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Post by harrishawk807 on Apr 13, 2005 21:11:08 GMT -5
hey im mike im not new to wildlife i've wanted to work with animals since i was five and 3 years after that i was set to become a biologist and work with large carnivors
last friday i was spring vacation in myrtle beach and visited a perservation station called T.I.G.E.R.S and met a master falconer admist lions and tigers and ligers his name was marcus imediatly my brother and i flocked to his beautiful harris hawk and perigrin falcon i asked him many questions and unknowingly showed my knowledge of the anatomical makeup of birds and mamals while explaining a feature of raptors to a friend of mine. after that marcus suggested falconry (if we had the right stuff) and got me and my brother even more deply immersed in the world of falconry.
now i have talked to many falconers and spoke with wildlife caretackers and understand the the decision to become a falconer is extremely monumental and requires alot of time and sacrifices (i've already had to give up 2 things i love football and chourus) and i think that i could be a falconer and take all the commitments and cold mornings hunting (when id rather be asleep in my warm bed) all i stride with the rewards of this sport.
this only leaves one thing troubling me every thing i have read streses the amount of money needed but not specificly, not even a ballpark figure .
so what i want to now is a rough estimate (minimum & maximum would be great) for the expenses of the first year of falconry anything u can think of please tell me i ask this because money is not coming by me fast i am saving up but my father ( who likes to play favorite) pays my sister more than 4 times as much as i get paid even when i do more work dont be sympathetic because i've learnded ways around it i just need to no how many od jobs i need to do to support my bird.
thanx so much
Mike C
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Post by frootdog on Apr 13, 2005 22:05:35 GMT -5
The problem is there is no set amount of money that you have to spend. What you need to do is make a list of EVERYTHING you need and figure out how much each item will be.
Books,Books,Books
Equipment (leash, jesses, leather, hood, anklets, leather working tools, leather grease,etc)
Food (vitahawk)
Mews
Perches/Blocks
Weathering Yard
permit fees (state and federal)
trap
etc,etc.
For example I spent $800 on my weathering yard and mews. Weasel I think spent more like $2400, but his is the Taj Mahal of mews. My mew is very good, but nowhere near the craftsmanship of his. Some people buy all the books they can find, others only what they need to get buy. Check out sections in this forum on books, rec reading. Read Weasel's article So you Wanna be a Falconer.
Have you found a potential sponsor yet? If not join your state falconry club. Sometimes they can help you find a sponsor. Join Nafa. Both NAFA and your state club will have publications that you can read when you get them. Also subscribe to American Falconry. it has a lot of good info.
Now take all that and look up prices and figure out how much you can spend or need to spend.
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Post by Weasel on Apr 14, 2005 8:42:11 GMT -5
Froot dog put it correctly, there is no set rough amout. I could spend ten bucks if I had alot of the materials to build this stuff already, or I could spend thousands. If you can make much of your gear, then things will get alot cheaper, but the items you should not skimp on are the mews and books. Books will help out more than you know and the mews is for the safety of the bird. Now, I am certainly not saying that alot needs to be spent on the mews, it just needs to be constructed well. If you have alot of free lumber, then it helps out quite a bit too. Some of the equipment needs to be bought at least the first time around such as a good fitting hood. As for costs of the mew, I have heard of people making them for less that a few hundred dollars up past a few thousand dollars......The choise is yours.....What I found is that your first mew will be good enough, but issues will be noted and either fixed or a newer mews will be built.....This is what happened to me. My first mew was third hand. It was well over 10 years old when I got it and my bird had a nasty habit of beating herself senceless in it. It worked OK for the first season with some mods, but the next year, I spent considerably more on a new double mews set-up as my wife was now getting into the sport. I built it with all the issues that I had before in mind so I would not encounter them again.....Sorry to ramble on...I haven't had my coffee yet so I don't know if this will make any sence....  ;D |
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Post by LeeSlikkers on Apr 14, 2005 9:04:56 GMT -5
Weasel, I hope this isn't too far off topic but I can't recall if you posted pics of your new mew on the site or not...if so could you direct me to which thread it's in? I'd love to see the pics.
Lee
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Post by Weasel on Apr 14, 2005 9:48:20 GMT -5
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Post by ccrobbins on Apr 14, 2005 9:57:14 GMT -5
I hope I can shed some light on this, being that I was in the same boat as you until I was shown the way shall we say.
