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How to Hunt Pheasants Without a Dog

A good article in general and the author does recognize the benefit of the family/hunting dog also as a pet. But that expectation can be maximized by understanding the best kind of hunting dog to be the best family pet as well. Now don't get me wrong when I write this because I know deep in my heart that there are good dogs and less than good dogs in every breed. But there are some just better suited for the dual job we typically ask of them.

First the less than: A hard nosed pointer is a great hunting dog, but simply too independent to make a good family pet. I'm not saying they can't be a good pet, just that they'll never be the 'lay across your lap and watch an entire game with you' kind of dog. The only time they'll wag a tail is while waiting for you to fill the food bowl. But when the time comes, they'll hunt those tails off for you. Some Labs are good candidates, but are more suited to specialty types of hunting than running in an open field. Most are good pets in general, but still have a slight tendency to be a little independent.

But if you really want a superb family pet as well: Choose a Brittany or Springer Spaniel. Or even an English Setter. They're all three great hunters when trained and once you leave the field with them and walk in through the door at home, they calm right down and become that family pet we're talking about. They'll lay down in your lap if that's what you want, or they'll lay on the floor right beside your recliner if that's your preference. These dogs and a few others like them are not only great hunting dogs while in the field, but while in the house will be your very best friend as well as your family's best friend. As a matter of fact even a good, well bred and trained German Shorthair will often fill the bill.

Over many years of various types of hunting, I've tried about all of them at one time or another. From pit bulls and Cur dogs for hog hunting to all kinds of bird dogs. And I've got to admit, there's no dog who can get into your heart like a sweet tempered bird dog. I've raised, trained and hunted more than a dozen breeds over the years and have been trained by them about as much as I've trained them.

My all time, hands down, favorite, that meets both demands of hunting hard for me when appropriate and then being my faithful companion when that's appropriate is the Brittany. I've personally owned, trained and loved several over the years and could tell you many heart felt stories about a few of them. Each one of them took a little piece of my heart when they passed, but will always be with me out in those fields in my memories.
 
jumpinjoe said:
A good article in general and the author does recognize the benefit of the family/hunting dog also as a pet. But that expectation can be maximized by understanding the best kind of hunting dog to be the best family pet as well. Now don't get me wrong when I write this because I know deep in my heart that there are good dogs and less than good dogs in every breed. But there are some just better suited for the dual job we typically ask of them.

First the less than: A hard nosed pointer is a great hunting dog, but simply too independent to make a good family pet. I'm not saying they can't be a good pet, just that they'll never be the 'lay across your lap and watch an entire game with you' kind of dog. The only time they'll wag a tail is while waiting for you to fill the food bowl. But when the time comes, they'll hunt those tails off for you. Some Labs are good candidates, but are more suited to specialty types of hunting than running in an open field. Most are good pets in general, but still have a slight tendency to be a little independent.

But if you really want a superb family pet as well: Choose a Brittany or Springer Spaniel. Or even an English Setter. They're all three great hunters when trained and once you leave the field with them and walk in through the door at home, they calm right down and become that family pet we're talking about. They'll lay down in your lap if that's what you want, or they'll lay on the floor right beside your recliner if that's your preference. These dogs and a few others like them are not only great hunting dogs while in the field, but while in the house will be your very best friend as well as your family's best friend. As a matter of fact even a good, well bred and trained German Shorthair will often fill the bill.

Over many years of various types of hunting, I've tried about all of them at one time or another. From pit bulls and Cur dogs for hog hunting to all kinds of bird dogs. And I've got to admit, there's no dog who can get into your heart like a sweet tempered bird dog. I've raised, trained and hunted more than a dozen breeds over the years and have been trained by them about as much as I've trained them.

My all time, hands down, favorite, that meets both demands of hunting hard for me when appropriate and then being my faithful companion when that's appropriate is the Brittany. I've personally owned, trained and loved several over the years and could tell you many heart felt stories about a few of them. Each one of them took a little piece of my heart when they passed, but will always be with me out in those fields in my memories.
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We had Gordon Setters that made excellent family pets that would lay with/on you all day long and go flush grouse, rabbits and pheasants all day long. Not all bird dogs are hard nosed non affectionate pets.
 
KillerFord1977 said:
We had Gordon Setters that made excellent family pets that would lay with/on you all day long and go flush grouse, rabbits and pheasants all day long. Not all bird dogs are hard nosed non affectionate pets.
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My dad believed working dogs were working dogs. While he went to great lengths to keep them healthy and warm in the winter time, they were never inside dogs. Growing up we never had “ Pet” dogs.
 
