NEW PUPPIES

I've wanted  Beagles  for awhile. Got the chance to get a pair last week. They are 15 months old, running rabbits, and very well trained. They are named Katie and Whiskey. Lily's got a lot to keep her eyes on now. Four dogs and me chasing out rabbits.                                                                     
Lily got #13 yesterday at the thicket by the wetlands .
Bill and I shot ducks Saturday morning and I got these two. 
Last Saturday was my dads 85th birthday. For his birthday he gave me my grandfathers' shotgun .


Pop Pop was very big Quail hunter.
I plan on shooting a few Quail over the weekend with it.

The Rabbit hunting has been good. Lily's caught 10 now .She got her first Quail, the covey was on the ground in the honeysuckle and she dove down on a cock bird.I got it from her and she went on to get a rabbit too.It's been deer season the last two weeks so I have been hunting the ditch banks. The cover is really heavy for Lily to break through - saving lots of Rabbits.

LILY'S DOING GOOD

Saturday morning Tom came over to  rabbit hunt. We started at hedge row behind the cabin .Lily got right up in a tree and we started hunting.We didn't  jump any rabbits till we got to the corner where Tom got one moving and Lily missed it.I jumped the next one and Lily dove for it but got hung up in some heavy green briars.The next one we jump got saved by the Bicolor Lespedeza -
Lily couldn't get though it.That was the last one that got away,the next three weren't so lucky. This was the last one we got, Lily nailed him running down the edge.That was three rabbits in two hours - best day ever!   I went back out again Sunday and got one more making six so far.      

RABBIT # TWO

On my lunch Wednesday Donald met me at the house and we hunted for an hour. We jumped two rabbits, the one ran from the cover down the path. Lily was high in a tree and came down fast. She was right on its' tail when I lost sight of them. I thought for sure I was going to hear the squeal but back in the tree she went.It wasn't long when she dove down in the field again but still no squeal. I found her on the ground - no rabbit.She got back up in a tree. We hunted a while longer, then I tried calling her down with the lure. She wasn't interested in coming to the lure.I didn't want to be late for work so I had Donald get me a live quail from my pen. When she saw it - down she came. We didn't hunt Thursday. Today's hunt went much better. We hunted the hedge row behind the cabin. Janey treed a squirrel and Lily went for it but it got to a hole. The dogs and I hunted down the hedge row, Lily moved along with us from tree to tree.I jumped a rabbit and Lily dove for it but there was a lot of cover and it got away.Lily got back up in a tree and we hunted on. I came to a small bush pile and gave it a hit. The rabbit ran out, saw Lily was watching she did a spin on limp and dove.I heard the squeak and new we had #two.

LILY GOT HER FIRST RABBIT

Sunday morning I called Garry and asked him to hunt with me.I wanted another set of eyes to watch Lily in case she wanted to do some long distance hunting.He came right over and we headed for the Cemetery down the back lane.I thought it would be a good place to start with only two big trees,it would be easy to keep her in sight. I parked just past the Cemetery, let the dogs out and put Lily on her perch on top of the truck. Within a few seconds Janey had a rabbit running down lane but Lily didn't see it. I carried her closer to the trees where she got in the closest tree and started watching.I started in to the Cemetery, Janey and Dakota were hunting the field.I could see that Lily saw something and down she dove.I heard the rabbit squeal and knew we had our first.She did a great job busting though the brush and grabbing it by the head.I quickly dispatched the bunny and let Lily eat some.After Lilye ate she hopped back on my glove leaving me with 3/4 of the rabbit.

LYDIA LITVYAK [LILY]

Lily has been so easy to train, she is so tame.She never bites or tries to foot anybody. She's more like a puppy then a hawk it's really crazy.Monday on my lunch hour I turned her loose for the first time. I took her down the lane and let her go.She went to this tree first.The dogs and I went to work hunting for a rabbit.Lily moved with us choosing higher trees.The dogs put a covey of quail up and Lily made a dive and missed.I called them back and headed for the field - Lily followed.She flew over the field and got really high then came back to a big pine tree.The wind was getting stronger and I was running out of time so I headed toward the house.Lily followed and landed in the top of this big tree by my new corn crib.I got my lure out and called her but she did not come down.I couldn't see her and don't really think she ever landed in the tree. I had one of my live quail with me and put it out there but no Lily. Last year after Keavy got lost for the day I bought a tracking system. Lily had the transmitter I bought on her.It took a while for me to find her even with it. It was four o'clock when I found her along Kibler Road about a mile from the house.She was in a high tree but came down to the lure. I'm going to wait till the weekend for the next hunt. I will have more time to find that rabbit or look for the hawk.

GOT MY HUNTING PARTNER

The wind was just right for the Red-Tails to sail over our traps Wednesday. I went to Western Maryland with Dave and Bill and had a great day trapping hawks. We caught 18 hawks. I got first pick and took the biggest one.I named her Lilya Litvak, after a Soviet air ace from WW11, LILY, for short.She's the one on the left, all taped up for the ride home. We turned the rest of the hawks loose.Here she is home with new ankets and jesses.She ate from my glove the first night and has gotten very tame.She weights 54 oz. Last weekend I caught a little male with my little BC trap. I taped him and weighted him. He was just over two pounds.I took some pictures and turned the little guy loose.Mark came over and we started work on my corn crib. I got most of the siding done on Sunday. Hope to finish this weekend. Lily at work.

