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Wingnuts and Snow
Wow it finally arrived, the snow! However it is no secret i hate snow!!! I grew up in the very north of Scotland and one of my earliest memories other than curling up in the middle of the night with my beloved Labrador ‘Gemma’ was of my dad pulling me along on skis and me falling in the ditch!
Well Tabitha and I worked our way around the centre clearing a path and then set to work on a very important task….snowman building with Holly.
Our brand new aviaries are all up and running (even caught Tom, Sam and Poplar sitting at the front of them with small piles of snow on their heads!!) I cannot believe the transformation in Poplar, he just loves being at head height and is much much calmer. They are all enjoying a yummy diet, rat is on the menu tomorrow.
Very sad week though in the passing of my favourite mouse Mr Jingles. He was the father to all the mice we bred for food and he had a wonderful life. Mrs Jingles has now moved to my house as apose to the shed as i worry that her tissue and hay bed is a little chillier without Mr Jingles to snuggle up too!! And who said i was a ruthless hunter.
We also bought 3 new Ferrets this week, Ringo, Mischa, and Poppy, we adopted them from a wonderful centre called Star Rescue Ferrets. I shall post some pictures next week.
For now i shall finish on my picture of the week……Wingnut.
Rats and Angels
So Christmas is far behind us, winter is overly warm and is that romance floating in the air?
You’ll be pleased to know that spring is springing here at Feathers and Fur, with Willows hormones all over the place and the birds starting to drop feathers left right and centre. It’s been a busy few weeks with the construction of 3 new aviaries well underway. At the time of writing I am hoping to finish the whole lot in two days time and then Poplar, Tom, Sam and Tilia will relocate to their posh new accommodation. I’ll get some pictures up next time. For now I thought I would mention the Valentine Special on the Hawk Walks – 2 adults for the price of 1, perfect for a romantic stroll in the country and Gents it’s the only time that you can safely have a bird on each arm (admittedly ones got feathers!!) I also wanted to show you a few of my favourite photos of the last few days.
I was trying to get a picture of our now adult Gambian Pouch Rat, Bella to show you how she has grown since i took the first wine bottle picture. But as you can see she is not impressed with the camera and only wanted to show her bum!!! 
This is Lady playing with her best friend, a Golden Retiever ‘Molly’. Its so funny to watch them play and you can often see the pure joy they have on their faces when they are together.
And this photo of Mouse was taken by a wonderful customer during his Hands on Session, Mouse is a total angel!
Happy New Year
Happy New Year, I hope that everyone has made their new year’s resolutions and since we are well into the first week I hope not too many have been broken, I lost out to the cutting back on chocolate at around 1pm on New Year’s Day!! I was however chasing Ariel who decided that she wanted to stop out over night and watch all the fire works!!!
Any way I was drawn to the topic of this blog following both Ariel’s escapades and the recent bad winds. I want to talk about commitment and sacrifice that comes with owning animals. I consider my position to be a little extreme as I have chosen to surround and base my life with animals but even if you simply own a rabbit or own a complete menagerie the sacrifices are the same. If I had a pound for each time someone has told me they would love to own a bird I would be a very rich lady but my first question is do you have the time and then to point out that in the 2 years that I have owned Feathers and Fur I have had 9 days off! (Thank you Lu!)
I can’t just up and leave on a romantic break away with my better half, I can’t lay in bed all day with a bad head after celebrating the new year, I can’t down tools and run to the aid of friend in emotional need with pots of ice cream! I made a total commitment to my animals and they have to come first, they cannot get their own food or water or clean themselves out.
With regards to sacrifice I stayed home on New Year’s so I could be up at the crack of dawn to search for Ariel, and in the past strong winds both I and Robert were out in our pyjamas at 4am checking that aviary roofs were still intact, and giving up sleep is not something I do easily!!!!
But you’ll be pleased to know that Ariel returned home safely, not before I got to wonder around some huge and wonderful garden on Scarlett’s Lane and all the roofs stayed safe and sound in place and two days on I have caught up on lost sleep!!!!