Given my lifestyle as an adult, I never had the time for dogs. I have, however, been very fortunate to know people, mostly MDs who had very well trained dogs and who often didn't have time to hunt regularly. They were often willing willing to let me borrow their dogs when I had time to hunt and they didn't. Then when they had the time to go, we would often hunt together because I was a more knowledgeable hunter and had great access to hunting grounds. It worked out well for all concerned, even the dogs.

Some of those docs were lousy shots and somehow with me along they still went home with their quota of birds and could be heroes to their family. ;) It all seemed like a fair trade to me.

The only way I would hunt birds without a dog is if the birds just popped up in front of me while I was doing something else. An employee of mine loved to tell a story about riding with me along a very country road (sand) in my convertible when a rooster popped along side of the road and I pulled out my 1911.... The stories some people tell.:cool: He did colorfully add that he hadn't expected it, and when the gun went off and the hot brass hit him in his head he messed his pants and we had to stop for him to clean up and borrow a spare pair of jeans to go with his coat and tie for the rest of the day.
 
Bassbob said:
".................." For me personally 90+ % of the joy of bird hunting is watching the dogs work. "..........."
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Absolutely ...... nothing prettier than to watch a couple flashes of white (in the case of Brittanies) as they work one side to the other through a cane grass or pasture grass field in the early morning, the grass still wet and heavy with the dew, and every now and then one of the dogs literally jump high enough to look back toward you over the tall grass to make sure you were still there. Yeh, I've seen them do it many times. It was almost like they enjoyed being out there with you as much as you enjoyed them.
 
KillerFord1977 said:
We had Gordon Setters that made excellent family pets that would lay with/on you all day long and go flush grouse, rabbits and pheasants all day long. Not all bird dogs are hard nosed non affectionate pets.
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C'mon Killer, I didn't say "all bird dogs are hard nosed non affectionate pets", far from it. In fact I started my little post off by saying this ... " Now don't get me wrong when I write this because I know deep in my heart that there are good dogs and less than good dogs in every breed. But there are some just better suited for the dual job we typically ask of them." And when I wrote of 'pointers' I didn't reflect anything bad about them, in fact my whole paragraph was in touting how independent the breed typically is. They're very proud dogs, great hunters, and yes some even make good pets. The difference is that the ones who do both, usually don't do both as well as some other breeds simply because when they become 'lap' dogs some of that independence is lost or at least softened. That's what gives them the independent streak they're known for.

And I specifically mentioned the setters BTW. Now I didn't mention the Gordons, only because the English came to mind first. Even though I didn't specifically say 'all' setters, my intent was to reference setters in general. And the setters usually do make really good pets since they don't usually have that very independent personality as do the pointers. As an aside, one of the very best family pets we ever had when I was a young boy was an English Setter. He, as you mentioned "would lay with/on" us kids all day if we wanted, but he wasn't worth a damn as a hunting dog. His heart just wasn't in it, he'd rather just hang around the truck scoffin' up whatever treats or scratches behind the ears us kids would have for him. LOL! LOL!

And just to finalize this, I don't know that I've ever known a dog I didn't or couldn't love. Some were good at one thing, others good at other things, some pretty good at double duty, and some not worth a damn for anything, just lovable dogs with good hearts that would love us unconditionally and without question.

PS: I only wish I could always live up to the man my dogs thought me to be !!!!!
 
jumpinjoe said:
C'mon Killer, I didn't say "all bird dogs are hard nosed non affectionate pets", far from it. In fact I started my little post off by saying this ... " Now don't get me wrong when I write this because I know deep in my heart that there are good dogs and less than good dogs in every breed. But there are some just better suited for the dual job we typically ask of them." And when I wrote of 'pointers' I didn't reflect anything bad about them, in fact my whole paragraph was in touting how independent the breed typically is. They're very proud dogs, great hunters, and yes some even make good pets. The difference is that the ones who do both, usually don't do both as well as some other breeds simply because when they become 'lap' dogs some of that independence is lost or at least softened. That's what gives them the independent streak they're known for.

