Outdoor Life - Geese RSS

New York and Vermont Extend Snow Goose Hunting Seasons to Slow Booming Population

Alex Robinson — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 13:52:23 -0500

North America’s abundance of snow geese – and the damage they’re causing to their fragile Arctic breeding grounds in northern Canada – has prompted state and federal fish and wildlife agencies to expand this year’s hunting season in an attempt cut the species’ numbers in half.

The Atlantic Flyway Council, which consists of the US’s and Canada’s federal fish and wildlife agencies, and the Canadian provinces and U.S. states (Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Vermont) estimates that current populations holds at least 1 million breeding pairs compared to 50,000 breeding pairs roughly half a century ago. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Chris Dwyer explained to the Associated Press of one reasons for the massive increase in numbers: "In the Atlantic states, snow geese are field feeding during the day and they roost at coastal wildlife refuges at night," Dwyer said. "You do tend to see thousands and thousands of geese flying back and forth from different fields."

These birds then return to their breeding grounds in numbers that far exceed what the land can support.

Environment Canada, a federal agency, released the following statement about the situation, "Although the Arctic is vast, the areas that support migrating and breeding geese and other companion species are limited in extent and some areas are likely to become inhospitable for decades.”

Hopefully, the extended season will help slow this problem.

Vermont has added a spring season, March 11-April 26.

New York's hunting season is expanded through April 15.

Waterfowl Hunting Tips: How to Get Birds to Commit

OL Editor — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:42:30 -0500

Putting out a set of decoys and getting the attention of far-off ducks and geese isn’t hard. Any arrangement of painted plastic blocks and a halfway reasonable honk or quack will do the trick. Finishing those birds, however, is another story. Under close scrutiny, proper calling technique is essential.

“When a flock is working your spread, pick out a single bird that you can see is reacting to your calling and call just to him. Keep him interested and coming,” says guide Mario Friendly of Sherwood, Oregon. “But don’t call too loudly as they approach. Add more feeding chuckles and contented calls.”

Friendly believes that all of the callers in a hunting party should follow the lead of a single person. “There has to be one guy in charge, and everyone else has to get behind him. If he’s calling softly, everyone else should be calling softly,” he says, noting that multiple callers will add realism to your set. “One guy can sound like a lot of ducks, but two guys can sound like a lot more.”

But bear in mind the number of decoys in your spread. “You have to keep the ratio realistic. If you have a dozen decoys out there, you shouldn’t sound like a bigger bunch of birds,” Friendly says. When ducks begin to “check up,” as he puts it—when they drop their butts and begin to back-flap over your spread so that they can check things out—you’re in good shape. Just stay with the soft stuff that brought you to that point.

Know the Distance
▶ To bring birds in for a close kill, leave an opening in your decoys for them to land in, and know the distance of both the near and far edges of that gap. “I try to get birds as close to me as possible. If we’re in a boat and can get them to 10 yards, then that’s where I’m putting the kill hole,” says Friendly. “If you put one decoy out at a known distance—say, a spinner at 25 feet—then you don’t have to second-guess yourself, and it takes the pressure off calling the shot.”

Marking distance will tell you when birds are in range, but what the birds are doing can be just as important. Watch their body language for clues as to when exactly to shoulder your guns. “When their feet come down and they’re just starting to land, that’s the ideal time to call the shot. Once you shoot, they still have to reverse their bodies. That’s when you can get second and third shots into them,” says Mike Franklin of Pacific Wings Waterfowl Adventures in Richland, Washington.

Give Them Space
▶ Where you set up can affect birds’ willingness to commit and finish. Tall grass and other cover around field edges are popular ambush points, but mature birds—geese especially—have seen their share of kill holes near heavy cover. “If geese are circling but not committing when you’re hunting the edge of a field, put your decoys out farther, away from the edge,” says Franklin. “The birds don’t like going over the edges because they know they get shot at there. But by putting decoys out farther, the birds will circle between the edge and your spread, which will bring them closer. Call the shot on the pass.”

Photo by Mitch Kezar/Windigo Images

Waterfowl Hot Spot: Hunting Ducks and Geese in Central British Columbia

Alex Robinson — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 11:42:18 -0400

Central British Columbia just may be the next hot Canadian waterfowl destination. See photos from Senior Editor John Taranto's hunt there last month.

Goose Hunting Tips: How to Hunt Early-Season Geese

Alex Robinson — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:05:27 -0400

September’s early honker seasons are intended to curb the abomination known as “nuisance” geese that have proliferated to the point of polluting parks, golf courses, and other public areas. Hunters’ role in these seasons isn’t to conserve—it’s to eradicate. That is the point of the hunt’s timing—to remove as many of these slumming honkers as possible.

For hardcore waterfowlers, this early season is a tune-up for migratory geese that drop in later in the fall. But don’t think of these resident birds as pushovers. They’re insidiously smart, adaptable, and extremely sensitive to hunting pressure. You have to approach your offensive with the cold-hearted perspective of a military strategist. Here are the stratagems of your battle plan.

Scout and Pattern
Unlike migratory geese that hopscotch southward, hitting an area for a few days or weeks before moving on, residents have an intimate, year-round relationship with the land. They know all the food and water sources and when to hit them, and they know when something is wrong with a particular area. That can make them tough to fool but easy to pattern.

“In the early season, you have to be exactly where they’ve been going for a week,” says Cory Dukehart, a guide on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. “You have to identify specific feeding fields and roosting ponds. You want to get in the very middle of the ‘X’ that they’re using consistently.”

Quick Strikes
Warm temperatures mean that birds won’t venture far from roosting ponds to feed. They’ll likely occupy green fields—-alfalfa, wheat, and grass pastures. Identify the fields they’re using and get after them.

“Plan on hunting consistently, and plan on hunting multiple areas. The nice thing about layout blinds and small decoy rigs used in the early season is that you can pick up and run from spot to spot and switch easily from morning to evening,” says John Vaca, pro-staff manager for Final Approach, the waterfowl gear company. “You’ve got to get in, hit them hard, and get out, or else you’ll burn through that field. Resident geese figure it out real quick.”

Plan to have as many as 10 to a dozen spots where you can hunt on any given day, depending on the wind, hunting pressure, and seasonal farming practices.

Downsize the Decoys
Flocks of resident geese rarely exceed more than a few dozen birds, and when they’re on the ground, they’re arranged in family clusters of three or four.

“It all comes back to scouting,” says Dukehart. “Mimic what you’re seeing and how many birds you’re seeing, but nine times out of 10, small family groups are the key regardless of how many there are in a flock.”

Restrained Calling
Early-season birds have definitive travel corridors and locations in mind. They don’t need overexuberant calling to persuade them to land; slow, relaxed, low-end honks, clucks, and moans will do it.

“Read and react to what they’re doing. Watch that lead bird. If you’re getting some type of reaction out of it, keep making that sound,” says Dukehart.

Identify the Headquarters
Farm ponds and lakes are refuges, safety zones where resident geese can avoid predators and cool off in scorching temperatures.

Think of these water sources as your enemy’s headquarters. If you can identify these roosts, you can easily find the multiple fields where they’ll fly to feed in the mornings and evenings.

Use the headquarters to your advantage as long as you can, hunting the fields around that central water source. Because once you storm the roost pond, the fields won’t be nearly as productive.

Ethics of Hunting the Water
Discovering the birds’ water source gives you the ultimate ambush point for a grand-finale hunt after blowing them out of the fields.

“It’s a lot easier to hunt the roost pond [than fields]. What you’re trying to do in the early season is eradicate the population, versus the regular season where you want to conserve them,” says Vaca. “A feeding area is only going to last you so long before they leave it. When you start to get diminishing returns, that’s when you have to make the decision about whether to find an entirely different area or shoot the water holes they’re using.”

The Final Assault
Once you have hammered flocks in the fields, prepare to invade the headquarters to finish them off on the water, where they feel safe. Just be certain you’re ready to end your pursuit of these resident birds.

