Hunts
States
Of Interest | There is nothing new in this article about pheasant dog power or those elements that make for a good pheasant finding dog. The application of these elements to the habitat and hunting approach of Mid-America Hunting Association may be of interest to some in terms of understanding the relationship of the upland bird hunter to the Association itself and the central mid-west habitat that may be new tot the traveling bird hunter.
In terms of the upland bird hunter's relationship to the Association when on our lease land is that we first count all breeds of dogs as bird dogs in the field when the hunter is on the leases. This may seem un-necessary to state however, remember we come into contact with all types of hunters. The most glaring example of some that we have dealt with was the hunter that exceed our maximum dogs on the ground rule stating his retrievers were not pointers and therefore not to be counted as bird dogs. Perhaps of more universal interest concerning pheasant dogs is that we unlike a breed specific dog club accept all breeds of dogs for our upland bird hunting and do not distinguish amongst flushers, retrievers or pointing breeds. As a self guided hunting business the "breed" we are concerned with is the hunters good hunt of watching good bird dog work. A club may be more biased in its approach and all the more reason we call ourselves an association. A case where there is more to our name than may be initially apparent. For many that open this web page they are expecting to find a listing of pheasant hunting dog traits that may enhance or degrade the quality of the pheasant hunt. To that expectation we offer the following review. In terms of what makes the better pheasant finding dog we should examine the three basic habitat covers pheast occupy during the hunting season. These habitat is descending order of bird densities holding capability are the tall grass, brush draw and crop edge. When examining these habitat in terms of the better pheasant finding dog behaviors will illustrate as a base line analysis points what kind of dog power works best. In tall grass pheasant hunting the grass is thick. The best grass grows three to five feet tall and thick enough that a dog three feet way standing motionless will be invisible to the hunter. Grass less than three feet or thin will encourage the pheasant to run rather than freeze and grass taller than five feet while holding birds will be tough to shoot over. In the ideal thick grass under five feet tall a pheasant dog that works close to the hunter is better than one that has long range. The value is this is that the pheasant compared tot he quail is less likely to hold for point and then less likely to remain frozen to point. A hunter that can get to his dog on point faster than slower is more likely to have more shot opportunities. Flushers have a similar need to remain close to allow for a shot. In the tall, thick grass the typical flushing dog behavior is to work closer to keep an eye on the hunter and therefore less of an issue than with pointing dogs. Brush filled draws as always welcomed after a tall grass hunt especially and as much for the opportunity to hunt both pheasant and quail. The very topography that creates the draw allowing for brush to grow through by way on non-tillable land also separates hunter and dog. The better pheasant hunting will be had by the hunter not showing himself by walking the bottom of the draw. This is where the walking through brush more difficult than the crop edge and observation of both dog and bird degraded. To walk the rim would be to expose the hunter to pheasant observation and encourage escape behavior. The real challenge if the hunter walks the bottom of the draw is the higher elevations to each side that may present a dog within the shot cone when swinging on a bird. In this draw type hunt the closer a dog works the better, single dog better than multiple dogs and if multiple dogs are hunted then knowing where each dog is prior to shot is valued. The challenge is again the topography of a draw has a tendency to change a dogs hunting pattern. A commonly observed dog hunting pattern in a draw is to cast long on the easy to traverse crop edge and then dive into the brush, cross over the draw and do the same long edge cast either to the direction of the hunter movement or away. The result is a dog that may appear from any direction. A dog with frequent check back is less of a safety concern then one with infrequent check back. One that works closer better than one with long range. The hunter impact should be obvious as it always should be. Only shoot at a bird when the target is as easy to identify as the background of the bird. The back ground aspect is much more difficult to achieve in the draw. Crop edge will be the least productive pheasant habitat and just as like for a pheasant to hold frozen for point or for flush. The edge habitat is the question mark as it is more typical the pheasant to be found in larger pockets of spots of irregular edge. When found frequently incidental to a quail hunt the pheasant will flush away from the wood edge and out or along its length usually giving a clear shot opportunity. A flushing dog that works close is a good choice and hard to come by in the open fields accompanying the edge habitat. This being a quail predominate cover type further limits flushing dogs providing good shot opportunity. this habitat type is largely the realm of the pointing dog. the more productive pheasant dog in this habitat is the one with the longer point standoff as the edge habitat is typically thinner than that which encourages longer pheasants remaining frozen to survive rather than given to flight. Now the disclaimer as many will interpret these following comments. All of the above is a generalization and not an attempt to put absolutes on dog, bird or hunter. We should all agree this article serves only as an evaluation point and not the final conclusion. nature we should also agree is infinitely varied and will offer as many exceptions to the rule as the rule may prove itself. This is a self guide hunter organization and as such the hunter will make his hunt and his bird dog. Good luck to all. |