QUAIL HATCH

The Quail started hatching Friday right on time.I haven't counted the unhatched eggs yet but should have about 800 bobwhitesI had 50 Coturnix Quail eggs in with the bobwhites and 40 of them hatched. They are a Japanese Quail that grow fast and get bigger then the bobwhites.I got them for Falconry I'll use some to catch my new Hawk this fall.I turned Keavy loose the end of March. I hope she doing ok on her own.

ROOF ON AND FOOD PLOTS PLANTED

We have been working on the granary and it now has a roof. I got most of the food plots planted.The deer are using the clover most days.This tom made it through the season. I have a 1000 quail eggs in the incubator that will hatch this weekend.

#30

I've been trying for squirrels more lately with Keavy and giving the rabbits a break.
Keavy's been chasing squirrels through the trees and diving at them but they are too fast.
Ed came down Sunday and we went after rabbits. We got #30. Keavy had a hold on another but it got away.I drained the flood pond, Rick and I are picking the corn that's left.There are some nice ears left out there since the snow geese didn't show up.At lunch time today we hunted around the house.
Janey ran a squirrel up a tree and started barking.Keavy flew over and nailed that one.This is her 3rd squirrel, she may be catching on.

#29 AND FRIED BEAVER TAIL

Friday evening I got out the beaver tail.Rick and Ricky were over for dinner. I fried it in olive oil with some seasoning. It was a little fatty for my taste. Ricky enjoyed it.Saturday was too windy for hawking.Rick and Ricky started picking the corn in my flood pond. They picked several bushels and got it all shelled. Sunday I got Keavy out hunting for a few hours.
We started behind Dad's and had a rabbit in the first few minutes.
After I got that one in the bag, we headed to my uncle Buddy's farm where we jumped one more but it made it to a bush pile before Keavy got there.

#28

Randy and a friend came down from New Jersey. They did some squirrel hunting in the morning.Then shot some crows.They got back to the house just in time for Keavys'lunch time hunt. I let her out and she went to a tree. Since there were three of us I decided to try the field. Keavy moved up closer and higher. We made a pass through the field and were headed back when Randy yelled that Keavy went out in to the field.I didn't hear a squeal and was surprised to find her dragging a rabbit to cover. That was another fast hunt! I cleaned the rabbit and got back to work on time.

GOT TWO SATURDAY #26&27

Saturday I hunted the farm my dad was born on - it is Uncle Buddy's farm now. I drove up to the spot I had in mind. It looked perfect. Lots of green briers grown up around old farm junk. It made me think of my grandfather and how many times he must have hunted this spot.My dad tells a story about how Pop Pop blew the barrels up on his shotgun. He always carried some heavy loads for when he saw a hawk or fox while hunting. My Uncle Albert had used his hunting coat and left a 20 gauge shell in the pocket. Pop Pop saw a hawk in a tree, grabbed what he thought was a heavy load and loaded it in to his 12 gauge. The 20 gauge shell slide down the barrel and didn't fire. He opened the gun, saw no shell and dropped in a 12. The 12 went off with the barrel being restricted by the 20 gauge shell. The barrel was destroyed and had to be replaced.I remember big piles of quail getting picked in their front yard. I couldn't guess how many quail he shot in his lifetime.I don't remember a lot of rabbits but I'm sure he shot his share.
I let Keavy out and she went to the perfect tree.The dogs went down the edge and I took one step in to the briers and out came a rabbit.Keavy was on him fast.I got the rabbit in the bag, Keavy went back to a tree & we started hunting for another.It wasn't long and we jumped #2. Keavy had a ways to fly to this one. I saw her dive but I heard no squeal. When I got to her she was on a log looking for the rabbit.The dogs started trailing it.Keavy got back in a tree and within a few minutes she flew out a ways and dove in. I heard the squeal, we had #2 for the day. I got Keavy on my glove and went back to the Kia. I put the rabbits in the Kia. Turned Keavy loose for #3. We all tried hard too. We jumped 3 more, Keavy got fur out of one and just couldn't catch the others.Come on Pop Pop I know you were watching from above. You didn't need to shoot the hawk. You use the hawk to get the game.

#24- 25 AND BEAVER FOR DINNER

Last Tuesday, at lunch, I decided to hunt the thickets on the Sylvester's. We hadn't gotten a rabbit there yet. I loaded the dogs and Keavy in the Kia. I parked between both tickets and let out the dogs and hawk. Keavy got in a tree over a big brier patch.
I walked in and Keavy flew in at the same time. I heard the squeal and #24 was in the bag in record time.I was able to clean that bunny and get back to work on time.
Over the weekend I decided I had to do something about the beavers.They have build a dam in my ditch. The ditch is behind the cabin. It has flooded so bad I can't drive out to the back field. At first I liked the way it flooded the woods - it made for nice wood duck habitat. The water was getting way too high and backing water up on the neighboring farm. I had tried to tear some of the dam out, but they build it back the next night. So, with a party happening this Friday, the time was right to take him out. Every body likes beaver meat!! I had a neighbor help me set traps. This beaver was in one the next morning. He was 30 pounds.I skinned him last night.His pelt was real nice - maybe I could make a hat.I washed up the meat, cut it up, and have it soaking in salt water.At lunch today I hunted around the back field.
In less than an hour we jumped three rabbits. The first two got away with just loosing a little fur. The last one (#25) wasn't so lucky.