New Way Of Training My Dogs

Posted on April 2, 2024 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

As I get older it gets harder to cover the ground that I need to in order for the dogs to get enough exercise in a day. When I first started hunting it was nothing to cover 12 or more miles in a day. Now as I approach 80 years old it’s way harder. I can still get 5 to 7 miles in on a good day, sometimes more. Around home, when I’m training, I often use my 4-wheeler. But with the 4-wheeler, only one person can comfortably ride.

The new ride.

Abby honoring Sally.

Boss on point.

Well, hopefully, I solved some of my problems by buying a Can Am Commander Max XTP. It will haul 4 people and will follow the dogs on most of the places I hunt. I can only use it on private land but I will at least be able to get the dogs into better shape.

Vince Dye and I took the “buggy” and all 5 dogs, Abby, Sally, Boss, Bodie and Mann, to some private land in Northern Missouri. The temperature was about 23 degrees with a strong north wind. We put the e-collars and GPS collars on all 5 dogs and turned them loose. Other than the 4-wheeler these dogs had never been run in this manner.

It made no difference to Mann. Before I got the collars on all 5 dogs he had gone hunting. Sally and Abby went in front of the buggy but kept looking for me. Bodie was hunting in the opposite direction from Mann and Boss was following about 15 yards behind the buggy. Vince was watching the dogs on the GPS handheld and in just a few minutes it showed Mann on point, ahead of us about 200 yards.

I started to him through the thick, tall CRP. I was watching closely to keep from running over a dog. Boss was still following the buggy. I must have got too close to Mann. Vince said, “three quail just flew over the top of us.” I hadn’t seen them but I did see the dogs moving in front of us.

I stopped and waited to see if the dogs would come up with anything. Sally went on point across the draw from us and I drove across the dam of a small pond to get to her. Boss was still following. I saw Sally and I as I started to get out and go to her she started moving. Finally, Boss saw her and decided that he needed to be hunting. He got in front of the buggy and really started covering the ground. In approximately 5 minutes all of the dogs had figured out to stay in front of the buggy, except Bodie. He was about 600 yards in the other direction. I toned his e-collar.

Sally, Abby and Bodie honoring Boss.

Because we were in the buggy we were moving faster than the dogs were used to. Bodie started looking for me but wasn’t used to coming to the sound of the buggy. We went back down the other side of the draw and across to the fence row on the edge of the property. In the past we have found a covey in this area but not today. The dogs covered it well.

Bodie was still off a good way so we started toward him through some older CRP. The first CRP had a lot of wheat growing but this older CRP was mostly blue stem. The dogs got birdy and we had couple of flash points but we never saw any game birds. There may have been a pheasant or two running ahead of the dogs. As we came around the end Bodie got with us.

We went back into the newer CRP. This CRP is really thick in most places with huge heads of wheat growing. Back during the season there were at least 5 coveys using this 240 acres. The dogs use a lot of energy going through this. As we rode along in the buggy I told Vince that the dogs were getting tired. He said, “they aren’t in as good of shape as we are”.

Bodie honoring.

As we got close to the area where Mann had pointed on the first covey Boss went on point. When we got close I left the buggy and started to him. Before I got there I turned to look back and Abby, Sally and Bodie were behind me, honoring Boss. I took their picture and a couple of Boss. I kicked in front of Boss and nothing flushed. I released him and all of the dogs started trailing. Something had run out on us.

As we went on the other side of the draw Sally pointed with Abby honoring. Before I could get out she was moving. She and the other dogs trailed along the edge and one quail flushed well out in front of the dogs. With the strong wind and some wise quail they weren’t holding very well.

We went down the edge and when we got to a deep creek I wasn’t sure about crossing it in the buggy. Vince has one and has ridden in several states. He knows them really well. When I eased into the creek with the bank almost straight up in front of us, the buggy’s wheels were spinning. Vince told me to lock it in 4 wheel drive. Once I did it just walked up the bank without spinning a wheel. That’s my kind of vehicle. Later I took it to Arkansas and rode the trails for a weekend and learned it will go about anywhere you point it.

Bodie pointing a pigeon.

The dogs were getting tired so we worked our way back to the truck. Vince and I took the e-collars and GPS collars off the dogs and put them in their boxes. Then loaded the buggy on the trailer. We were about frozen by this time. In the buggy with the heater going we had no idea that is was this cold. We had run the dogs for 2 1/2 hours and weren’t even tired. What a way to run dogs.

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Off Season Dog Work

Posted on March 5, 2024 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

It’s hard to have anything to write about when all of the dogs in the kennel are older, trained dogs. I have worked the dogs a few times so we both can get some exercise. All five of the dogs honor real well and also hold their birds once they go on point but I worked them on both.

