The welsh Hawking Centre is one of the UK's major raptor breeders.
Producing high quality hybrid falcons and many other species each year.

TELEPHONE 01446 734687 FAX 01446 739 620 MOBILE 0850 047 727.

12 February 1999

I was approached by David Le Mesurier some seven years ago. He explained that he was writing a program which would help with the incubation of raptor eggs. David was aware that at my Centre we incubated about two hundred raptor eggs each year. This he explained would give him a wide data base. I agreed to help with some trepidation. This was for two reasons, the first that my eggs were very precious and the second that I was at that time completely computer illiterate.

The new program arrived and David spent time with me telling me how to use it. I think that it was a learning process for both of us. On his side he could not understand how anyone could be so dense with computers. Soon because of his gentle patient instruction, on my side, awe mixed with wonderment with what this program could do and the time which it would undoubtedly save.

Previous to having the program, I had, because of the time taken to draw graphs manually, only been able to weigh my eggs every three days. It now became possible to weigh them every day and if I had a problem egg more than once a day to see if corrections were working.

At first I did not trust the program and would often work out the calculation long hand as a check, needless to say the program was always correct and to a much greater degree of accuracy than I could ever hope to achieve.

At the end of the first year I was completely sold on the idea of the program and had absolute trust in it. I then asked David if it was possible to include stock records. It was, they are now included, as was an instruction book that even I could understand! This in itself was no small achievement. David's comment was if he could make me make sense of it then he would have no problems with other future customers!

The program now includes DETR ring order forms.  CITES Article 10 application forms were added, not only a time saver but it meant that no bird could ever be forgotten.

I am now at the stage where I wonder how I ever managed without this program, my hatch rate is up, my stock records are accurate and the DETR paperwork is always up to date.

Every year the program is refined and in jargon is made user friendly. This means dullards like you and me find it easy to get up and running!

I would have no hesitation in recommending this program to anyone who needs to hatch eggs and control their stock whether or not the are computer expert or tyro.

Ceri Griffiths