I would just like to take a moment and thank Ethan and his younger 
brother Robert for Ethan’s wonderful kindness and skill when he bought along a new dog toy he made for Lady. As you can see she totally loves it and spent the rest of the afternoon showing everyone that came to visit her favourite new toy. Thank you Ethan, woof!!!
Christmas is here!
Wow its little over 24 hours until Christmas and I can honestly say this 
will have been our best Christmas ever. My little computer has been none stop until the wee hours of the morning printing off voucher and letters, and then I think I might have shares in Royal Mail for all the first class stamps I have bought! Even the post office lady mentioned my numerous visits.
Well this year has been an amazing learning curve for me as a business owner and such a busy year for a young business. We ran two very successful Groupon Deals, spent a wonderful summer holidays teaching children during their holiday club, spent many many perfect hours at Camp Mohawk with some amazing children and carers (and a very noisy wood pecker!), been to many exciting birthday parties and seen some wonderful owl and a falcon cakes! Spent hours looking for lost birds and mourning the loss of one. Made wonderful friends, taken thousands of photos, laughed, smiled, gesticulated wildly, met the very handsome Steve Backshall and talked to many hundreds of people that share in my immeasurable love of the amazing birds and animals that make up team Feathers and Fur.
Phew, could someone please pass the mince pies?
Merry Christmas Everyone x
Welcome Groupon visitors
Hello and welcome to all our new Group-on friends and thank you choosing to spend your time in the company of Feathers and Fur and gain an insight into the world of falconry.
Whether you’re joining us for Hands on Falconry session or you’re a budding photographer who’s snapped up a Photography session this page will inform you of everything you need to know to enable you to book your experience session.
On our website you will find a handy Group-on calendar that will advise you the available dates for your experience these date will be continuously updated dependant on volume with more to follow in January.
We ask that when you make a booking you e-mail us your copy of the voucher or vouchers obtained, your chosen date from the Group-on calendar, we will then e-mail you back to confirm your date and time and then all you need to do is sit back and look forward to your session
Unfortunately telephone booking cannot be made as we need to have visual confirmation of your voucher to register your session.
Spectator are welcome but will be charged at an additional rate of £5.00per person and we ask that this is kept to a minimum of 1 spectator per voucher.
We ask you to notify us 24hrs before your session if you will be unable to make your appointment all late cancellation are non-refundable.
Our hands sessions will start at 10.00am until 12.00 and our photography sessions will start at 2.00pm until 3.00pm we ask that you arrive promptly to ensure your groups session starts on time and sensible and appropriate clothing is worn.
Thank and we look forward to seeing you soon
The Feathers and Fur Team
Christmas is Coming!!
So it is officially that time of year again, the time where a low rumble of panic starts to set in about what to get as the perfect present!!
Fear not Feathers and Fur Falconry Centre has the answer with 20% off our Half Day Hands on Sessions or 2 for 1 on our adult Hawk Walks.
Both the perfect gift for anyone. Now what to get my family??? I don’t think my mum has done a Hawk Walk yet but frustratingly my sister is afraid of birds!!!!
Harris Hawk Rant and a Halo
I truly believe that as i get older and busier time really does go quicker, i cannot believe that Bonfire Night and Halloween have already passed and that Ladds Garden Village is busy putting the finishing touches to their Christmas display!!!