“Shooting the roost pond is a quick way to move birds out of an area,” says Dukehart. “If you shoot a field a few times, they’ll still use the same roost pond but change feeding fields. If you shoot the roost they’re probably going to leave.”

If there are any survivors, that is.

How to Scout for Geese: 3 Tips to Find Birds Before the Season Opener

Alex Robinson — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 10:22:15 -0400

Thinking that early-season resident Canadas are pushovers is the ticket to a long, action-free siesta in your layout blind. Avoiding a wild goose chase this summer starts with understanding the birds at this time of year and scouting smart to really get the jump on them. Here's how to do it.

Daily Details
Understand early-season goose routines. At night, they’ll roost on water of a fairly good size, like a marsh, lake, river backwater, oxbow slough, farm pond, or golf course water. Soon after dawn, the birds fly out to feeding fields. Those are the places to hunt. By late morning, geese return to water (though often not to the roost) and rest. There’s usually an afternoon feed too, which is another good time to hunt. Then it’s back to roosting water for the night.

Find the Food
Geese are grain and salad eaters now. Their primary focus is small grain, followed by grass and greens. Wheat and barley stubble are great, and harvested oat fields can be even better. Within any harvested small-grain field, weeds and other greens pop up, making it a goose smorgasbord. Alfalfa, pea, and clover fields serve geese too, as do close-cropped pastures.

To find out exactly where they’re feeding, first establish where the geese are roosting. Get there before dawn in your vehicle, watch their flight pattern, and follow them as best as you can. It might take a few mornings to discover where they’re going.

Alternatively, drive back roads early in morning and look for geese descending on fields. Use binoculars to watch geese and know in which area of a field they feel safe. With permission secured, walk the field and precisely identify the “X” by droppings and feathers left behind. This is where you’ll set up.

It might take a few days to find the right spot, so start scouting a week before the season opens. Be prepared with backup fields in case the geese shift patterns or you shoot them off a field.

Permission, Please
Permission is key, and landowners can be quite agreeable since many of them don’t care much for geese. Treat the land well and you’ll be welcome again. If you gain permission on a new farm, a small gift of thanks never hurts and can often open more gates on the neighbors’ land. It’s also always a good idea to volunteer to do some chores in the off-season (if it’s geographically feasible) and share some of your bounty. If the landowner doesn’t care to eat goose, substitute a frozen turkey. If he enjoys Canadas, be sure to properly dress and breast the bird(s). Flopping a bloodied mess of feathers on his front porch after a hunt will only make more work for someone who likely doesn’t need anymore, and it won’t endear you to him or anyone else in his family.

Photo: Donald M Jones

Louisiana Delta: The Duck Pipeline

Alex Robinson — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 12:51:46 -0400

My brother once worked for a master plumber—and, yes, his official job title was a plumber’s helper—and often he would come home from work with a bit of wisdom from Lenny, his boss.

One of Lenny's favorite sayings was that there are two ends to a pipe, and he would remind my brother of this frequently and at high volume. He knew that most people, my brother included, have a difficult time staying focused on more than one task at a time as they move through life, and especially with that half of the pipe that is behind us out of view.

One of the most important pipelines for sportsmen is the one that our waterfowl migrate through each winter and spring. The end of the pipe near where I live in Montana is the famous duck factory of the Plains that extends through the pothole region of the Dakotas up into Canada.

These fertile grounds are critical nesting habitat for ducks, geese, swans and countless other birds. The National Wildlife Federation says that the prairie pothole region accounts for 50 to 80 percent of the ducks in North America — so the importance of that habitat cannot be overstated. Not surprisingly, there has been a concerted push by conservation groups for years to keep the duck factory healthy.

But there are two ends to a pipe, and at the other end of this pipe is the mouth of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi Delta in Louisiana is the winter destination for the upwards of 13 million waterfowl — 28 percent of the entire waterfowl population in Alaska, Canada and the Lower 48.

So nearly one-third of all the waterfowl in North America end up concentrated in the marshes of Louisiana during the winter. These marshes provide critical food and shelter and are what sustain the breeding pairs of ducks that will return to the prairie the following spring to hatch the next generation of birds.

Unfortunately, these marshes are in deep trouble. They’ve suffered from a perfect storm of destructive forces. They are struggling due to the channelization of the Mississippi, which has left the Delta vulnerable to erosion, rising sea levels from global warming, and disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the BP Deep Horizon oil spill.

Help is on the way with efforts like the RESTORE Act, which will channel money into restoring the ability of the Mississippi to heal itself — but even the most realistically optimistic projections indicate that it will be decades before the marshes start to regain ground.

One way to gain an appreciation for this end of the duck pipe is to visit it your self. I’m planning to spend a few days this coming winter hunting the bounty that the Mississippi River Delta holds and it would be great to see you down there too.

More Louisiana Delta Coverage
- Big Win for Outdoorsmen: Senate Moves to Pass RESTORE Act
- Louisiana Delta: The Biggest Habitat Catastrophe You've Never Heard Of
- Louisiana Delta: Mother Nature Got it Right the First Time
- Louisiana Delta: Why I Love Fishing the Marsh

Illinois Man Drowns After Being Attacked by Swan

Alex Robinson — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:12:25 -0400

A Cook County, Ill. man drowned in a pond Saturday after being attacked by a swan.

Anthony Hensley, 37, was checking on a swan at a housing complex along Bay Colony Drive in a kayak when the large bird attacked him. His kayak turned upside in the melee and Hensley drowned. Hensley was hired to keep geese away from the housing complex. The swan was placed into the area to deter geese from settling on the property.

Hensley’s father, Raymond, told CBS Chicago his son was wearing heavy clothing and boots while on the water. Anthony Hensley is survived by his wife and two young daughters.

While I’ve never heard of a swan attack before, I have heard of far too many drownings that wouldn’t have happened had the individual been wearing a life jacket.

The 35 Best Hunting and Fishing Towns in the US

Alex Robinson — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 11:54:56 -0400

Now in its fifth year, our annual “Best Towns for Sportsmen” feature is an OL institution. Readers love to argue the merits of their burgs based on our rankings; local newspapers crow about the inclusion of their town; and realtors call to ask for extra copies of the issue.

This year we’re forgetting all the socio-economic data and focusing on what matters most: hunting and fishing. In the next few pages, you’ll find the 35 towns in the U.S. where we would live right now, based solely on the outdoor opportunities there. Some boast bass and deer, others elk and trout or ducks and redfish. Regardless, each of these towns is an outdoors mecca in its own right, and from sea to shining sea, they offer the best hunting and fishing in America.

#1 - Appleton, WI
More than 170 years ago, trappers and fur traders chased the promise of lucrative beaver pelts up the Fox River and settled the town of Appleton. Today, enormous whitetail deer draw outdoorsmen and -women to the Fox River Valley. The Boone and Crockett Club recently anointed Wisconsin the number-one trophy whitetail state in the country, with Cheesehead hunters logging 383 B&C entries in the last five years. In the last three seasons, three different bucks killed within 50 miles of downtown Appleton have either broken or threatened Badger State records. But there’s a lot more to do in Appleton than sit in a treestand.

Nearby Lake Winnebago and the Fox River, which runs through town, are premier walleye fisheries. Green Bay, 30 minutes to the north, offers some of the best smallmouth bass and muskie fishing in the country. Horicon Marsh State Wildlife Area sits 70 miles to the south and is the largest freshwater cattail marsh in the country. Hundreds of thousands of geese migrate through the region each fall. Sixty miles to the north, the 661,000-acre Nicolet National Forest, home to deer, bears, and grouse, is one of the last true wild places in the northwoods.

#2 - Salmon, ID

This town’s name should be your first clue as to why it attracts sportsmen the way a spawning run draws bears. Located right on the Salmon River—and bordering millions of acres of public hunting ground, including the largest wilderness area in the Lower 48 (the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness)—Salmon has, well, everything.

The Salmon and its tributaries offer world-class fishing for trout, steelhead, and other species year-round. On the crags and benches above the Salmon and other nearby rivers, wingshooters chase chukar and huns, while at higher elevations blue and spruce grouse predominate.

