CHAPTER XLVI. On Diseases of the Ear

ON DISEASES OF THE EAR

Should your hawk get a swelling on the ear, which afterwards produces pus, the chances are that she will become deaf: if this disease does nothing more, it will at least render her useless for sport. This ailment is found in the long-winged, rarely in the short-winged, hawks, for it arises from an ill-fitting hood; that is to say, a hawk is fitted with a hood too large for her, which she consequently casts repeatedly; the irritated falconer then ties a knot in the strap, and this knot, pressing on the ear, results in a wound which refuses to heal. For this there is no cure.

I once had an excellent gazelle-saker that became afflicted with this disease. In spite of this ailment, however, she used to take daily, one, or two, or three gazelle. I treated her for two years without effect, and she then died.

If the falconer detects the injury in its initial stage and applies two leeches to the swelling, a cure may be effected. If not, no further treatment will avail. You will now understand why I cautioned you, in a previous chapter, against putting a new hood on a newly caught falcon, or on a falcon just taken up from the moult. Let the hood be soft and part-worn, and of a size that fits the head.

FOOTNOTES:

Kundush, Ar., a sternutatory plant, said to be identical with the nak-chhiknī of the Hindus.

It is difficult to see how the knot would press on the ear. The hood used in Baghdad and in the ports of the Persian Gulf is a soft leather bag with a strap, the eye-coverings being slightly hardened and made to protrude. This pattern differs essentially from the Indian patterns.