An expertly written "how to" book with practical information related to hawking lagomorphs (where to find them and how to catch them), along with detailed material on general falconry, including chapters on weight management, telemetry and tracking, dogs, catch and release, etc. The final chapter reviews the natural resource heritage in the USA and the governing bodies responsible for caretaking them. Dirt Hawking is the ultimate rabbit and hare hawker's handbook. Well researched and expertly written, Dirt Hawking is a must read for both the dedicated and the beginner rabbit/hare hawker. Joe Roy's lifetime of falconry experience is the highlight in this modern take on an ancient endeavor. Between the covers of this book is an abundance of hard-won practical experience and detailed information on virtually all aspects of this hunting genre, including the hawks' physical and mental conditioning, where and how to find rabbits and hares and how to assess population densities, field tactics, weight management, field dressing, telemetry, hazards (and how to avoid them) and so much more. Additionally, Dirt Hawking examines and celebrates the quarry with outright enthusiasm, exploring the natural history of rabbits and revealing what really makes them tick. Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of this superb book is the longstanding relationship between rabbits/hares and man. Want to know what rabbits have to do with national security/terrorism, the age exploration, plague, and skies so laden with dust that day becomes like night? It's all included here. If you like to hunt rabbits, you will love this book! Buy it, read it, savor it.

Joe Roy III's profile page

Joe Roy has been involved in falconry since he was a boy, and has hunted hares and rabbits with hawks for the past twenty years. He also has considerable experience in training hawks and falcons, and since the early 2000s has spent part of every summer in Sheridan, Wyoming training gyrfalcons at Dan Konkel's Sage Country Falcons, supplier of some of the most sought-after falcons in the world. Joe operates Aerial Predators and Ecology, a company dedicated to furthering conservation through education. He gives lectures at public schools and other venues on the subject of predators, with an emphasis on raptors, and how they and we fit into the ecological scheme. Joe has been published widely in periodicals and magazines such as, American Falconry, International Falconer, Ducks Unlimited, North American Falconers Association, and High Country News. He is the author of Duck Hawking, published in 2005 by Hancock House. Joe lives with his family in California.