Bodie honoring the backing dog.

The backing dog with Boss honoring.

Boss honoring the backing dog.

I read an article about dogs jumping and getting excited when you’re getting ready to let them out of their pen. The guy that wrote it said the dogs were screaming, “LET ME OUT, LET ME OUT”. So I thought it was time to stop this. I started by just standing in front of the dogs pen until they calmed down and stood still. As I reached to open their gate if they moved I stepped back and waited. In just a few days they were standing still to be let out although a couple of them would jump until I got right in front of their gate.

After a few days I moved it up a notch. I waited on them to stand still and I said, “whoa” one time and opened their gate. When they are on “whoa” they are not supposed to move anything. I hold the gate wide open and let them stand for a few seconds then say, “okay”. They dash out the gate. But anything to reinforce whoa is a good thing.

I put a chain gang out and attached all 5 dogs, with e-collars set to the no-bark setting. I like to work all of the dogs on retrieving first. So I walked to Sally, stood until she stopped moving and put the GPS collar around her neck. I switched the e-collar to training mode and heeled her out in front of the other dogs.

I have a Dokken quail dummy that I throw for her and Mann. I throw the dummy 3 times for her and make her, when she returns to me with it, hold until I reach for the dummy. I have a hot dog, cut into about 20 pieces in my pocket. When I take the dummy I give her a piece of the hotdog. After the third time I give the hotdog treat to her I say, “whoa”, one time. I get on the 4-wheeler, start it, put it in gear then say, “okay”. That’s their cue to run loose and happy time for a few minutes.

Dogs on the chain gang.

After a couple of laps around the yard I put her back on the chain gang and got Mann out. We went through the same routine but Mann is a lot faster running the yard. Or picking up the Dokken retrieving dummy. He’s just fast. After a couple of laps around the yard I put him back on the chain gang.

Abby was next. I threw the Dokken quail dummy for her but she smelled of it but refused to pick it up. I will work on that later. I tossed her a tennis ball and she grabbed it in a dead run. She wants to drop the ball and get her treat but I will not give her the treat until she lets me take the ball from her. Food is a real motivator for her. I let her run for a couple of laps then put her on the chain gang.

Boss was ready to go. I heeled him out and threw the tennis ball for him. For a long time Boss would not take a chunk of hotdog from my hand. In fact I had never seen him take a bite of food even in his kennel. He would wait until I left to eat. Usually, the next morning his food pan was empty. On trips he would go as long as the trip was, without eating. The first day in Arizona I knew we would be away from home for 6 or 7 days. He couldn’t hunt if he went that long without food.

Mann pointing a pigeon.

So the first day, as I was leaving a hunting area, I saw a good place to chain the dogs individually. I stopped and fixed each dogs food which consisted of dry dog food, can dog food and water. I fed the others first and noticed when I set his food in front of him, he wasn’t interested. I went to him and held the food dish in front of him and he started eating. I set the dish on the ground and he quit. I got a cooler out of the truck to sit on and held his food pan. He emptied it.

I did this each day of the trip. And he did the same. As long as I was holding the pan he would eat. If I set it on the ground he quit eating. Since we got home he can’t wait to get back in the kennel to eat. It’s like I finally gave him permission to eat. I sent him with Justin Crook to Nebraska/South Dakota summer camp last year and Justin asked to send him home because he wouldn’t eat. Now it’s like he can’t wait.

Abby honoring the backing dog.

After Boss retrieved the tennis ball 3 times and took a chunk of hotdog each time I let him run a couple of laps around the yard then put him back on the chain gang.

Bodie was last. He doesn’t retrieve so I heeled him to the retrieving bench and he jumped on. I gave him a few chunks of hotdog as he walked around the bench then got a dowel retrieving dummy. I opened his mouth, placed the dowel behind his canine teeth, made sure his lips weren’t in the way and said, “hold” while I cupped my hands around his mouth. After a few seconds I said, “give” and took the dowel from him and gave him a chunk of hotdog. I like to work them for a while on hold and give before I start the trained retrieve.

Bodie gets more of the hotdog than the others right now. I heeled him back to the chain gang area and whoaed him. I got on the 4-wheeler, started it, put it in gear and after a few seconds said, “okay”. He wasted no time in getting to the back. He ran a couple of laps around the yard and I put him back on the chain gang.

Sally honoring the backing dog.

I got my popup backing dog out and hid it behind a clump of thick brush. I put one release trap with a pigeon in it in front of the backing dog. Sometimes, Sally wants to move in with me when she is honoring. Not always but this is the place to stop that. I heeled her to the back and whoaed her a couple of times on the way. I turned her loose and she was in a dead run when she came around the end of the brush and saw the backing dog. She locked up. I stroked her sides then walked ahead of her. She didn’t move even when I flushed the pigeon. I let her run then put her in her kennel.

