigeon approach. We then discuss the use of bagged quarry in South African falconry. Cam had indicated that it was his intent to release his peregrine at the end of August and I ask Cam if he intends to follow through with that plan, and why he believes that doing so is in the best interests of the hawk. If, in fact, Cam does release his falcon, then it was his intent to replace it with either a passage lanneret or a musket black spar - he tells us which of the two options he has settled on. We then focus on some highlights of his season thus far. We conclude the episode with a description of Cam's most recent flight.  Thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast - I hope you enjoy the episode.

Andre Cilliers returns to the show with another update of his season.  After giving the listeners a brief reminder of Andre's situation. We then talk about what changes the rainy season have brought about and how more water on the landscape has affected his falconry.  Andre then clarifies what South Africans mean when they talk about a "vlei system".  We then turn our attention to Andre's update beginning with his passage lanner that he had acquired when we last spoke.  We then talk about the foils of hawking Cape francolin, and a focus that Andre specifically outlined as a goal for this season - a "waiting on" flight over grey francolin with his dog solidly on point. Andre describes the downside of a falcon confident that it can catch and kill whatever is flushed beneath it regardless of whether the quarry flushed was intentional.  With July half over, I ask Andre if he intends to extend his hawking season or put his birds up as he typically does when the days get hotter and his work days get busier.  We conclude the episode with Andre offering two some personal insight into the value that falconry can bring to a game hawker with good perspective.

Kyle Perrin flies an imprint black sparrowhawk. He joins me this week to talk about his bird, his dogs, and his desire to pursue helmeted guinea fowl, catching them on the rise after a long, open slip. Kyle explains why he chose to fly a black spar, including how he manages his hawk to ensure she remains feather perfect.  He also gives us some insight into the main differences between the African goshawk and the black spar.  Guinea fowl can be flown all year round and Kyle talks about how he manages the timing of molt to cater to available mid-winter daylight hours. We then turn our attention to his preferred quarry - the guinea fowl - and a description of his hawking grounds, and the origin story of this particular black spar. Kyle explains the approach that his is going to take in an effort to achieve the hawking style he prefers, and he tells us about his approach to developing a well-adjusted short-wing.  We conclude the episode talking about Kyle's most recent outing, and his hawk's sudden change in heart when it comes to chasing "fur".  I hope you enjoy this episode.  Thanks for listening.                      

Ed Pitcher joins me to announce that he and Ricardo Velarde have given me permission to read and publish "The Flying of Falcons" as part of the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. We begin the episode discussing Ed's use of mantras to guide the way he develops and flies his birds.  We then focus of two mantras that Ed used in the book, and now regrets to some degree - the first is “being touched by the Angel of Death”, a metaphor he used in the chapter about a female prairie falcon called “Amos".  The second is "a sharp hawk is a smart hawk", which Ed used in his chapter on "weight Management".  We conclude the episode talking about two people with whom Ed trained and flew falcons - Terry Heath and Steve Sanders - and we talk about the way the three friends influenced one another.  Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoy this prelude to the reading of "The Flying of Falcons". 

Anton Muller, known for his expertise in hawking with lanner falcons, joins me to talk falconry in the Free State Province. After introducing himself, Anton talks about his farming practices, and how an experience with a spotted eagle owl influenced his decision to fly lanners. We then talk about his hawking grounds, his preferred quarry. Lanners naturally make use of thermals to gain pitch, and Anton talks about the way that they do so. Anton describes how the loss a particularly good peregrine falcon led to his focus on lanners.  We talk slipping a lanner on sand grouse and use of dogs when hunting sand grouse.  Anton provides some insight into the commonly held belief that lanners can be lazy.  We conclude the episode with a broad ranging discussion on gamehawking with lanners.  I hope you enjoy this episode with Anton - thanks for listening.

