Perching and tethering equipment is an important aspect of falconry. Even if you free loft (don’t tether the bird in it’s mews), there will always be times where a perch or tethering gear is required. Its proper use is vital to the safety and well-being of your bird.

On this page we will cover tethering gear, swivels, perch types, and their traditional uses.

To the right is a coopers hawk tethered to a standard spike bow perch used for mobile weathering and tie-out

One member of the club, Brian Diehl, did a nice write up of a method found in the NAFA Hawk Chalk publication showing an excellent way to create a bungee based tethering system. This is a simple method of creating a tethering system to reduce shock on the legs of a bird that tends to bate. As with any tethering system it is recommended that all unattended tethered birds be only left in an enclosure for multiple reasons such as:

• The birds safety from outside environmental events like other raptors, cats, dogs, people.
• The ability for a bird to have broken equipment that permits the bird to break free and take off.

Embedded in the site below you will see it in a viewable format. You can download a printable version right here as well:

Tangle Resistant Leash by Brian Diehl