The big-game scene has changed in Salmon with the resurgence of wolves. But trophy elk, mule deer, and whitetails are still accessible, and the hunting for bears and mountain lions is second to none.

#3 - Venice, LA

If you like your saltwater rimmed by white sand beaches, palm trees, and tiki bars, this is not the place for you. However, if you live to hunt and fish, and yearn to do it 24/7/365, then this tiny community at the mouth of the Mississippi River beckons.

Despite its infamy as the epicenter of both Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Venice remains arguably the greatest place in North America to fish and hunt waterfowl.

In 2011, Bassmaster Classic competitors ran down the Mississippi from New Orleans to Venice—more than two hours by boat—to fill their livewells with largemouths. However, it’s world-class redfish and speckled trout fishing that draw the recreational fishermen. You will catch fish here every day that you hit the water, and you can’t say that about very many other places in the country.

If you get bored in the marshes, big-game fishing opportunities—from marlin to tuna, sailfish to swords—are plentiful around the offshore gas and oil rigs.
September marks the beginning of teal season in this waterfowler’s paradise, with more than 14 percent of the country’s wetlands located in this region of southern Louisiana.

#4 - Rapid City, SD

This gateway to the ruggedly beautiful Black Hills region of western South Dakota offers its 67,000 residents a wide variety of hunting and fishing opportunities. Mountain lakes and coldwater streams to the west of town are home to brook, brown, and rainbow trout. In the surrounding prairie, a constellation of reservoirs and stock dams hold largemouths, pike, and panfish.

Hunting opportunities are available nearly year-round. Whitetails, mule deer, elk, and Merriam’s turkeys prowl the mountains. A short drive will put you into pheasants, sharptails, and prairie chickens. Pronghorns, coyotes, and prairie dogs are plentiful in the grasslands.

#5 - Centerville, IA

They got the name right. Centerville is in the middle of a sportsman’s paradise. Epic whitetails get the headlines (the 307-inch Lovstuen Buck was killed just north of here), but south-central Iowa has plenty of four-season opportunity: abundant turkeys and waterfowl, plus great crappies, walleyes, and channel cats on Rathbun Lake north of town.

But it’s the human dimension of this place—the classic Midwestern courthouse square, the easy friendliness of its residents—that makes this a great town to call home. Plus, Centerville has some bona fide hunting pedigree: It’s the original home of groundbreaking Knight muzzleloading rifles.

#6 - Grand Junction, CO
Magnificent mesas and endless elk—Grand Junction’s breathtaking scenery makes the perfect backdrop for chasing public-land bulls. Numerous alpine trout lakes keep local anglers busy.

#7 - Georgetown, SC
Several rivers converge at the Intercoastal Waterway in this city in the Carolina Lowcountry. Famed lakes Moultrie and Marion are a short drive to the west.

The Francis Marion National Forest provides more than a quarter million acres of public-land hunting for deer, turkeys, quail, and small game.

#8 - Bend, OR
Drive less than an hour from Bend and you can be fishing a stream in a desert canyon, a high alpine lake, or a spring creek.

#9 - Bismarck, ND
If you’ve got your eye on walleyes, set your sights on Bismarck, on the banks of the Missouri River. Grouse, pheasants, ducks, and geese abound in fall and winter.

#10 - Saratoga, WY
With the North Platte River running through downtown Saratoga, your next trout is never more than a cast away. Elk, deer, and pronghorns roam the mountains and prairies around town.

#11 - Traverse City, MI
Glacial inland lakes hold perch and smallies, and Traverse Bay offers big-water angling opportunities. But the area’s four blue-ribbon trout streams get top billing. The Boardman, which winds through downtown, is the birthplace of the Parachute Adams fly.

#12 - Lake Placid, NY
Fish for brown trout on the famed West Branch of the Ausable River, and catch lake and rainbow trout on Lake Placid. Whitetail deer and black bears roam the quarter-million acres of state lands surrounding this quaint Adirondack mountain town.

#13 - Cody, WY
Cody is heaven on earth for big-game backcountry mountain hunters. Mild weather means more opportunities to chase bighorns, elk, mule deer, and pronghorns.

#14 - Islamorada, FL
Watch the sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean, where offshore fishing for everything from grouper and snapper to dolphin and swords abounds. Cast to tarpon, permit, and bonefish on the flats as the sun sets over the waters of the Gulf of Mexico to the west of town.

#15 - Ely, MN
Just miles from the million-acre Boundary Waters Canoe Area, Ely is a pike and walleye fisherman’s paradise in the summer, and a whitetail mecca come fall.

#16 - Thompson Falls, MT
This secluded town west of the Rockies is surrounded by massive swaths of national forest. The two most accessible, the Kootenai and Lolo, hold elk, whitetails, ruffed grouse, and turkeys.

#17 - Show Low, AZ
You’ll find pronghorns to the north of town, and elk, deer, and lions to the south and east. The nearby White Mountains are the only place in the world to fish for Apache trout.

#18 - Russell, KS
Pheasants, quail, doves, turkeys, waterfowl, and deer provide hunters in the heart of the Smoky Hills a dizzying array of opportunities.

#19 - Toccoa, GA
Tucked into the southeastern corner of the Chattahoochee National Forest, Toccoa is 15 minutes from the Lake Russell Wildlife Management Area, home to deer, turkeys, bears, squirrels, rabbits, and wild hogs. Lake Russell is stocked with trout, and nearby Lake Hartwell has hybrid stripers, brown trout, and crappies.

#20 - Craig, CO
Craig offers access to a million acres of public land just 7 miles from town, and boasts two of the largest elk herds in North America.

#21 - Cadiz, KY
In less than 30 minutes, you’ll be into bass, crappies, and catfish on Kentucky Lake or Lake Barkley. Deer and duck hunting are vital threads in the local sporting fabric.

#22 - Logan, UT
Located in the Cache Valley, Logan is surrounded by marshland for waterfowl hunting and myriad blue-ribbon trout streams.

#23 - Homer, AK
Halibut, ling cod, salmon, and rockfish are plentiful in Kachemak Bay, while local rivers host spawning salmon runs, plus Dolly Vardens, grayling, and monster rainbows.

#24 - Wellsboro, PA
Nearby Pine Creek, which runs through Pine Creek Gorge—aka the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon—is a prime flyfishing destination. Surrounding that oasis is state land set aside for whitetails, black bears, rabbits, squirrels, and pheasants.

#25 - Rogers, AR
In the heart of the Ozark Mountains, Rogers is a short drive from 31,700-acre Beaver Lake and its epic striped and largemouth bass fisheries.

#26 - Montauk, NY
The Atlantic Ocean and the Long Island Sound meet at this home of world-class saltwater fishing. Hook up with bluefish and stripers faster than you can count them during the spring and fall blitzes.

#27 - Goldendale, WA
Salmon, steelhead, bass, walleyes, perch, crappies, and catfish live in nearby waters. Duck, goose, and deer hunting starts at the edge of town.

#28 - Los Alamos, NM
Stay close to home for walleyes, catfish, bass, and trout, in waters like Abiqui Lake, Rio Chama, and Rio Grande. The nearby Valles Caldera National Preserve runs a lottery program for monster elk.

#29 - Sebago, ME
Sebago hugs the northwestern shore of Maine’s deepest lake (and the town’s namesake). Locals troll for landlocked salmon around rocky points and shoals.

#30 - Arnold, NE
With only 500 residents, tiny Arnold is home to more whitetails and mule deer than people. That game-rich environment has fostered a hunter-friendly culture in this north-central Nebraska town.

#31 - Mammoth Lakes, CA
Surrounded by dozens of fishable lakes and streams, this central California fishing hotbed is ringed by the stunning Sierra Nevada mountains.

#32 - Woodward, OK
Kansas’ big-buck cup runneth over the border into Woodward, in northwestern Oklahoma, where a number of 150- to 200-class bucks are tagged every fall.

