How does one aquire a bird?

Matt
FISH!!

Heed the words of Winston Smith in Orwell's 1984:

"Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book rewritten, every picture has been repainted, every statue and street building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And the process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right."

07 April 2010, 20:00

eurocentric

Legally? Join a state falconry club, your State's Dept of Conservation will point you to them.
Then join NAFA, the world's largest falconry association.

Joining a club is essential, since its there that you meet a Falconer with a general or master class license who will be willing to sponsor you:
You must show you have a dedication to the sport, experience hunting, and responsible.

Keeping a Hawk fit is easier than keeping a hunting dog fit, your biggest decision will be to decide on what type of hawk to get, as an apprentice you have two options (on most states): American Kestrel (good for Starlings and House Sparrows and Mice) or Red-Tail Hawk (good for rabbits, hares, and squirrels and occasional pheasant and quail and pigeons). Nearly all sponsors recommend a Red-Tail, its easier to manage and easier to keep alive than the Kestrel, but I flew Kestrel for over 20 years and loved them. The most important factors are quarry availability and locations. If you live in suburbs with small fields and friendly neighbors, a Kestrel will provide all the fun you can handle. When I lived in NYC, I switched to summer hawking, since I could get home by 7-8 pm and have at least an hr to hunt swarms of starlings or sparrows that congregated behind parking lots and supermarkets. Of course, I moulted my little guys in the winter and they were in top shape by start of spring with a fresh set of feathers.

Any questions you can just PM me, been a falconer for 33 years.
Cheers