hi all, seen a few of your pics with your birds looking gud am just wondering how when you cope them do it as you aint meant to lay them on their backs??? it was a nightmare for me i got cut up to bits even when i rolled a towel up for them to grip or put a rounded piece of wood in their talons for them to grip i always had a nightmare!!!
juat wondered how you lot do it?? cheers guys

to make a decent job its normally going to take two of you! one to hold the bird while the other does the deed...

Hooding a bird makes life alot easier! get someone to cast the bird in the normal way and clip the tip of its beak and take a file to tidy it up

Jasper

just a thought .....

there is a school of thought that using a tube to slide the bird into is one way ..
the ornithologists have used the technique for years when ringing wild birds in the surveys..

when i cope my harris i rap her in a towel with just the head showing and place her on a pillow if she wants to grip she got the pillow. also the hood is a good way to go .

yup as mentioned, just wrape a towel around her, and cope, dont but her on her back, place her on a cushion chest down. best thing to do is use a casting jacket if your really stuck, a centre should do it for a small fee

I have used all sorts of things in the past but Have found when you are relying on someone else to cast the bird a towl can cause a few problems, if the person is a old hand at it then thats fine but if the towl slips forward against the lay of the feathers then they end up looking a mess...

With bare hands you get the feel the bird and apply the right aount of grip to secure the birds, if done properly you get no slip or damage...

In my experince for what its worth a Harris doesn't struggle that much compared to accipiters and Falcons, when you get a real wiggler this is when a towel can cause a bit of damage....

ATB

Jasper

cool thanks alot guys im in the middle of building maself a mews as i intend to get maself a bird in the near future (18 weeks) been offered a baby female harris for 350 is that a decent price?? it seems to be, il post a few pics when the mews is built once again cheers

yep thats a good price mate 18 weeks is also a good age to get a bird

don't matter what the price .... if it's the bird you want it's worth every penny ..