Well in terms of news it is all birdie, that time of year has come around when young Harris Hawks are ready to be whisked away from their parents only to be sold to inexperienced, irresponsible people whom after only a few days will lose their bird and then people like myself have to take on these birds with absolutely no way to locate or contact the owner as they were too stupid to register their bird with a IBR ring or microchip it. Sorry if i sound angry but this is an issue that I feel very strongly about. Weekly i come across people that want to own a bird and it is something that takes time to think about and time to actually learn what you are doing, this is a live animal not something you can read about in a book and guess at. Any way rant over, three weeks ago a friend bought in a Harris Hawk he had been called too in a local town, found sitting in a local patch of parkland. He bought it to me and I have to admit I had my fingers crossed it would be a male, a potential friend for Lilly (who has been with us for 1 year now, after being found on a roof top in Henley), unfortunately it turned out to be a ‘she’. Wonderful as she was I knew her stay with us would be short lived as I simply don’t have the space for another Harris Hawk!! However I got her flying free and really rather liked her but she most certainly had a hunting edge to her which made me a little uneasy when it comes to working alongside children. After posting on a forum about the atrocity of Harris Hawks becoming almost a disposable bird, i met a gentleman working in Guildford as a pest controller and he offered to take Mesha on for me (yes i have to admit to succumbing to X factor names!!). This week i drove to deliver Mesha and meet Jake, his 4 falcons and beautiful dog on his Landfill site. Now this was first for me, and although i have been offered pest control work before I have always turned it down as I was not sure about working the Landfill (i think i have seen too many CSI episodes!!). I was really taken with Jake and his team and although it was worlds away from the neatly manicured astro turf and white painted walls of my world, i was impressed at Jakes ingenious use of scavenged bits (a man totally after my own heart) and the wonderful fitness and condition of his birds – even if Jake is the king of Ace Ventura impressions!! (sorry Jake). I was honoured to see them fly and keep those gulls at bay waiting for the 4 o’clock hour that Jake headed home. I am totally convinced that Mesha has found the perfect working home and will be entered on quarry long before Santa starts his rounds.
Lastly, i would like to introduce you to Mouse / Halo – our new Common Buzzard. 
Now i will be the first to admit that the past two years have not been good for me and Buzzards what with Tilia and her brain damage and then Otis and i simply not settling together. So i have taken steps towards the perfect Bird, Mouse nicknamed for his wonderful squeak but Halo as he has a pretty ring of white feathers on the back of his head is just a youngster and has been crèche reared at a wonderful centre in Lancashire. Here is to knowing that he is going to be a stunner and a perfect addition to the team.
On a closing note Ladds Garden Village is having a Christmas Fair on the 11th of December where you will be able to meet owls and handle reptiles plus we’ll have hunt the Santa, pony rides and craft stalls all for charity.
A Lick of paint and a slip stream
Well this week has been a very busy week here at Feathers and Fur, 
this past weekend saw a dramatic change to the site when all my volunteers were put to work painting the aviaries with wood protector. Its a little on the bright side but I’m imagining it will look very cheery when the rest of the site is full of snow. Talking of weather what a peculiar and dramatic variation we have had! The weekend saw guests standing in t’shirts and shorts and today I had to put on my thermal vest!!! I think Thursday though will be permanently etched in my memory though, I had two elderly customers that were attending a one hour hawk and owl session in the afternoon. Now this was the 5th time we had arranged a booking and each time was cancelled due to poor weather but the morning was dry and so we went ahead as planned. Half way through the session the heavens opened out of nowhere and my poor customers sat under their umbrellas waiting for the storm to pass. I could not believe how unlucky we had been. Such an image stuck in my head as these wonderful people sat with Charlie the eagle owl and their brollies!!
Acer had a stunning week with some fantastic flying, he has been spot on since we flew at the Ploughing match in Windsor a few weekends ago after what seemed like being at moult forever!! He had a fantastic chase from a Red Kite, unfortunately the Kite was chasing him but it was amazing to watch (as well as heart in throat, but trying to look cool for the customers!!), he was a bit like a Hare in that he flew at a matched speed for a while and then just kicked in the turbo and left the Kite in his slip steam!!
Well I’m off to finalize my next Groupon Offer, a photography morning, just in time for the perfect Christmas present!
Otis and the Slowworm
Well as i sit in the office the walls are being pounded by wind and rain and i am confined to the computer as our day has been cancelled due to weather, not good!
Its been a quiet few weeks, with lots of lovely customers, some very busy volunteers and birds up to their usual mischievous selves. Over the past two weeks we have been putting a lot of work into Otis who remains a little nervous of customers and is only being flown by the team. One of our volunteers Jim spent hours sitting with him in the field and flying him on the creance to the fist. I have been free flying him for some time however Friday the 2nd of Sept proved to be a frustrating one! 
