For anyone who has ever aspired to more of what life has to offer than what may be considered the norm, or mainstream, please read on.

For fleeting moments over the years, and I won't say how many, the thought of being a falconer has always been in the back of my mind. So far back most of the time as to be completely forgotten. June of this year I met my sponsor John Lessiack. He was a new hire at the company where I work and word of some of our mutual interests brought us together. We both keep reptiles (though John keeps a reasonable number.)

 

Later on in June my wife Catherine and I met John at his home and picked up study material by Beebe, Glazier, and some others. We spent a weekend at a bed and breakfast over the Independence Day weekend and, believe it or not, read some of Beebe’s book there. On July 14 John agreed to sponsor Catherine with the understanding of just what falconry is and should be. The next week we were invited to the eyass picnic in St Louis and I said “you betcha”. The eyass picnic was an eye opener in several ways. That morning we stopped at a local grocery store filled our cooler and visited with the guy behind us in line who we knew from church. We arrive at the picnic and who is there but Martin who we saw at the store. Found out that he is a ‘wanna-be falconer’ and has been going to meets for five or so years but has not taken the test or, if I have it right, has no sponsor. If I am in error please correct me, Martin.

 

The picnic was great. We saw lots of birds and visited with lots of folks who have years of knowledge and experience. We won just about everything in the raffle that we would need as far as equipment and some stuff we still don't know if we will ever need. We swapped Mike McDermott two leopard geckos for his latest book. Thank you Stacia for the braided jesses and encouragement. You're a doll. In September John broke his arm at work; he is quite the klutz. But that was good for us as he didn't have the bother of coming to work everyday. After much encouragement from John we scheduled our written test, knowing we would fail, but at the least got the test anxiety behind us. On Sept. 24 we took the test and I got to say “hey I never saw so many questions on stuff that I had never studied” in my life.  On Sept. 28 we got the news that we had both passed the test knowing that they had given us credit for some other poor fool’s test, we accepted their decision, Yessssssss!

 

Now for all prospective apprentices this is where it gets a bit silly. We got the MO falconers packet on the day we got our test results. In it was paperwork you must submit in order to officially become an apprentice falconer. Fortunately some of the paper work is still valid. Unfortunately you don't know what is or isn't. Once you send it all in you will be notified, or maybe you won't, of what or whom to call. You need to know all this because it is your responsibility to know what paperwork to send in even though all you can send in is what you were sent, is that clear?  Part of the process is building the hawk house, and if you are not a carpenter now you will be in a few weeks or become a fatality of the bureaucratic process. On Oct.20th the first mew is still under construction and John is supplying me with window bars, though I must cut them to size.  On Oct.27th the second mew is started. On Oct.30th we took our black and white Tegu to a pet costume contest and won a $20 gift card. On Halloween night after giving out all the candy in Centralia we spent the rest of the night, okay half an hour, making leather jesses. On Nov. 5th our county Dept. of Conservation agent inspects the 1st mew and it passes without a hitch.

 

Now note the time of year. We are beginning to be pressed for time but no emergency. On Nov.23rd we get our MO falconry permits and we are on our way to becoming the newest falconers of the oldest part of the year. On Nov.25th we are waiting on an order from a falconry supply house and our federal permits so we can go trapping.

Our sponsor now has a Harris hawk and we go with him on the Harris’s first squirrel hunt. To back step, on Nov.11th we went with John and his Harris on a bunny hunt. The first hunt of any kind my wife had ever been on. We took one bunny and had ten good flights. For those folks who have never had a rabbit and a hawk coming directly at them at full tilt, you missed it.

 

On Nov.26th the second mew is ready so the call is made and the inspection is set for Dec.4th. Two baby Tokay geckos hatched out that evening. We begin checking the mail for the federal permits and our equipment order. On Dec.1st we were advised that the paperwork submitted was wrong and out dated as if we would know that. I called the feds. office and was advised of what we needed to send, other than a lot more money. The falconry equipment order was sent to wrong state and city. We borrowed enough equipment from our sponsor to get through the inspection. On Dec.12th at 7pm the DOC has forgotten the mew inspection and it is now reset for a week later. Now I have suffered a back injury and spend a week in bed. I hear from the MO permit office that they didn't receive my mew inspection request. On Dec.12th the second mew inspection appointment passes. I am still looking for the feds. permit in the mail. On Dec. 18th I think about writing an article for the MFA about the joys of being an apprentice falconer.  Dec.27th passes and I still haven’t received my federal permit. Called MN just to find out that a new person is handling permitting or maybe not. On Dec.28th I called again but no one was in the office. Apparently the former agent is unwilling to help. I have a Kestrel b/c as a backup plan.  On Dec.29th a new agent in MN agrees to fax copies of permits, yes that is legal. On Dec.30th I receive my federal permit.

 

On Dec.31st at 0630 I arrive at my sponsor’s house to go trapping. At 1145 I decided to head home as the trapping has not been productive but at 1150 I take a 48 oz. female red tail. Was it worth the aggravation? A thousand times.