#33 - Beckley, WV
The New River is a prime destination for smallmouths, walleyes, and muskies, and many of its tributaries teem with wild trout.

#34 - Harrisburg, IL
Though the nearby Shawnee National Forest is best known for its whitetail hunting, the area is also home to turkeys, waterfowl, upland birds, and small game.

#35 - Uvalde, TX
This beating heart of south-Texas deer country is also home to some of the best dove hunting in the nation. Lake Amistad sits on the Mexican border 70 miles to the west of town and offers excellent bass and catfish opportunities.

Worst Town - Camden, NJ

Little-known fact: The upper Delaware River’s fabled American shad run is caused in large part by the fish trying to get the hell away from downriver Camden as quickly as possible.

Who could blame them? Camden, a perennial favorite on any “Most Dangerous Cities” list, laid off half of its police force in January. Take a cue from the shad and stay far away from Camden.

Do you have any suggestions for other fishing and hunting towns not mentioned on this list? We'd love to hear from you, so enter your favorite town in the comments section below or click here to upload photos.

Photos: Hunting The Atlantic Flyway With a Snow Goose Addict

Alex Robinson — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 09:18:00 -0400

Online Content Editor Alex Robinson tags along with Kevin Addy and his snow goose crew. Addy has dedicated his life to figuring out the puzzle of hunting snows along the Atlantic Flyway.

Did Warm Weather Ruin Your Waterfowl Season?

Alex Robinson — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:26:17 -0500

You don't need an "Al Gore For President" sticker on the bumper of your Honda Prius to notice that it has been unseasonably warm this winter. And this long stretch of warm weather has thrown a monkey wrench in waterfowl seasons across the country.

Most ducks and geese only migrate as far as they have to. Once they find open water, food and safety, they stop heading south. Warm weather typically means more open water and a shorter or delayed trip.

The Denver Post reported last week that this exact scenario was happening in Colorado. This from the post …

"There are two main things that the weather has hurt us on," said Jim Gammonly, waterfowl biologist for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. "One is that even as late as a couple of weeks ago, there were still tens of thousands of Canada geese and ducks — mainly mallards — well north of us. Places like Montana have not had much of a winter either.

"The other is the weather here. We haven't had a lot of cold weather, so even if we had a lot of birds around, they'd be harder to get to because there are so many places for them to get away from the gun. So I expect the harvest data will be pretty spotty and probably pretty slow this last month or so."

How did the duck/goose season work out this year in your state?

Electronic Duck Stamp Program Could Extend to All States

Alex Robinson — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:44:06 -0500

After four years, a pilot program that sells electronic duck stamps might become a permanent if passed by the Senate.

There are currently eight states participating in the program, and if passed, the bill would give the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the ability to extend the sale of electronic duck stamps to hunters in all states, according to the Associated Press.

Originally created in 1934 by the U.S. Postal Service for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, duck stamps are federal licenses that hunters over the age of 16 must buy in order to hunt migratory waterfowl. Even though stamps can be bought at a variety of locations, including sporting goods stores and online, they ultimately arrive by mail. Electronic stamps remain valid for up to 45 days while people wait for the actual stamp.

In addition to granting hunting privileges, duck stamps are important conservation tools. They currently cost $15 and 98 percent of all revenue generated from sales go toward purchasing or leasing wetlands. More than $750 million have been generated from sales since 1934, according to numbers from the Federal Duck Stamp Program. That money has been used to place more than 5.3 million acres of wetlands under the protection of the National Wildlife Refuge System.

Top Ten Things to Do in the Goose Pit

E-mail Submission — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 11:15:38 -0500

Have you ever jumped out of bed at the crack of 3 a.m. to make 100% sure you were early enough to set decoys and hop in the pit, before the birds flew, only to have them start the day’s flight at 4 p.m. as you sat all day impatiently waiting? I have, many times, because it seems the birds finally fly at the exact moment that I decide to jump out of the pit to go grab a bite or something.

Remember the episode in Season One where we had the bet between pits of who would shoot the most geese? This is exactly what happened that day. We woke up super early, set up the decoys and waited… and waited… until around 4 p.m. We had some half-frozen Diet Mountain Dew, three frozen waters, and one two-year-old nut roll to split between six guys. Tough day!

The big question is what do you do during those long, cold hours of waiting? Typically, food is scarce, so you're hungry. Beverages are gone way before you realize how long of a day it's going to be. And the only entertainment is prying mud clumps off the side of the pit with a corn stalk or carving your name into the dirt with a stick. But then what? There’s not much entertainment packed into a goose pit that's in the middle of a winter wheat field. Trust me. At least not the ones we hunt out of. So, what do you do when you’re stuck in the middle of a dirt field or water hole waiting, and waiting for the birds to finally fly? I'm sure you've thought of, or have done some crazy things! Talk to me goose…

Here’s mine: With no birds in the air... As soon as your buddy dozes off, scream, “TAKE ‘EM”, and start blastin’! It gets 'em every time!

Write your funniest ideas in the comments section for the chance to win an ASAP Survival Gear Pack. Last week’s Winner

Congrats alwaysWRIGHT, and good stuff everyone! I love reading what you all have to say!

Top Ten Creatures You Hope To Stumble Across in 2012

10.) from Matt Eckholm: I know it wont happen in 2012 but one day I would like to see a viking with a superbowl ring

9.) from cjohnsrud: Turducken!! Then maybe Benny and John Madden will come over for dinner.

8.) from Monty Shorter: If we are talking mythical creatures or things that never happen, a good looking stripper at the Hop, a gun that never misses, Benny Spies buying drinks. Happy New Year everyone.

7.) from floridahunter: A three-legged deaf and blind eight-pointer

6.) from captjim: I'd like to encounter an alien from outer-space while coon hunting. I'm due a rectal exam and I'm sure it would be much better than Obamacare.

5.) from Deadeye.remington742: the bulletproof muskrat that was living in my pond last year that I somehow missed three times with my 357 mag...

4.) from Hotwheels: I'd like to see a buck on the ground with antlers that look every bit as big as (or bigger than) they did through the scope.

3.) from SKCUSATEP: I've been looking for one of these for a while now and I'm hoping that 2012 is the year. I really really want to find me a Benny Spies that can hit the broadside of a barn! Can anyone give me some tips?

2.) from captjim: Bigfoots wife. I'd shoot a few "semi-tastfull" photos and upload them to hairy women dot com for all to enjoy.

1.) from alwaysWRIGHT: Jabba the hut, it's better than running into my mother in law!

New Year's Resolution: Never Get Lost (Again)

Alex Robinson — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 09:54:01 -0500

So there I was (yeah, it’s one of those stories). There I was, walking through a field with barely enough grass cover to hold a sparrow much less a pheasant or even quail or hun. Kona and I had been hunting hard all day; going deep while exploring the south end of some public property.

We went off the beaten path, worked heavy cover adjacent to a creek and finally climbed our way out of the bottoms and to the top of the plateau surrounding the area. That’s when we encountered the sparse grass.

And then I noticed a truck go by on gravel road. “Must be an access road down here,” I thought.

And then I saw some outbuildings throughout the area. “I wonder if those buildings are part of the homestead the state purchased?”

And then I noticed all the cattle looking at us. “Well, I know the state still allows grazing on the property,” I reasoned.

At some point, however, I put 2 and 2 and 2 together and realized that I had walked right off the 13,000-acre property and onto private land. I have no clue at what point this transgression took place. I quickly unloaded my gun and walked to the nearest road and house.

As Kona and I closed the pasture gate, a woman came out of the farm house. She was friendly and tried to explain to me where I was as three small children peered out from behind her. Oh, did I mention she was pregnant. And barefoot. Literally.

Looking at the telephone book map, she pointed out approximately where I was. I figured out roughly the direction I needed to go…which is precisely where I knew the car was parked, I just didn’t know the exact heading to take and what was between Kona and I and our destination. And to be frank, we were both exhausted. I’d later calculate that we were at least 8-10 miles from the car. As the crow flies. And we definitely didn’t hunt in a straight line.