And I specifically mentioned the setters BTW. Now I didn't mention the Gordons, only because the English came to mind first. Even though I didn't specifically say 'all' setters, my intent was to reference setters in general. And the setters usually do make really good pets since they don't usually have that very independent personality as do the pointers. As an aside, one of the very best family pets we ever had when I was a young boy was an English Setter. He, as you mentioned "would lay with/on" us kids all day if we wanted, but he wasn't worth a damn as a hunting dog. His heart just wasn't in it, he'd rather just hang around the truck scoffin' up whatever treats or scratches behind the ears us kids would have for him. LOL! LOL!

And just to finalize this, I don't know that I've ever known a dog I didn't or couldn't love. Some were good at one thing, others good at other things, some pretty good at double duty, and some not worth a damn for anything, just lovable dogs with good hearts that would love us unconditionally and without question.

PS: I only wish I could always live up to the man my dogs thought me to be !!!!!
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Understood. Dogs are like people. Some are horrible, ogre, nasty folks. Some are steadfast steele, and some are teddy bears.
 
jumpinjoe said:
Absolutely ...... nothing prettier than to watch a couple flashes of white (in the case of Brittanies) as they work one side to the other through a cane grass or pasture grass field in the early morning, the grass still wet and heavy with the dew, and every now and then one of the dogs literally jump high enough to look back toward you over the tall grass to make sure you were still there. Yeh, I've seen them do it many times. It was almost like they enjoyed being out there with you as much as you enjoyed them.
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One of the big differences between Brittanys and Pointers is that Pointers generally hunt for themselves and Brittanys hunt for you. A Brittany will go out until she can't see you then turn around and come back. In my experience they ALL do that. I have a million stories about Pointers smooth disappearing. One time when I was a kid my dad's Pointers took off. We couldn't find them for a couple hours. It was cold as hell and we went and sat back in the truck. Finally my old man had had it. He said " I'm going to find Missy and Lady and when I do they're probably not coming back with me. I went with him. " Dad, you're not really going to shoot them dogs are you?" When we found them they were both on point. All my dad's dogs held point and honored another dog's point. Always. God only knows how long they were locked up there. My old man saw that and all thoughts of shooting them left his mind. I flushed them ( my dad's dogs were specifically trained NOT to flush. Ever.) I flushed the covey and dad shot two. We chased singles the rest of the afternoon. I ended up with 2 and dad ended up with 4.

Anyway, once he switched to Brittanys he kicked himself for not doing it a lot earlier.
 
Bassbob said:
My dad believed working dogs were working dogs. While he went to great lengths to keep them healthy and warm in the winter time, they were never inside dogs. Growing up we never had “ Pet” dogs.
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And I've known many folks who had that very same attitude, and nothing is wrong with it. Typically those men who think/thought that way put every effort in to ensuring the good treatment and conditions of their dogs. Some are of the belief that making a pet of a hunting dog reduces the effectiveness of the dog at both. I don't think I'd argue that mind-set.

That premeise can be seen in most any retriever type dog if you allow the kids to play 'tug of war' with them. It's usually confusing to the dog when at one time you play that silly game with him while laughing and having fun, and then at other times you expect him to give you the bird without hesitation and you yell at him when he doesn't.
 
Bassbob said:
One of the big differences between Brittanys and Pointers is that Pointers generally hunt for themselves and Brittanys hunt for you. A Brittany will go out until she can't see you then turn around and come back. In my experience they ALL do that. I have a million stories about Pointers smooth disappearing. One time when I was a kid my dad's Pointers took off. We couldn't find them for a couple hours. It was cold as hell and we went and sat back in the truck. Finally my old man had had it. He said " I'm going to find Missy and Lady and when I do they're probably not coming back with me. I went with him. " Dad, you're not really going to shoot them dogs are you?" When we found them they were both on point. All my dad's dogs held point and honored another dog's point. Always. God only knows how long they were locked up there. My old man saw that and all thoughts of shooting them left his mind. I flushed them ( my dad's dogs were specifically trained NOT to flush. Ever.) I flushed the covey and dad shot two. We chased singles the rest of the afternoon. I ended up with 2 and dad ended up with 4.

Anyway, once he switched to Brittanys he kicked himself for not doing it a lot earlier.
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Don't know that I've ever heard a better description of some of the differences. You've got to admire a couple dogs who will stay locked up on point for who knows how long, no matter how mad you get when they don't show back up at the truck when it's time to quit. You know it's time but they don't don't, they just know their job.!!!!

I've seen exactly that scenario more than once just as I've seen the Brittanies jump up above the grass to make sure you're still there with them many times. I think I described just how I feel about dogs in general and mine in particular in my post #9.
 