Mann backs but sometimes he wants to get closer. I’ve never seen him flush a bird but he should stand wherever he sees the dog that he is backing. I heeled him part way to the bird grounds before turning him loose. He went behind a brush pile where I couldn’t see him but when I got around the brush pile he was honoring. I stroked his sides then walked in front of him kicking the ground. I flushed the pigeon and he never moved. I tapped his head and walked back to the kennel and put him up.

Boss pointing a pigeon.

Abby likes to honor but she loves to point more. I heeled her most of the way whoaing her a few times. The first 3 dogs all saw the backing dog at a different spot but stopped immediately. I stroked her sides then walked in front, kicking the cover. i flushed the pigeon and she chased. I haven’t worked the 3 younger dogs on being steady after the flush. That may happen this summer. I let her run while I walked to the kennel.

Boss and Bodie both are excellent at honoring. I worked them both then took them back to the kennel.

The next day I worked them the same way only I didn’t use the backing dog. I hid a pigeon in a release trap and worked them on pointing. It was kind of funny to watch all 5 dogs just knew we were going to do the backing dog. When they close to the area where I had the dog the day before they each slowed down and their head was on a pivot looking for thin dog. But they all handled the bird in the release trap well.

Bodie honoring the backing dog.

On the day that I worked them on the pigeon in the release traps, on the very first bird another bird joined it in the air. My first thought was, “alright, another pigeon”. The next second or two I knew. It was a hawk after my bird and it evidently got it. I started with 10 pigeons but now I only have 9. Although these have some babies I will probably buy some more just to have enough.

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Checking On The Quail

Posted on February 7, 2024 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

I always feel bad about any of the quail killed in late January. A lot of the birds shot in January would have made it until spring, maybe. And this year more than ever. We had a long period of really cold weather, heavy snows in some areas, with each night time temperature way below zero. On the next to last day of the season I wanted to just go to north central Kansas to check on the birds.

Mann pointing a covey.

Bodie pointing a covey.

Boss pointing a hot spot, sitting down.

Getting to some of the places where I had found birds earlier was almost impossible. Most of the east west roads were clear but the north south roads were mostly muddy and some still unplowed. As I got close to one of the places I wanted to check I met a road grader with one of the huge V shaped plows on the front. There were a couple of houses on this road. I would bet they had not been able to get out by car or truck since the snow had hit.

In the field I wanted to check, most of the snow had melted except for the snow drifts which were still pretty deep. I turned the dogs, Sally, Abby, Boss, Bodie and Mann, loose. We went through a pasture near a harvested soybean field. There were some small draws running into the pasture that we followed to the north east. I had a 20 gauge with me but left it in the truck. I only carried my camera.

There was a harvested corn field across the pasture that we followed to the south east. So far we had been in an area where I didn’t find birds the last time I was here. When I got about half way to the south edge, along another fence row the GPS showed Mann on point about 300 yards south east, along another corn field.

I got within about 150 yards and it showed Boss on point about the same distance to the east. Since Mann had been on point the longest I kept going to him. There was a small hedge row, about a hundred yards long, beside the corn field and Mann was at the east end. I got within about 50 yards of the west end of the hedge row and a covey of quail flushed flying to the north. It looked like they went down in a draw about a hundred yards away.

I saw a dog still on point at the end of the hedge row and thought it was Mann. When I got closer I saw it was Bodie. He, evidently, didn’t see or hear the birds flush and was still on point. The birds must have been at the east end where Mann pointed and ran from him. When they got to the west end of the draw they stopped running and Bodie pointed them. Then when they saw me coming they flushed. I tapped Bodie on the head and he went back to hunting.

Bodie up front, Sally on the left and Mann behind honoring Boss.

We didn’t chase the singles. What I wanted to see was if any quail lived though the cold, snowy weather. If the covey was in bad shape they didn’t need any more stress on them. We went on to the south edge then turned to the west. The last time I had been here Boss had pointed a covey about a hundred yards from where this covey was found.

South of where I had parked the truck I had seen 3 or 4 quail the last time I had been here. There was probably a covey somewhere but I only saw a few birds so I hadn’t tried to shoot any of them. We went through that area but before we got far from the corn field Boss pointed along a fence row with the other dogs honoring. He was sitting down when I got close like he had almost run by the scent. There was a game trail under the fence that he was pointing into. The last time we were here he had pointed a pheasant in the pasture just a short distance from this point. Nothing flushed but I would bet something, maybe a pheasant, had run down that trail.

Crossing fences is hard.

