doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Another Day Well Spent

Mr. Wood is not slacking. He just has more sense than to leave a warm bed long before the most ardent duck hunters to follow the gentleman Bob. Yesterday, after branding a group of calves, my old business partner and I made a round. His dog, Solo, a yellow pointing Lab tagged along and proved indispensable. By mid morning it was almost hot and windy. But we managed to find around ten covies just by stumbling around. Solo pointed several covies and saved the day finding deads in the incredibly heavy cover,something almost impossible by a hunter. Paul and Mike are right--the numbers are incredible compared to recent years. Astounding how quickly quail can rebound when given the right conditions.

Here's the main difference between AmarilloMike and me: his main concern are the dogs, my main concern is me. Seldom are the two the same

Good for you Mr. Wood...

Glad to hear of the recovery of local bird numbers. We need a few hot spots to give us hope for the future. But if it last two or three years people will be breeding and training bird dogs like it was 1960 all over again. Then when the boom ends there will be a lot of poorly trained dogs looking for work.

Sounds like a Grand day Mike, and a tale well told! Thank you. I think we all need to be a bit more understanding about Mr. Wood. A man of his years should not be expected to keep up with younger men. If I remember correctly, the last time we all hunted together, we worked him so hard he had to go home on crutches. Stay well and God Bless

Welcome back LD! We've missed your posting...Geo

YES, LD, I missed you at Raton
Come back and play with us!

Mike

Thank you guys.

Gil and TW are right. The orange tape on the sling is to make my gun easy to find. I have lost my gun for as long as thirty minutes. Last season, in Montana, I helped my hostess find her 28 ga Merkel that she had lost the day before.

George we have some things with thorns, spikes, and burrs on them. But we have four months of bobwhite hunting, and at least this year, we have bob white.

Jim I do have boots on my dogs. I have been using the "Lewis Boots", the black rubber boots made in Enid, Oklahoma. Several of the bird dog supply houses sell them. And Jazzy spends much time studying the older dogs. She points, backs, hunts dead, and knows what "whoa" means. She retrieves about half the birds she finds. She has never had a training collar on.

Mel I am glad you have that wonderful population of bobs this year. Thirteen coveys in 90 minutes - a Covey every seven minutes! Must have to pinch yourself to make sure you are not dreaming. Yesterday, hunting the same lease, I moved fourteen coveys in seven hours of walking. Which is a covey every thirty minutes. I was in birds the whole time it seemed like. If you put a sling on that Fabbri it ought to be made from Italian leather for sure.

Hi Chuck! You old reprobate. Hope you, Diane and Flash are well.

Best,

Mike

I am green with envy, Mike, but very happy for ya'll Texans with the great numbers of birds. Thanks for the thread.

I'll add my welcome back to Last Dollar. I was just thinking about you the other day. Hope ya'll had a better harvest season than we have.

All my best, SRH

Having not had two dogs at once until the summer of 2014, I had not experienced how easy it is to train the second dog primarily by hunting her with the older. "Whoa" was far easier to teach and the rest, including retrieving almost to hand and backing was instinctive. I did find that her hearing was improved by judicious and sparse use of the E-Collar. LD, it's good to see you back. Fishing must be off in Baja. Gil

Mike, that covey every 30 minutes on FOOT is truly busy Bird Hunting...My romps are horseback or "shooting brake" (GMC hunting rig) , running All Age and "Shooting Dog" bloodline dogs so we naturally cover more ground , hence the higher contact ratio.
Like I said, I had nice shooting on pretty well handled birds, on ten of those contacts....Makes for a wonderful day , and gives me back some pleasure for all the time and dollars I pour into this place.....
I passed up going yesterday due to that big North Wind you sent crashing down on us, but I'm getting the GPS collars off the charger just now, checking feet and ears, and planning to go out and meet Mr. Bob as he comes off the roost this fine Texas morning...I scheduled a leisurely 8:30 start , I do hope he is on time....

Great reports from all over this area, and I hear good stuff from our mutual friend the gun peddler who hunts the Eastern Panhandle.....

Hope your season continues to get even better......A year like this, and the exposure you give your dogs, can make a polished performer out of a prodigy like your Jazzy....Nothing trains Bird Dogs, like shooting Birds, and lots of 'em.

Best Regards:

PM