The lady was kind enough to pack the kids up, allow me to put Kona and my shotgun in the back of the Suburban and gave us a ride back to the entrance to the public land. With all the winding, wayward gravel country roads, it was a 25-minute drive. As she pulled away with kids waving out the window, Kona and I started our 1¼-mile walk from the road to the parked car. As we gimped down the cattle-trail road, a storm front began blowing in; high winds, rain and dropping temps. An SUV never looked so good.

To that end, I’ve resolved never to get lost like that again. Or lost at all, if I can help it. Enter the Garmin GPSMap 62stc.

One of the recommendations by Garmin’s Ted Gartner, an avid upland bird hunter and one of the minds behind the canine-GPS-tracking Astro line of collars, the 62stc is has all the tools to keep me from getting turned around.

The rugged, waterprood unit comes preloaded with complete U.S. topo mapping software, 3-axis electronic compass and barometric altimeter and long-lasting rechargeable batteries. With 3½ GB of internal memory and a microSD slot, you can add more detailed topo maps, lake and river charts, as well as BirdEye Satellite imagery and/or free software that allows you to download paper or electronic maps to the device - like public lands maps.

In addition to holding 2,000 waypoints and 200 tracks, the 62stc has a hunt/fish calendar, tide table, sun/moon info and can be used for auto routing and turn-by-turn directions on roads. Perhaps the coolest “extra” function (you know, in addition to those that keep me from getting lost…) is the 5 MP camera that automatically geotags your photos so you can share exact spots with friends or navigate directly back to an area based solely on the image.

It retails for about $600, which seems quite reasonable if you’ve been lost and just want to make it back to your rig. After all, you can't count on barefoot, pregnant farmwives to save your ass every time.

Top Ten Creatures You Hope To Stumble Across in 2012

OL Editor — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 09:36:29 -0500

Bigfoot, Loch Ness, mermaids, unicorns and dragons... I’ve never seen any of these creatures, and I’ve covered a lot of ground in my day. I’ve even been lost without a camera a few times. You’d think that would have been the perfect time to run into one of these! But, "Nope!", Chuck Testa’d. I’m not lucky enough. Question is what would a guy do? Shoot it? Probably.

There are a ton of myths out there, including whatever always swallows up that missing sock. I have no idea. And Da Turdy Point Buck--where’s he livin’? I definitely haven’t seen him and if I did, what would I do? Miss, most likely.

So, Happy New Year everyone! Let’s hear what critter you’d like to finally get an encounter with in 2012!

Here’s Mine: A Liger! If Napoleon believes--I believe!

Write your funniest ideas in the comments section for the chance to win an ASAP Survival Gear Pack. Last week’s Winner

Top Ten Christmas Gifts You Hope Fall Out of Santa’s Sleigh

10.) from pineywoods: Feral hog chia pet.

9.) from Buckshott00: A man bag. I don't care what the salesman told you, it's a purse!

8.) from Sven_Katur: A python.

7.) from Johnnie: Reindeer poop. I have three dogs and I pick up three dogs worth of poop all year long. The one gift that I hope Santa doesn't bring me this year is nine reindeer pooping on my lawn. I have enough poop to pick up as it is. Merry Christmas everybody!..... Johnnie and Family

6.) from pbshooter1217: A gift certificate to the mall, I was their long enough with my girl friend Christmas shopping.

5.) from Fishman24: A$$less Chaps, I just don't need them.

4.) from ishipley: naked Rosie O'Donell quote of the day calender

3.) from JM: Women's Lingerie...it's not the base layer I want to wear hunting.

2.) from Ric Waters: I carved a brook trout and wan't happy with it. My mom pulled it from my scrap heap, painted it, screwed brass hooks in the side and gave it to me for hanging my keys on.

1.) from drake_whisperer: A week long visit from my new mother-in-law...'nuff said...Anyone need company in a duck blind? The lab and I are ready to load up the wagon and peel out of here.....

The Best Damn Goose Recipe Ever

Alex Robinson — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:18:28 -0500

The first part of the recipe for the best damn goose you’ve ever had goes like this:

Step 1: Browning Maxus + Winchester Blind Side + Decoying geese = Kill

And, now thanks to John Vaca, field pro coordinator at Final Approach, you’ll know step 2 – the best way to serve the big hunks of breast meat.

Like my fellow outdoor writer, dog man, waterfowl aficionado and beer enthusiast, Kyle Wintersteen at the NRA’s American Hunter, I prepared some waterfowl for a holiday party – my party involved family members and not lawyers so I opted for the fresh-killed meat and not the freezer burned stuff.

Using Vaca’s recipe (which is step 2), the meat was a raving success with people scarfing it down like it was the only muscle tissue at a vegan buffet. Like Wintersteen, the most common comments were: “What kind of beef is this?” … “THIS is GOOSE?” … “I didn’t know you could eat geese!” … “Want to come kill the geese on my dock?”

Step 2: Light olive oil + Montreal steak seasoning + a hot grill = deliciousness.

The combination of heavy salts and chunky pepper season the meat and suck out any gamey taste, which is then replaced with the olive oil. Tender, succulent goodness is all that remains.

A couple of key points: The olive oil has to be “light” for some reason (when a man like Vaca gives you a recipe, you don’t ask stupid questions but glean every bit of knowledge possible). And heat the grill up very hot so you sear the meat quickly.

Marinade the breasts in the mixture of olive oil and Montreal steak seasoning for 3 or 4 hours. After that time, stir the breasts around and add more oil if necessary. Let it marinade another hour or two. Heat your grill up and cook the meat for 3 or 4 minutes on each side. As with all wild game, don’t overcook it! Cut the meat against the grain (the long way down the breast) so it’s tender to the tooth.

Enjoy!

Help Us Pick The Prize for Our Next Caption Contest!

Alex Robinson — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 14:33:47 -0500

So Outdoor Life is part of a cool contest operated by Crown Royal, sponsor of Field & Stream’s Hook Shots show and maker of the whiskey that comes in a purple bag. The contest is called “Pass the Crown,” and it’s a variation on the Secret Santa gift exchange anyone who’s ever worked in an office is familiar with. Are you lucky enough to have never worked in an office? Then here’s how this works:

Each day from now until Dec. 15 Crown Royal is giving away a prize to a different web site to pass along to its readers. Today is Outdoor Life’s turn, but here’s the catch. Crown’s not telling us which prize they’re giving us right away. Instead, we get a clue, embroidered on one of their famous purple bags,* and we have to guess what prize the clue refers to. Based on that guess, we then get to decide whether to keep the prize in our bag or steal one of the prizes that have already been opened by a different site. Here’s a list of the prizes that have already been opened.

This is where we need your help. Do we keep our prize, or steal one from somebody else? You’ve got until 4 PM this afternoon to weigh in. Check out our clue (below), then post your best argument for keeping the prize in our bag or for stealing a specific prize from another site in the comments section here or on our Facebook post about the contest over at facebook.com/outdoorlife. If you can convince us your argument is best, we’ll go with your suggestion. If you’re not convincing enough, we’ll make the decision ourselves.

We’ll post an update here tomorrow telling you what prize was in our bag, and whether we decided to keep it or not. Keep in mind that any of the five sites who come after us can steal our gift, so don’t get too attached to whatever we end up with!

And last, of course; how will we determine which of our readers wins the prize we end up with at the end of the contest? It’ll be a caption contest, photo and date TBD. Stay tuned!

*Crown is running this contest is to get the word out about the custom-embroidered Crown bags ($9.95), and the free personalized Crown Royal bottle labels (21 and over, only) available at CrownRoyal.com. If you’ve got a Crown-lover in your family, this would make a great gift.

Man's Best Friend, Even in Death

Alex Robinson — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 14:59:12 -0500

The web is abuzz with the loyalty displayed by one dog in China. It seems that the dog’s owner died a week or so ago and that the dog has stayed by his grave ever since. After a week, villagers began bringing it food and water, and now there are plans to build it a kennel.

