Pheasant and/or ducks?

Both. Jump-shooting ducks and stalking the elusive pheasant.

I don't do well sitting in a blind; it's enough to make me want to start smoking cigarettes again.

Dogs? German Wirehaired Pointers and field bred English Springer Spaniels. Always only one dog with me on the hunt.

Best wishes.
 
I have a pointing Lab that gets both upland and waterfowl work. He has also played in the hunt test games.
 
I used to use my british labrador for both. Nowadays I just pheasant hunt because the quantity of ducks around here in the fall is almost non-existent.

When I used to duck/goose hunt years ago, all my waterfowl hunting was in a marsh with decoys or in a field hunting geese. Its an awesome hunt if you are on active birds. Not so much if you aren't.

It can be difficult to make a young dog sit still and be patient in a duck blind. They're like a little kid bouncing around with tons of energy. Very little thresh hold for patience.
 
Ace isn't a duck hunter, simply because we concentrate on pheasants. My first 2 springers hunted ducks a little. Great retrievers, but they didn't do it enough to understand the sitting & waiting. But I used to hunt ducks regularly with a friend whose springer did a LOT of duck hunting. Not surprisingly, he was pretty damn good. Training is something, but experience is everything. If a dog doesn't do anything quite a bit, he/she will never master anything. I get a kick out of people who hunt (ducks, pheasants, whatever) 5 times a season & get excited to see their dog doing so well. "18 month old Ruger's really turning into a pheasant master!" Just think if they'd hunt 20 times a season. Or 50!
 
A5 Sweet 16 said:
I get a kick out of people who hunt (ducks, pheasants, whatever) 5 times a season & get excited to see their dog doing so well.
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The issue hunting ducks is that they are migratory. Its not like they are always moving through. There is usually some locals but after they've been hunted, they are gone. Then there is a "main wave" of waterfowl that come through for a while. Around here that is usually sometime in November. But the window of opportunity is short, so the chance to get on birds is much more limited in time as opposed to hunting upland birds, which are not migratory. Hunting ducks 50 times/season isn't realistic at all because they aren't even there that long.

Unless of course you are hunting multiple states and just following the migration south. Then its possible.
 
Field bred Golden retriever does both better with pheas, simply because she does it more. Most of her ducks are over decoys and some jump shooting.
 
My Labradors are equally at home in a layout blind in Saskatchewan, flooded timber in Arkansas, or a duck slew in the Dakotas. But their (our) true love is upland hunting.
They also love competing in FT's, competition hunts, and HT's
 
I am happy for anyone who is able to hunt 5× a season and is happy for the way there dog is shaping up! 5 maybe all they can get out and if the dog makes it a enjoyable time that is great!

Now as for getting out 50× A5 did say pheasants and ducks. Hunt local ducks in the morning until they have moved. Go hunt pheasants later those same days. Hunt the flocks of migratory birds until they have passed thru. Continue to hunt pheasants and 50 is very doable.
 
Weimdogman said:
I am happy for anyone who is able to hunt 5× a season and is happy for the way there dog is shaping up! 5 maybe all they can get out and if the dog makes it a enjoyable time that is great!

Now as for getting out 50× A5 did say pheasants and ducks. Hunt local ducks in the morning until they have moved. Go hunt pheasants later those same days. Hunt the flocks of migratory birds until they have passed thru. Continue to hunt pheasants and 50 is very doable.
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Yes, any hunting is good hunting. It's those guys that actually hunt pheasants, just pheasants, twice as much as I do who have my interest. They're few, but they exist. For a dog to get twice as much experience with real, wild pheasants as mine dog does in a year is somewhat mind boggling to me. I'd like to somehow compare Ace, who now has 4 seasons under his collar, with one of THOSE dogs, also a relatively young, 4-season vet. Just to see the difference.
 
A5 Sweet 16 said:
Yes, any hunting is good hunting. It's those guys that actually hunt pheasants, just pheasants, twice as much as I do who have my interest. They're few, but they exist. For a dog to get twice as much experience with real, wild pheasants as mine dog does in a year is somewhat mind boggling to me. I'd like to somehow compare Ace, who now has 4 seasons under his collar, with one of THOSE dogs, also a relatively young, 4-season vet. Just to see the difference.
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50 is a big number, particularly for the workingman. Hunting every Saturday and Sunday, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas and New Years Day would give a guy 32 pheasant hunts this coming season.
 
Golden Hour said:
50 is a big number, particularly for the workingman. Hunting every Saturday and Sunday, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas and New Years Day would give a guy 32 pheasant hunts this coming season.
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Go after waterfowl 1/2 those days and you have 50 hunts. I agree 50 is probably not doable for the average working stiff.
I am self employed and have lots of great pheasant land within a 30 minute drive so I get 50+ without messing with stinky ducks.
 
Golden Hour said:
50 is a big number, particularly for the workingman. Hunting every Saturday and Sunday, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas and New Years Day would give a guy 32 pheasant hunts this coming season.
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Yeah, the full-time job really gets in the way of "living my best life", as they say nowadays. For now anyway. I hunted 31 times last season. I think the most I've ever done is 36. It seems like to break 40, I've got to at least partially retire. But the good Lord & pheasant gods willing, when I fully retire, 50 will be a distinct possibility, if not easy.
 
A5 Sweet 16 said:
It's those guys that actually hunt pheasants, just pheasants, twice as much as I do who have my interest. They're few, but they exist. For a dog to get twice as much experience with real, wild pheasants as mine dog does in a year is somewhat mind boggling to me. I'd like to somehow compare Ace, who now has 4 seasons under his collar, with one of THOSE dogs, also a relatively young, 4-season vet. Just to see the difference.
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Let's see if Benelli Banger chimes in, he hunted more than Daniel Boone when he was working full time. Now that he's retired the wild creatures better watch out!
 
I had to be close to 40 hunts last season. I got lazy after the first couple weeks of the season and didn't keep up with my journal, so I don't know for sure. For the record, if I hunt for a couple hours in the morning, and then go out again later in the afternoon, I count that as two hunts.

I have never hunted waterfowl before, but I've been considering it lately as a way to get more hunting time in with my dad and my son before pheasant season starts. I believe my youngest springer is trained well enough to make a serviceable duck dog. My parents have a couple ponds on their properties that I could build blinds on. I think I just talked myself into another hobby. 20230419_081850~2.jpg
 
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