I figure to have about $1500-$2000 in this before I trap my bird. Now, don't panic just read this. I have purchased every book that I was recommended and some that I was not. I also am building a pretty nice mews and probably could have saved about $800 if I went with less. I have budgeted about $500 for things like a gaunt and a bag/vest. This also includes new boots and leather goods for stuff like jesses and such. I will also get a hood with this. The majority of my money will be in my mews and books and such. If you can find someone to lend you the reading materials you could save a BUTT load!
I hope this helps!
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Ooby
Junior Member
Posts: 213
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Post by Ooby on Apr 14, 2005 10:24:04 GMT -5
3 grand. Thats roughly what i spent. But i bought the best of everything i could find. Not the most expensive, but the best.
Oh ya, thats not counting the 14k i put into a new truck for falconry either.
Got a car? Can you go hawking down muddy roads and dusty rutted out fields in it? Thats another thing to think about.
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Post by Weasel on Apr 14, 2005 10:26:43 GMT -5
got a car?....three words....Urban gorilla hawking ;D
Ooby, I am doing the same here....My next vehicle is going to be bought with falconry in mind....as a matter of fact, I am going to bring giant hoods with me to see how they fit.... ;D
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Ooby
Junior Member
Posts: 213
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Post by Ooby on Apr 14, 2005 13:24:45 GMT -5
HAHA ya. I actually got made fun of for driving my escort. And it wasn't by just anyone. it was a GIRL!! Rebecca Oconnor was giving me nuts for hawking out of a car  |
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Dodes
Junior Member
Posts: 108
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Post by Dodes on Apr 14, 2005 13:41:09 GMT -5
I just spent about 400 bucks on lumber for the frame of my mews. I still have to buy panelling, tin, pvc, and a door. My hood, chaps, and bells were given to me as payment for a favor. Made my own glove, bowperch was free..... hrmm, still have to make my GH, and buy scales. Spent about 300 bucks on books..... It can get expensive.
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Yarak
Junior Member
Whosoever would be a man must be a nonconformist
Posts: 145
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Post by Yarak on Apr 14, 2005 14:00:11 GMT -5
The mew and books were where my limited falconry $$s are spent. I was told to expect to spend about $300.00 dollars anually for upkeep. Bane has been very affordable to keep. Much less cost than a dog or cat. I get alot free services from my raptor vet. That keeps vet bills down immensely. Thank God for Greg Moore...  I spend very little on food as she catches enough to feed herself year 'round. It can be done affordably. What I have learned is while hawking I am making no money. That means I hawk myself into povery every year. It is just something I need a great deal of. So, the cost can be much more than just financial. Yarak |
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Post by ccrobbins on Apr 14, 2005 14:29:15 GMT -5
What I have learned is while hawking I am making no money. That means I hawk myself into povery every year. It is just something I need a great deal of. So, the cost can be much more than just financial. Yarak My gosh I hope my wife does not read this.....Atleast until it's too late ;D |
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Ooby
Junior Member
Posts: 213
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Post by Ooby on Apr 14, 2005 14:52:22 GMT -5
Well it can be fairly cheap... ONCE you have all the stuff. A lot of the gear you buy will last quite a while. Its just the initially getting it, that is expensive.
Then once you get all your gear, its easy to fall into a habit of nickle and diming yourself to death.
Plenty of apprentices are given jesses and anklets, but buying leather is expensive. bells are expensive and so are swivels, at least mine were.
I guess the absolute answer is, get ready to shuck out a good bit of cash, and as long as you take care of your gear, and your bird (vet bills are expensive) you can go quite a while before needing to replace things.
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kenbro77
Full Member
Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens. - Jimi Hendrix
Posts: 313
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Post by kenbro77 on Jun 22, 2005 6:59:52 GMT -5
Great stuff people. Very good information. Answered some questions for me as well.
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Post by ritchiera on Jun 24, 2005 23:22:47 GMT -5
 How about every spare cent for 5 months so far... I actually am spending about 650.00 for the mews, about the same for equipment. I made a couple nice perches with my neighbors welder. I dropped about $50. bucks on mice stuff and am now breeding mice in the garage in aquariums. I know it's going to be $100 for the federal permit, and about 60 for the state stuff. Then there's gas and extra rent for when my wife kicks me out, then child support, alimony, and the lawsuit when my neighbors cat becomes a snack... Help, I'm headed for financial ruin! Bob
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;D
How about every spare cent for 5 months so far...