It’s reminiscent of Shep from Ft. Benton, Mont., as well as the story of fallen Navy Seal Jon Tumilson and his Labrador, Hawkeye, who laid down near the serviceman’s coffin during the ceremony.

While the stories do pull at the heartstrings, especially the photos of Hawkeye at Tumilson’s funeral, I have to wonder: are the dogs really “mourning” as headlines and some people proclaim? Or is anthropomorphism blinding us and something else entirely is going on?

I don’t know the answer. While I will admit that I do get a little choked up at Tumilson’s photos and story, Shep and his latest Chinese incarnation create a passing sense of wonder and interest but not an outpouring of emotion (maybe this says something about me?).

While I will quickly acknowledge the extreme loyalty of dogs and their desire to please and fit in with a family, when I hear stories of one dog passing in a multi-dog household I often times wonder if what people are relaying is more of what’s inside them than what the dog is actually displaying.

As humans we continually misread our dogs. Just watch an episode any canine “fix it” show and you’ll see. As hunters and trainers we’re usually far ahead of average pet people when it comes to understanding canine psychology and picking up on body language. But even many amateur trainers I know slip into this sort of touchy-feely mindset after a dog dies and then talk of how bad it has affected the other dog(s) in the house.

I often wonder what’s really going on in the household. The dog might actually be mourning. But from what I’ve read and seen, any such mourning tends to be short lived. After all, if wild dogs or wolves were prone to mourning for any extended time, the livelihood of the pack would be put at risk because the attainment of resources (prey, safety cover, etc) would be interrupted.

I’m not discounting that mourning actually takes place, but I think there’s a human element that comes into play with anything lasting more than a few days or week. We see the dog adjusting to life without a pack mate and inject our human emotions (read: baggage) into the process, giving the dog cues and reinforcements. The feedback the dog receives often comes in the form of resources (food treats, a uniquely human pacifier) and physical praise (touching, petting); both are highly regarded by the dog and strongly reinforce the dog’s behaviors.

The sudden change in pack hierarchy combined with a human not acting normally (excessive petting and treats) has, from the dog’s point of view, turned his world upside down. Not only has a pack member disappeared, but the focal point of the pack and one responsible for providing resources has gone on the blink! The remaining dog is left to figure out how to stabilize the situation and if everything will be okay; that insecurity goes a long way to perpetuating behavior changes in dogs.

While there are many scientific reasons why a dog might behave in the manner of Shep, Hawkeye or this yellow dog from China, it’s nice (from an emotional human viewpoint) to think that they really are so attached to their owners that even death can’t interrupt their loyalty.

What say you, Gun Doggers? Do you think these dogs are really mourning? Or is something else taking place, too?

5 Best Shotguns for Goose Hunting

OL Editor — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 11:00:12 -0400

Apart from sea ducks, geese are the toughest waterfowl we hunt. Even the duck-sized Richardson goose is difficult, not to mention lesser and greater Canadas. Decoying geese at 20 yards can be bagged by a good shot with any gauge, but back them off in the wind or when they are just being coy, and it takes a lot more to bring them down. The five models pictured here bring enough firepower to get the job done.

DNR Scrambles to Save Duck Hunting in Minnesota

Alex Robinson — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 12:11:02 -0400

It's no secret that the number of duck hunters around the country is on the slide. In the last national survey from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the number of migratory game bird hunters dropped by a startling 22 percent from 2001 to 2006. Minnesota, the northernmost state in the Mississippi Flyway, has not been immune to the trend.

Over the last dozen years Minnesota has lost about 40,000 duck hunters, and now it's trying to get them back. The state is proposing an earlier opening day (Sept. 24) and split hunting zones, according to the Star Tribune. The state would be cut in half north/south with the northern zone having a 60-day continual season. There have never been duck hunting zones in Minnesota and there hasn't been an opening day as early as Sept. 24 in more than 50 years.

"Right now we have hunter satisfaction issues we need to deal with. Part of that can be addressed with more hunting opportunities. We also have habitat issues," Dennis Simon, DNR wildlife chief, told the Star Tribune.

The Sept. 24 opening day is designed to give hunters a crack at the state's local populations of wood ducks and blue-winged teal, which migrate early in the fall.

The downside to this strategy is there's the potential for hunters to overshoot the state's local duck populations. More specifically, some hunters and biologists worry that earlier seasons could harm mallard populations that breed in Minnesota. Also, an earlier opening day throws off the youth hunt, which is typically held two weeks prior. This would mean that the youth hunt would be held on Sept. 10, when the ducks likely wouldn't be fully fledged.

In short, the Minnesota DNR is dealing with the same duck hunting dilemma as every other state in the country: allowing hunters enough opportunity to shoot birds while not letting duck numbers slip.

What are the waterfowl regulations like in your state? How do you think they could be made better?

Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Introduction to Trailing

Brian Lynn — Mon, 09 May 2011 18:23:32 -0400

For a dog, the act of following a scent trail upon command is a very different behavior than that of following one during hunting. It's a learned behavior that cues the dog to act in an independent manner and not interdependently with the handler.

It's a cue and behavior that I'll be working with Kona on over the next couple of weeks, and I'll be laying scent trails all over the place as is described in the video above by Dan Hosford. Trailing was something I was worried about with Kona at our last NAHRA test, but wasn't something I trained on during the two-week hiatus before this week's test. This past weekend it came back to bite us in the butt.

While Kona nailed the sit-to-flush, which we thoroughly trained during the last couple of weeks (including walk-through sits at heel, flushed pigeons in the field and obedience drills in the fight pen with birds flying and walking directly in his face), when we moved from the upland exercise of quartering and flushing he was still in hunt mode and we didn't have cue cemented in his psyche that told him to stop hunting and start following the scent without regard to my distance.

As a dog that has done quite a bit of pheasant hunting, Kona keeps my location in mind and works as a team (most of the time anyway). When we're afield and looking for a cripple, he's either in hot pursuit or we're both working the cover for the downed bird.

His "dead bird" command holds him tight to the immediate cover and if he scents the bird he can track it down. In the hunting field when he gets on scent I'm usually following behind in case a follow up shot is required. In the NAHRA test, however, you show the dog the start of the trail and then he's on his own.

You can encourage him to follow, but you can't give hand signals or walk with him. Most trails take a turn or two and can stretch anywhere from a short 20 yards to 100 yards or more. Where Kona and I often run into trouble is that he picks up the scent and tries to puzzle it out but when I encourage him with a "dead bird" he stops and starts working the cover for more indications. If I use his "where's the birds, get 'em up" command, he thinks it's time to hunt and starts to quarter the trail eventually stopping and waiting for me to catch up into gun range. When I don't follow, he returns to me.

This past weekend the trail had broken down on Saturday morning and redrage in a different location was fair and Kona followed it. On Sunday, however, he was all messed up. Coming straight off the quarter and sit-to-flush exercise he was still in hunt mode and never even showed an indication of understanding what I was asking him to do. It was a very fair judgement to be disqualified.

So, our next couple of weeks will be filled with trailing, as well as sit to flush, marking, blinds and water work. When you get down to it, trailing is probably the easiest thing for the single trainer to work on alone, yet it's something that is often ignored for sexier things like technical marks, blinds and the like.

But that folly won't happen again. I'll be dragging a dead duck through the sagebrush and fields surrounding me every day from now on! Check out the above video to see how best to lay a trail and teach a dog to use his nose independently of the handler.

As I can attest however, use a separate command to initiate the behavior and after the dog starts getting good at it, make sure to train it with other dogs and people so he gets used to the multitude of scents and tracks laid.

War Dogs and the bin Laden Trail

Brian Lynn — Thu, 05 May 2011 16:52:17 -0400

In the wake of Osama bin Laden's assassination in Pakistan this week, the nature of elite military teams has captured the imagination of the public. We wonder who these brave, mysterious men are, what their daily lives are like, their families, training, etc.

The same sort of intrigue is taking place in the dog world. Canines have been used to detect IEDs at increasing rates in Afghanistan and Iraq, and that trend will continue and is a testament to the abilities of man's best friend, but one dog in particular has now piqued the interest of many in the public: the canine that accompanied Navy SEAL Team Six in the raid of bin Laden's compound in Pakistan.

