Block- or bowperch:
Falcon are perched on blocks. Short- and broadwings on bows. Falcons have long wings, they should be able to strech without the risk of breaking their feathers. It's practical to have a portable block or bow too. Falcons should, not be blocked on bows and hawks should not be perched on on blocks for longer periods of time as this could cause severe damage to their feet.
Screenperch:
Nice to have. Especially for very tall persons. For the unmanned hawk they are giants, viewed from an ordinary block. Should not be used with sick or otherwise weak hawks. Should not be preferred from the ordinary block, as the risk to the hawks plumage - and life, should she end upside down - is greater.
Transportation crate:
A necessity for falconers travelling without car. It should be lighttight, though not airtight. Ventilationholes should be at the base of the box. The hawk is perched on a wooden block, tall enough for the tail not to touch the floor. The floor and the wooden block is covered with carpet with uncut loops, so the hawk have something to grip. The box should not be large enough for the hawk to spread it's wings or turn around.
Cadge:
Can replace the travellingbox in a car with plenty of room in the cabin. Originally the cadge was carried on shoulderstraps (fieldcadge), and used for transportation of several hawks in the field. You still see the fieldcadge in use, but most cadges today are rather massive, without shoulderstraps, and only for use in cars.
Scale:
Is essential in the training of hawks. The weight of the individual hawk gives the falconer an idea of, what to expect from his bird on that given day under the the given conditions. Falconers of the past, had to 'feel' the hawk's conditions on the hawk's sternal bone. It's a technique it takes a very long time to develop to perfection and it requires a thorough knowledge of the individual hawk. Despite of that it's a skill worth ataining. I've seen experienced falconers use it from time to time. As certain as a scale it's not though. Scales for hawks can be bought. Electronic as well as traditional. They can also be made without any greater efforts. A pair of counterbalance scales, a little wood and a little lead to balance the scales is all it takes. Counterbalance scales You can find at fairs and second-hand shops, but they can be a little expensive. So are the ready to buy scales. I prefer the traditional counter-balance scales. No batteries or electronics to be repaired and yet accurate and robust.
Bath:
Some individual hawks will not perform well without their daily bath, and if you try too make them, you will either loose her forever, or if you're lucky, be able to retrieve her at the nearest waterhole. The little water they drink, they drink of their bathing water. The bath should ideally be about half the wingspan in diameter, but less will do. It can be quite difficult to find tubs at this size for the large falcons, without having to buy one from a falconry furniture retailer. The water should be changed every or every second day, depending on the climate. The bath should be disinfected regularly.
Gauntlet:
The traditional falconers glove is made of buckskin, but can also be made of moose or other strong, lithe skin. The thickness depends of the birds You want to handle. One layer should suffice for species as sparrowhawk, merlin, kestrel and hobby. One layer with reinforcement is used for the mediumsized species up to gyrfalcon. Double thickness, eventually over the entire arm, is used for large species like eagles. The falconers glove usually come with a cuff, which the apprentice soon will know to appreciate. A hawk don't always perch where you want it to. The glove is swiped clean from shreads of meat every day. From time to time it is washed with a cloth or a sponge soaked in water with soap flakes. When dried, it's greased in ordinary leathergrease. It should of course never be put on a radiator. The skin will dry out and loose it's strenght. A joke danish falconers inbetween, is never to trust a falconer with a clean or new glove. You ought to. The glove should be replaced when deep cracks develops in the skin. A glove, greased in meat and blood as it get, is a perfect medium for growth of bacteria and viruses. It might be a good idea to have a glove of the kind you get in constructionmarkets in reserve, for assistents and for handling hawks with bumblefoot, an infectious disease of the feet, quite common to hawks. A glove used for hawks with infections should be destroyed or at least thrown away when the hawk gets well.
Lure:
The lure should become the hawks favourite piece of equipment. She should give up any activity at the very sight of it and come to You. The lure is used for basic training of all birds of prey, for bringing longwings in hunting condition and for retrieving lost or out of sight hawks. Different lures are usually used for longwings and other birds of prey, all depending on the quarry You want her to fly at. Some are made with fur to resemble rabbits and some of leather fitted with feathers to resemble different kinds of birds.
Hood:
This is probably the most important piece of equipment and also what most people ask about. A bird experience the surroundings through it's eyes. In general things only exist to a bird as long as it can be seen. When the hawk is introduced to the hood she is more scared of You than of the hood and therefore accepts it. The frightening thing - You - seem to disappear from her sight when the hood is put on and she calms down. Later on, when she has become familiar with You and the hood, she's learned that in the hood she's safe. Whenever faced with something new and unfamiliar she might be frightened and have to be hooded. When hooded she calms down. She might fluff out her feathers, rouse, warble and even fall asleep. She will do whatever she does when she's feeling safe. Hoods are made from several different patterns, each designed for a particular species of hawk. The 'Dutch hood' was designed for peregrines, the 'Bahreini hood' for sakers and the 'indian'/'anglo-indian' for sparrow-/goshawks. The hood is best greased with Ko-cho-line. This will help to keep the hood in shape.
Falconers bag:
In essential a bag hung in a swivel and with pockets on both sides. Most bags though, come with several smaller pockets for knife, spare leash etc. The main pockets are used for lure, pick-up piece and for quarry. The falconers bag have by most falconers today been replaced by a waistcoat, similar to the ones used by anglers, hunters and photographers.
Jesses:
Jesses are used for holding the hawk and are connected to the leash through the swivel. The traditional jesses are fitted around the hawks legs. A newer type are put through a little hole in a small fitting around the hawks leg. Here a button at the end of the jess keep in place. This type, the Aylmeri jesses, have now allmost replaced the traditional type as it can be removed when flying the hawk. This is a good thing, because the risk that the hawk will be stuck somewhere (ie on a branch) when flying, is reduced.
Leash:
Similar to a dogs leash, this is what You hold on to. Nowadays it's made of nylon. Se illustration under 'Jesses'.
Swivel:
It links the leash and jesses. The two eyes rotate independant of each other. The hawk in this way avoid getting leash and jesses entangled.
Bells:
A great help in locating a hawk out of sight.
Telemetry:
An even greater help, when the hawk is far out of sight. A little radiotransmitter is fitted to the hawk. If she doesn't return from her flight, You might be able to track her.
Whistle:
The hawk must learn to associate the sound of the whistle with the lure - and thereby with food. This will make her come look for You if she is out of sight - but able to hear You.
BORCH'S FALCONRY - english