History

During the mid 1990s the falconer behind Staffordshire Gamehawks began experimenting with so-called ‘early-taken’ peregrines in an effort to generate the right conditions for the prospective gamehawk to develop. By the end of the 1990s the kite had been added to the formula and a young falcon had been acquired from a noted breeding line. These additions ushered in a far more consistent period at the start of the new millennium that was to last a decade. During this period a young tiercel from the same line of peregrines had been added to the mews and it is this hawk that has formed the bedrock of our breeding programme. Hawk after hawk fathered by this tiercel have been trained following the same method and have flown high right from those first early days off the kite. By 2011 a switch to a falcon bred out of a different line showed up some imperfections in the hitherto established method of choice but the publication of a new book in the same year offered a tantalising glimpse at a possible solution. Whilst ‘The Four Week Window’ by Lynn Oliphant showed a possible fix for glitches such as imperfect manners and checking it was market forces which drove the next development as breeding potential became paramount when acquiring and developing a young peregrine. The established practice of ‘early-taking’ had been completely abandoned by 2012 in favour of the ‘well-taken’ young peregrine of 9 weeks and this was to show that ‘early-taking’ was ‘key’ to developing the almost guaranteed high-flyer as a succession of merely steady performers was the result. Fortunately good breeding success allowed Staffordshire Gamehawks to take the next step and 2016 heralded the beginning of the "Key Window Framework”.