ChanceMcCall said:
Given my lifestyle as an adult, I never had the time for dogs. I have, however, been very fortunate to know people, mostly MDs who had very well trained dogs and who often didn't have time to hunt regularly. They were often willing willing to let me borrow their dogs when I had time to hunt and they didn't. Then when they had the time to go, we would often hunt together because I was a more knowledgeable hunter and had great access to hunting grounds. It worked out well for all concerned, even the dogs.

Some of those docs were lousy shots and somehow with me along they still went home with their quota of birds and could be heroes to their family. ;) It all seemed like a fair trade to me.

The only way I would hunt birds without a dog is if the birds just popped up in front of me while I was doing something else. An employee of mine loved to tell a story about riding with me along a very country road (sand) in my convertible when a rooster popped along side of the road and I pulled out my 1911.... The stories some people tell.:cool: He did colorfully add that he hadn't expected it, and when the gun went off and the hot brass hit him in his head he messed his pants and we had to stop for him to clean up and borrow a spare pair of jeans to go with his coat and tie for the rest of the day.
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Sounds like a pretty good deal to me as well Chance. I mean hunting with the DR's dogs, not the part about needing a fresh pair of pants .... that's hilarious !!!!
 
Gordon and Irish setters are not “wound so tight” hyper like other Pointers . Obviously a retriever class vs pointer class, but setters will point all day long as well. A bit more “laid back” breed for lack of terminology right now.

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My spoiled house dog, and true hunting companion, back in 1982.
E6D382AC-02F6-461D-919D-9C3B1EB545BD.jpeg
 
KillerFord1977 said:
Gordon and Irish setters are not “wound so tight” hyper like other Pointers . Obviously a retriever class vs pointer class, but setters will point all day long as well. A bit more “laid back” breed for lack of terminology right now.

edit:
My spoiled house dog, and true hunting companion, back in 1982.
View attachment 12704
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Mighty fine lookin' specimen there Killer. Looks like he had a little more black on him than most ..... that's pretty !!!
 
KillerFord1977 said:
Thank you sir.
Had several over the years, and he was my favorite
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No matter how many or what kinds we have, I think we all have that one special one ... 'a favorite' !!! Mine was a little girl Britt I had for about 12 years and lost her in summer of 2014 to cancer. She was that special one for sure for me.

Back in Dec '04 - Jan '06 I went through 4 back surgeries in those 13 months ending with a 3 level fusion and a whole bunch of scar tissue surrounding it. Well, it was virtually almost like clockwork that every 3rd or 4th month after a surgery I would have to have another. Most of that 13 months I spent in my recliner chair watching TV and/or sleeping. "Tippy" laid at my side every hour, every day that I was in that recliner. If I got up to make my way to the bathroom or kitchen, she was right at my side watching my every move, almost as if to be there to somehow help if I needed her. For that 13 months she made every single step I made anywhere through the house. Even at night when I would sleep in the chair, she would lay right beside me on a small throw rug rather than to go to her own bed with a big soft cushion.

Before my surgeries she would want to go out to pee in the fenced back yard and would often lay out in the grass and sunshine for awhile before coming back in, or stalk and/or chase a squirrel or two on the way back in, but afterwards it was like she somehow knew things were different for me and she needed to watch over me. She would beeline out to her favorite spot to poop and pee, then beeline back to the house. She would always stand right in front of me and look me in the eye for a minute or two after she came back in until I assured her everything was alright. Then she's take her spot on that little rug alongside my chair.

I'll never know for sure what was in her mind all that time, but I'm convinced she was determined to be there for me in any event. How could a dog like that not be my 'favorite'? In fact I have her cremated remains here at home and intend to have her go with me when my time comes.
 
I never hunted with a dog but used to hunt pheasant back in the day with friends that owned farms. They were all posted so only 3 or 4 people were allowed to hunt there other than the owners' families. I would go in with the owners usually but sometimes alone with permission. I would say, on average, about half an hour at most, we all came out of those cornfields with the daily 2 bird limit (no hens permitted under state law). We'd rotate the farms to allow them to "rest" and attract more birds for a few days. I miss those days but shoot trap and skeet now so my shotgun doesn't get lonely. Ahh, to be young again, but I'd only go back if I could go knowing what I know now. I have no regrets, just happy memories.

Edit for spelling correction.
 
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