[Outdated, please look at pinned post] Casual Conversation

6591 readers

1 users here now

Share a story, ask a question, or start a conversation about (almost) anything you desire. Maybe you'll make some friends in the process.

RULES

Be respectful: no harassment, hate speech, bigotry, and/or trolling
Encourage conversation in your post
Avoid controversial topics such as politics or societal debates
Keep it clean and SFW: No illegal content or anything gross and inappropriate
No solicitation such as ads, promotional content, spam, surveys etc.
Respect privacy: Don’t ask for or share any personal information

Related discussion-focused communities

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

Mysterious_Macaxeira@lemmy.world

shinigamiookamiryuu@lemm.ee

Bl4ze@lemmy.world

KaneLivesInDeath@lemmy.world

orangeNgreen@lemmy.world

neidu2@feddit.nl

179

Weird or unique hobbies. (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 10 months ago by Abird1620@sh.itjust.works to c/casualconversation@lemmy.world

202 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I've always loved flashlights. Yes FLASHLIGHTS with an A!!! Anyway, apparently not many people share my rather niche interest.

So I ask you, fellow Lemmites, what are your hobbies and weird obsessions that you can ramble on about for hours?

Please feel free to ramble on about your passions here. Maybe you'll find some likeminded individuals!

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] IMongoose@lemmy.world 80 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (6 children)

Falconry. It's really more of a lifestyle than a hobby now though. I've been doing it for a little over 10 years now and am currently flying a cast (group of birds flown together) of 3 Harris's Hawks.

Quick faqs:

I use the glove and everything
It's a hunting sport, we catch rabbits 3-5 times a week
We all go out together, I flush they catch
No, they do not bring what they catch back to me, I go to them
They don't eat the whole rabbit, I trade them a small reward
They are completely free flighted when doing this
I've trained them just enough to get them back and work with me, they know how to do bird things naturally
They don't really go for your eyes, and getting bit hurts 50x less than getting footed
They are not rescues and are perfectly healthy
Mine are captive bred, but some are wild trapped
Wild trapping has 0 effect on native populations, 50-90% of raptors don't make it through their first year
Even though mine are captive bred they are still wild animals, they are just tamed.
This is the most regulated sport in the US

Birbs:

[–] klemptor@startrek.website 18 points 10 months ago

Look at dose birbs!!

[–] clay_pidgin@sh.itjust.works 8 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Who owns the birds? Are you tired of eating rabbit? It's a really cool hobby!

[–] IMongoose@lemmy.world 14 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Technically the US government owns the birds, but two of these are mine and one is my wife's who is also a licensed falconer. We purchased them from licensed breeders. They are from, left to right, Nevada, Washington, Louisiana. They were shipped to us on an airplane and we picked them up at the airport.

Most of the rabbit goes back into feeding them over the summer when they are molting their feathers. I do make 2-3 rabbit dishes a year though. Last year I made sausage which was pretty good.

[–] clay_pidgin@sh.itjust.works 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Does the government own ALL raptors, or are yours part of something like an airport bird removal project?

[–] IMongoose@lemmy.world 6 points 10 months ago

Idk if own is the correct term but the US regulates most native birds through the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Falconry has a special exclusion from that act. But it's along the same lines as just because a deer is in your yard it doesn't mean you own that deer. You need permission from the government to take it.

[–] cashews_best_nut@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Do you like owls? How smart are the birds? Are they as smart as a talking raven?

[–] IMongoose@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I like owls but they are not used for Falconry because they have poor lateral thinking (Owl knows how to jump to the glove inside, take them outside owl knows nothing) and because we have to follow all hunting laws (can't hunt after dark). But for people who can hunt after dark, using an owl sucks because it's dark and you can't see anything that happens. Most falconers just love to watch their birds fly and it's hard to see them fly in the dark!

Harris's hawks are one of the smartest hawk species but I'm sure ravens are smarter. I think they've gotten HHs to use a simple tool but they are not as proficient as ravens. But in my observations it only takes one single bad experience for most raptors to never want that experience to happen again. And on the flip side, if they get rewarded doing something once they will remember that for a long time

[–] cashews_best_nut@lemmy.world 4 points 10 months ago

Owls sound a bit dumb. Though they're still cute. I plan on training a local starling population to fetch me money and attack my enemies. I'm training them with Gregg's. They're already taking food from my hands.