 In this bonus episode of South African Game Hawker, I am again joined by Andre Cilliers, Thean Prinsloo, and Scott Mc Farlane Chase.  I talk to each of them about their flights of the day, and their plans once the meet is done.  Andre's birds connect, his dog earns a good rest day, and he ducks out a day early as work interrupts his falconry. Thean continues his strategy of putting game up under his falcon opting to provide as many opportunities as he can. Scott has a clear sense of his path ahead, and we speculate as to the origin of his lanner.

In this bonus episode of South African Game Hawker, I am joined by Andre Cilliers, Thean Prinsloo, and Scott Mc Farlane Chase.  I talk to each of them about their flights of the day, and their plans for Day 2 of the meet.  We also get some insight into some South African cuisine and translation of a few Afrikaans words.  I hope you enjoy this episode and the glimpse it provides into a South African falconry meet.

 In this, the third episode of South African Game Hawker, I am joined by Cam Coley. We begin the episode talking about Cam's new pup, and we find out just how much Cam spoils his dog.  We then learn a little about Kwazulu- Natal, the province that Cam lives in. Cam follows this by describing the landscapes he hunts in, and the main species of quarry that he pursues with his hawks. Cam has both a winter falconry season and a summer falconry season, and he talks about his falconry calendar.  We then turn our attention to his hawking, and Cam outlines what he is currently doing with his wild-caught female peregrine as well as what he plans to do with her before the season is over.  We conclude the conversation learning about Cam's preferred approach to hunting with wild-taken hawks. I hope you enjoy this episode, and thanks for listening to the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. 

Andre Cilliers joins me again this week to talk about his personal game hawking circumstances.  We begin the episode talking about the landscapes in which Andre hawks and the quarry available to him. We then talk about Andre's annual falconry calendar.  I ask Andre about the preferred long-winging aesthetic in South Africa relative to that of North America. We then turn our attention to the circumstances surrounding the death of one of Andre's birds, and he tells us how the South African falconry community handles such situations. We finish off the episode talking game hawking. I hope you enjoy the second episode of South African Game Hawker.

This episode marks the start of a new series, South African (SA) Game Hawker. Thanks to Andre Cilliers for suggesting that we follow the northern hemisphere version of game hawker with a  South African edition.  Andre and I are joined Cam Coley and Francois Breedt in this introductory episode.  Before asking the guys to introduce themselves, we begin with a geography lesson to give listeners a sense of country.  We then turn our attention to the SA regulatory framework, and then talk about the raptors and the quarry available to falconers in SA. We finish off the episode with some game hawking stories from each of the guests.

In this final episode of Game Hawker Edition, Matt Mullenix joins me to finish out the second season of the Fat Bird, Ugly Dog Podcast. Matt and I begin the episode talking about Matt's mindset as he continued to hawk his American Kestrel, "Coco", after having lost his merlin to a Cooper's Hawk.  Matt then tells us about the benchmark he uses to evaluate the degree to which he is doing his hawk justice (Intended Quarry Per Hunt), and we discuss how far below and above that benchmark one has to be before they are no longer gamehawking). Matt then weighs in with his opinion on the relative importance of "place, time, and weight", including the ideas he calls "take two" and "take four". We then discuss "Coco's" season and Matt's plans for next season. We finish the episode with Matt's book recommendation.

Heath Garner returns to Game Hawker Edition to round out his 3-episode series. After a brief reminder describing Heath's hawking circumstances, he and I talk about the mystery book that Heath received just after he returned from the NAFA meet.  Heath then gives us an update on his approach of removing his dog from the field to encourage better pitch from his falcon, "Finn". He also describes progress with regard to his bird's beak injury from a collision with hog wire fencing. I incorrectly assume that "Finn" had stopped carrying and had made it home after each day's outing.  Heath gives us a run down of the 4th Annual Snipe Hawking Invitational, and describes his plans for next season. We finish off with a description of Heath's most memorable day of he 2024/25 hawking season. I hope you enjoy this episode of Game Hawker Edition.