In this piece by the New York Times, the training of commando dogs and their role in detecting IEDs and hiding insurgents, as well as more a more mundane question: what breed of dog was with the SEAL team? It's a toss up between a German shepherd dog and a Belgium Malinois according to the article. If I had to guess, I'd lay my money on a Belgium Malinois.

While at a D.T. Systems seminar with George Hickox last year (where pros answered your questions), he mentioned some of the work that is being done by the Pentagon in regards to dogs. Different training techniques, timing, reinforcement and the like that the government is testing in order to improve the training and reliability of dogs and their handlers. As one of the few civilians that has been allowed to see some of the techniques and been privy to some of the statistical results, it was very interesting to hear his reports. In a more lighthearted moment, he mentioned that the baddest dog around was the Belgium Malinois. "The won't just bite you," he said. "They'll try to eat you!"

But as smart, athletic and tough as the Malinois is, the Labrador retriever is very popular with troops. Just as the dual-purpose dog excels at quartering and flushing ahead of the upland hunter, Labs also work more than 100-yards ahead of patrol troops searching out IEDs.

In this story by foreignpolicy.com, not only is the dog at the center of the bin Laden story examined but the history of dogs in war is looked at too. The pictures themselves are worth a quick scroll through, even if you don't read the fascinating history.

Of particular interest to me was the reclassification of war dogs. According to the article's fourth slide: "Military working dogs (MWDs in Army parlance) may not enjoy all the privileges of being full-fledged soldiers, but the U.S. military no longer considers them mere equipment. (The war dogs deployed to Vietnam during that conflict were classifiedas "surplus equipment" and left behind.) Today, MWDs are outfitted with equipment of their own -- a range of specialized gear that includes Doggles (protective eye wear), body armor, life vests, gas masks, long-range GPS-equipped vests, and high-tech canine "flak jackets."

I remember a conversation with John Satterwhite, the former US Olympic champion shooter and current exhibition shooter, while at a seminar at Wildrose Kennels, on what really sent him down the shooting road. While he enjoyed shooting in high school and was a state champion, it wasn't until Vietnam that he got really, really serious about it.

The impetus took place with his entrance to the Air Force during that war. "I put down that I liked to train dogs and got assigned to the canine unit," said Satterwhite, noting that the survival rate of dog handlers was about 10 percent. "That's something you never wanted to have happen back then."

His former high school coach called his commanding officer and told him about Satterwhite's skill with a shotgun. The officer told Satterwhite that as long as he could maintain a certain level of prowess with the firearm, he wouldn't have to enter the canine unit and deploy to Vietnam. From that moment on Satterwhite lived at the range and practiced every shot he could imagine. As you can see by his biography, Satterwhite not only shot exhibition, but represented our country in the Olympics and taught our troops how to shoot better.

It's nice to see that military intelligence isn't always an oxymoron and that canines have been reclassified and are now given the deserved attention and respect as team members (check out picture slide 10; man and dog living in a pack at its finest). With results like these, however, I guess it's hard to ignore the success, fiscal impact and the abilities of dogs:

"In October 2010, the Pentagon announced that after six years and $19 billion spent in the attempt to build the ultimate bomb detector technology, dogs were still the most accurate sniffers around. The rate of detection with the Pentagon's fanciest equipment -- drones and aerial detectors -- was a 50 percent success rate, but when a dog was involved it rose 30 percent."

If you're looking for more war dog stories, check out this book: "Always Faithful: A memoir of the Marine dogs of WWII". It looks like a very interesting read!

Gun Dogs: Training vs. Practicing

Brian Lynn — Tue, 03 May 2011 14:57:06 -0400

Back in my younger days I enjoyed skiing. A day on the mountain was filled with fresh, cold air and adrenaline rushes as my buddies and I pushed each other to do better. I used the mantra (sometimes it doubled as an excuse): "if you're not falling, you're not skiing hard enough."

The same might be said of training your dog: if you're not making adjustments, corrections or changes to your dog's performance, you might not be training hard enough. You might just be practicing. Now, I say might because with dogs it's very subjective and depends upon what you've already done with the dog.

If you haven't taught the dog what you expect and then suddenly throw him into a scenario that he has to figure out by trial and error, then corrections, be them verbal, physical or via e-collar, are woefully unfair.

However, if you've gone through the teaching phase, the dog understands what you're doing and what's expected, then pushing him to do better by challenging him mentally and giving him every opportunity to make the correct decisions is training the dog.

If you're simply running drills over and over or keep repeating the same scenarios in the same area, then the dog begins to pickup on what's happening and can react accordingly.

"So many people don't train, they just practice," said pro trainer Dan Hosford recently when I was out at his place. "They just go through the motions and the dog isn't really working or having to try."

Now, practicing can have it's benefits. It's great for building a dog's confidence and momentum, as well as re-establishing the basics, but repeating the same scenario or drill over and over in the same place doesn't train the dog to react accordingly in the future in a new setting.

"When people train in the same place, the dog begins to pick up on cues and anticipates what's going to happen next," said Hosford. "You need to get the dog out of its comfort zone a little bit and challenge it, or else you're just practicing and not training."

You can push a dog by changing locations or making a known drill/scenario more challenging by increasing the complexity, distractions, number of birds, suction, terrain or getting out in inclimate weather (after all, hunting rarely takes place during ideal conditions).

I've been guilty of lazy training (especially over the last couple of months) and have repeated training sequences that rarely challenge Kona. What about you Gun Doggers? What's your ratio of training vs. practicing?

How to Feed Your Hunting Dog

Brian Lynn — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 19:23:20 -0400

We've talked about feeding, how to keep pup at his ideal body weight and the benefits of feeding a performance formula before here on the Gun Dogs blog, but I thought you might want to hear about the best time to feed and how many times per day you should feed -- straight from the mouth (or pen, well, computer anyway) of an expert.

Brian Zanghi is a nutritionist with Purina and his latest release details why feeding your active sporting dog once a day will help him perform at optimal levels.

Will feeding twice a day ruin old Fido? Nope, but if he's a hard-working dog that hunts extensively, day after day, then you might consider switching his feeding routine to a once-a-day regiment. He'll feel and perform better in the field for you.

So when do you feed your dog during the day over the course of the hunting or performance season, and how many times a day do you feed? There are some concepts to consider in structuring a feeding strategy for your hardworking dog and we will discuss why they work. Some things to consider include, the optimal time to feed and how often to feed daily.

There is a variety of information that indicates feeding a hardworking dog is optimal when the food is provided after hunting or training for the day, and not before. Did you know that it takes 20-24 hours for your dog's meal to be completely digested and eliminated as a bowel movement?

Nutrition studies have revealed that a dog's endurance performance can be as much as doubled when on an empty stomach compared to having eaten 4 or less hours before exercising. There is also scientific evidence from dog nutrition studies that feeding 17 or more hours before exercise results in a much greater use of fat as energy; this is compared to feeding 6 hours before exercise, which results in a much greater use of carbohydrates for energy generation.

You might be asking: why is this important? Exercise metabolism for a hardworking dog is best when fat is used for producing energy for muscles. This is because fat is the best energy source for promoting and supporting endurance exercise, which is exactly what most hardworking dogs require for optimal performance.

For any sportsman or pet owner reading this article that has dogs that tend to sprint more often than quarter a field, this applies to you and your dog as well. Why? Because nutrition studies with greyhounds have even indicated that high fat diets, which promote fat metabolism for energy, result in faster run times than strictly high carbohydrate diets. Even though all the reasons for this are not well understood, it minimally demonstrates that fat metabolism is very important for short duration/high intensity, as well as long duration/moderate intensity, exercise in dogs.

Based on this information, it is recommended that intensely exercising dogs be fed approximately 24 hours before an intense exercise bout to help alleviate problems associated with a full colon. This can include bloody stool, believed to be associated with irritation of the intestinal lining by movement of fecal material in the large bowel because of intense exercise.