Otis had flown around the field for a few pieces of chicken but decided to take to a tree just outside the flying field. Nothing unusual about this as it is a tree used by most of the birds, except on this occasion the 3 wild Buzzard chicks, nesting in Scarlett’s Wood, thought it would be hilarious to fly over Otis shouting and showing off, then a very cheeky Red Kite, a regular over our fields, decided it was a perfect moment to sit right above Otis. Then to top it all off a Sparrow Hawk came from the woods and circled way up above us. Well this all proved a little too much for Otis and he steadfastly refused to move from the branch. For an hour i stood, i walked, i tempted but to no avail. Unfortunately i had to leave for a birthday party in Eton (on the way to which i got completely lost going around slough) so trusting in the telemetry I left Otis in the tree. Two and a half hours later I return and Otis had moved into the woods behind us. So off i trot with the telemetry and the signal is very broad, usually you can pin it to a specific tree or area so i set off into the woods on my mission. I should also point out that 3 days previously i spent 4 hours in A&E with a suspected broken kneecap – turns out its just badly bruised and swollen, but climbing fences and traversing brambles is not easy with a sore leg!
Any how I was slowly walking following the signal when out of the corner of my eye i catch glimpse of movement on the ground. Just as I focus I am in time to watch Otis polishing off a Slow Worm. Very sad as i like them, but i simply show Otis the chick and up he jumps on to the fist. It’s a hard feeling to describe, because on one hand i have been cross at him for mis-behaving, on another sympathising because he is a bird of prey and he is doing what comes naturally which is being in the trees, and relief for both the fact that my bird is safe and on the fist and that I am not going to have to spend the evening sitting under a tree worrying that i may not get him back! Whom ever said never work with children and animals hit the nail on the head!
What have all the rabbits gone?!?!
Well its that time of year again (i can’t believe how fast it 
came around) that Lilly, Tigger, Gimly and I packed up our tuck (our new van!) and headed out into the wilderness with the wonderful gentlemen from Survival School. This season’s group was small but this made for a wonderful team atmosphere and it wasn’t the leaders over the participants, we were all in it together.
Now Escot Estate is a wonderfully example of rolling rural Devon countryside, with fields of pigs, cattle and sheep on the horizon, a glorious babbling brook meandering along the shallow valley between Beech woodlands and pasture fields, with the cry of the lone (and very allusive) cock pheasant settling in for an evening’s roost. It however lacked in a certain something…..RABBITS!!!!
Not a blooming white fluffy tail and stiff little brown body to be seen!!!!
After a whole morning of me hunting in vain for any simple signs of rabbits, the Survival School participants and I headed off in the afternoon suitably armed with Teddy and Gimly, the ferreting duo. For 3 hours we hunted high and low, trying all holes we came across, avoiding the Badger ones and waiting in patient silence for that heart pausing thump from below ground…..and we waited…and we tried another hole….and we waited… and another hole….waited……NOTHING! Finally on our last warren just as we are heading home wondering what on earth we are going to put in the stock pot we had a flush. Just a short one but enough for the bird to take off the fist and for the guys to see a flash of action. Unfortunately the rabbit was off and running before Lilly could manoeuvre herself around the trees and head after it, but at least we saw a rabbit!
So faced with the prospect of boiled chicken stock and Burdock and Thistle Root broth, Gary one of the team members came to the rescue with sausage!!! (Not foraged from the pigs on the far side of the valley) but I think the afternoon showed the highs and lows of hunting and the fact that dinner is never always a given.
Had to add a picture of a very tired Ferret, Gimly slept so well his tongue was sticking out!!!
I thought it would be nice to show some pictures of our yard too, actually after the horrendously wet day we had today it was just lovely to see some pretty colour and blue skies.
Also big news Bournville took his first ‘no strings attached’ flight and was great.
We’ll be at Binfield Show on the 27th if you would like to come along and visit.