If the sporting activity is a multiple day event, then likely it will not be realistic to wait 24 hours before the next exercise bout. Therefore, most dogs should be fed 30-60 minutes after exercise or hard work is complete for the day so that they have the maximum amount of time to digest the meal before the next day's exercise bout.

Immediately after the dog stops working or hunting, it is best to focus on allowing the breathing rate to slow or generally return to normal, and provide fresh water in for rehydrating. Just be sure that the dog doesn't over-consume the drinking water all at once, as vomiting could occur.

DAILY FEEDING FREQUENCY

Consistent with feeding your hunting dog after a day's training or hunting is complete, as well as providing as much time for digestion, also leads to the suggestion that feeding once daily is more optimal than feeding twice daily.

Healthy adult dogs, unlike people, don't get hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) with short or multiple days of food deprivation, even when exercising, as they rely much more significantly on fat metabolism. Of course, feeding once daily would be considered optimal for performance of a hardworking dog, but this may not be feasible in some situations or for some dogs.

If very large quantities are required daily to maintain an ideal body condition, like 7-8 cups for a 50-60 lb dog, it would be recommended to consult your veterinarian to devise a custom feeding strategy for your dog's particular needs. This scenario can be typical of young adult dogs housed outdoors in cool to cold temperatures, particularly when they exhibit very active kennel behaviors, and are trained/hunted multiple times a week.

If you are feeding this large quantity of food on a maintenance formula, this is a good example of a need to switch to a performance food. Feeding 7-8 cups a day would also be a situation where feeding twice daily may be required, however feeding the bulk (~75%) of the food immediately after exercise, then the balance 4-6 hours later. Alternative options to consider would be to increase the caloric density and/or feed a food with higher digestibility as a strategy for reducing the amount needed to deliver adequate calories. Again, if you find yourself in this scenario with a high-octane dog, consult your veterinarian to work out a custom strategy to ensure adequate nutrient balance and feeding, as each extreme situation will require some customization.

Our hardworking dogs are nothing less than elite athletes in every way. We expect high performance when they are afield and we train them for success, so it is important that we consider how providing the best nutrition and feeding strategies support our canine athlete. This is critical to complement the training and breeding of your pet. Taken together, all these suggestions can contribute each in simple ways to develop an optimal feeding program for your hardworking dog. Good luck.

Dogs Can't Cram

Brian Lynn — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 01:35:04 -0400

Cramming with Kona:

Pushing deadlines and cramming isn't a good practice for anyone. When a dog is added to the mix, however, cramming definitely doesn't work.

Case in point: I entered Kona in a North American Hunting Retriever Association hunt test in Chewelah, Wash., despite not doing any serious training for months. We went 1-for-1 in the Senior Division, which is the highest of the organization's four levels. We passed on Sunday but failed to meet the standard on Saturday.

To add an ironic twist, the judge that ruled us out Saturday was my high school Vice Principal. I was sent or called to his office on more than one occasion and now nearly 20 years after graduation I find myself, not to mention my dog, once more disciplined by the man.Going into the weekend I feared two elements of the test the most: sit to flush and trailing. Some last-minute training, or cramming if you will, did nothing to alleviate my concerns. Arriving at the test as a late entrant, I found out my high school Vice Principal has been into dogs for 30 years and would be judging the Senior stake on the first day.

This man struck fear into even the biggest, baddest football players we had at school. Probably because he was bigger and meaner than they were. His bald head contrasted with his dark bushy moustache and only served to frame his penetrating eyes.

I found myself sitting in his office on three occasions that I remember: once for talking in class (not guilty, it wasn't me), once for getting into a fight in gym class (guilty, but I was sticking up for a smaller kid) and another for a Homecoming prank that apparently wasn't funny to some female members of the senior class (again, guilty. But it WAS funny). In all three instances the punishment fit the crimes. He was very fair and two decades later it was no different.

After nailing the land triple and one-whistling the land blind, we moved on to the quarter and sit-to-flush test. Coming out of the holding blind we worked down a thick hedgerow. Kona worked the cover perfectly. He stayed in range and zig-zagged back and forth hunting the cover, plowing through briars and crossing the small creek in search of birds.

And then the sit-to-flush portion came. The thrower tossed the bird into the air and shot it. At the toss I blew the sit whistle and Kona's butt dropped. The pigeon dropped too. About 7 yards in front of him. The mostly white bird flapped, flopped and rolled around. It was too much for Kona to handle even with a second whistle. He broke and had the devil bird in his mouth within two strides. Delivering it happily to hand, the man that had meted out discipline in 1992 again informed me of my punishment: "that's an out," he said.

I agreed with the decision (although I did say, "that was brutal!" to which my old VP agreed) and we ran as the test dog for the rest of the day.

On Sunday we did better but I think the only reason Kona didn't break on the sit-to-flush portion was because the gunner missed. When Kona realized the pigeon wasn't coming down his posture relaxed a bit and I no'd him off the flyaway and we continued quartering through the field. I can't say for certain, but I am pretty sure had that bird been shot that "The Black Booger" would have reared his head and he would have broke again. I bet you can guess what we'll be working on for the next couple of weeks.

After that Kona nailed the marks for both the land and water triples (despite a no-bird situation on the land test's live flyer), did so-so on the water blind, respectable on the land blind and looked like a Hoover vacuum on the trail.

Despite passing on Sunday, I'm not happy with either Kona's or my own performance. In addition to training sit to flush before the next test in two weeks, we'll be working on line manners (specifically: creeping), water blinds and practicing more trailing. He did great on the trail Sunday, but I'm not confident in Kona's confidence in himself on the exercise at this point.

I'm an idiot who has been extremely lazy in training this winter and obviously cramming doesn't work when it comes to dogs. The ony reason I got one ribbon this past weekend is because I just have a good dog that can handle most of what I throw at him on short notice and with little preparation.

It's the Why, Not the How

Brian Lynn — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 17:53:46 -0400

You can run drills all day long, day after day, and you will produce a hunting dog. It's not until you understand why you're running them and what effect they, and any subsequent corrections or praise, have on your dog that you start to really become a trainer.Plugging along from Point A to Point B and beyond will build a foundation for your hunting dog. It's vitally important that your dog have that foundation to build upon, and it's also one of the biggest problems amateurs have with training.

We get excited to "get to the fun stuff" and skip all the small steps that teach a dog to correctly carry out that fun stuff. When someone says their dog doesn't do something correctly or only does X, Y or Z incorrectly, you can almost always bet that the issue was caused by glossing over or altogether skipping a step in their foundation.

However, just plugging along and running drills, exercises, obedience and applying praise, corrections and the like in a more or less ordered sense isn't what it's all about.

The why is much more important than the how.

When you understand why you're carrying out a task and why you apply positive or negative reinforcement, praise, corrections or any other type of pressure and instruction, the how, when, where and what make so much more sense.

Going beyond just connecting the dots in a training manual allows you to truly understand what's happening in your dog's head and gives you the opportunity to anticipate what your dog is going to do next (before even he knows it) and also to shift gears, improvise or change your training tack altogether.

While it's very advisable to follow an established training program from start to finish, no program can serve the needs of every dog and amateur trainer. And when professional trainers put out books, DVDs and the like, it's a broad-sweeping generalization of how to train a dog using their methods. They can't incorporate every little nuance of training many different dogs and their personal quirks and issues. That's what makes a good trainer: adjusting the program to fit those "problem children" that have issues, whether they're genetic or learned it doesn't matter.

And you can only do this when you understand why you're performing a certain task, what ramifications it has on the dog both mentally and physically, how it fits within the program, when you will use the skill in the future and where the issues might arise by changing the program's sequence or training stresses.

When you hit that level of consciousness, not only you will be living in the moment with your dog but you'll be looking forward and backward at the same time. You'll truly be clicking along in your training. You and your dog will be on the same plane and it will all come together magically. Only, it's not magic.

It's understanding what's really going on from both your perspective and the dog's. It's knowing that the why is more important than the how.