We went on toward the west and the area I had seen other quail the last time I was here. This area was some really good cover just off a harvested soybean field. I had several points but none that lasted. All of the dogs were birdy but something ran away from us. When we got back to the truck I loaded dogs and headed to another spot.

There were several places on one road and I had found quail during the season on one of these places. But as I drove, checking the roads was easy. None of the north south roads that would get me to the properties had been driven on or were extremely muddy. If you slide off the road and get stuck on a road no one is driving on you are on your own. No thanks. I went home.

That was going to be the end of my season but Don Hansen called. He wanted to hunt the last day of the season so I told him I would go.

Abby pointing Bodie honoring.

I met Don and his wife Linda in central Kansas. This is a big area and Vince and I had hunted in this area, different part, on the Friday before. We had only seen a few birds but they were well educated. Vince and I must of had 20 points or so going through a huge plum thicket. There was enough snow on for us to see quail tracks where the dogs were pointing but we were through about a quarter mile of plum thicket, with a bunch of points, and I saw 3 or 4 quail. And they flushed before the dogs got close enough to point them.

Don had hunted this area earlier and had found some quail. So we turned out 7 dogs and tried again. Don had two of his dogs, Tigger and Goofy. I had Sally, Abby, Boss, Bodie and Mann.

It was above freezing, just barely, but the muddy fields were still frozen from the cold night. We started around a corn field walking in the snow but figured out pretty quick that it was easier to walk on the frozen mud. We were in about half a mile when the GPS showed Boss on point about 300 yards north east. We started to him but when we got within about 75 yards he was moving.

Don walking in on Abby’s point.

We continued on to the area he had been in and then went down a hedge row with some good cover on the north. The hedge row was a little over a quarter of a mile long. When we got to the end the GPS showed Boss on point at the other end, again. Back we went.

When we got close he was moving again. There was melting snow making the ground really wet at this end. It was lower than the surrounding area. The GPS showed Sally on point and about that time Don said, “We’ve got dogs on point”. I could see Sally and Boss about a hundred yards out on point but as I watched them they started moving. I thought that was the ones Don saw but there was a dog right in front of him on point.

When I finally saw Abby, Bodie was honoring. I took some pictures and since I wasn’t carrying a gun I told Don to go on in. As he walked in I took more pictures. A single quail flushed from in front of Abby. Don felt like it had trouble getting into the air so he didn’t shoot. I wasn’t that close but it looked like it flew pretty well once it got air born.

Boss

This area is only about an hour away from Kansas City so it gets a lot of pressure. Most of the birds are well educated. Boss must have had a covey that either ran away or flushed in front of him and this was one of the singles. We got the dogs away from the area and hunted back to the trucks.

Counting the trip with Vince and the two on the last two days of season I had seen birds in each place where birds had been seen earlier. And in those three days not a shot had been fired. That means the birds made it through the super cold, heavy snow just fine. Since the end of the season we have had spring like weather so the ones that are alive should have a chance to live to mating season. I will say it again, “quail are too valuable to shoot”. We need them to work our dogs on.

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Too Cold In Missouri

Posted on January 24, 2024 by windypointsj1s@aol.com

This has been a winter to sit by the fire. Not that, that is what we want to do. Hunting seasons are never long enough and with some of the nights getting down to 12 below zero, it’s too cold in Missouri. The first couple of nights I put the dogs in their boxes in the truck and parked in the garage. When I woke up each morning about 6 am or earlier I would let the dogs out for a few minutes. As soon as they did their business they loaded right back up. Even Boss who hates to ride or hates the box would sometimes be the first to load up.

Epitaph enough for anyone.

Mann pointing a covey in Oklahoma.

Boss honoring.

I’m not sure that bringing the dogs in is necessary. They have good houses with lots of hay. On the real cold days I change their water buckets twice a day. I only feed once a day but I mix water with their kibble to make sure they get plenty of water. Bringing them in makes me feel better about them, so it’s worth it.

But after just a couple of days I knew it wasn’t good for me either so I loaded up and headed to Arizona. I, probably, should have been an over the road trucker. From my home in Missouri, the first day, I drove to Las Cruces New Mexico. A little over 900 miles. By noon the second day I had my license and was looking for a place to hunt.

I wasn’t as prepared as I should have been. I didn’t have BLM maps and my Onx didn’t work right either. From being here 3 or 4 years ago I remembered a place where I had found 3 coveys of Gambles quail. There was a stock tank that kept the quail close and was a good place to get the dogs cooled off. When I got there 3 people were already hunting it. Well at least they were on it, eating lunch. A couple from Wisconsin, with a guy from Tombstone about 10 miles away. When I asked, they said, they had seen a few.

I drove down the road about a mile and back into another place where I had found a covey a few years ago. I turned the dogs out but the water hole here was dry and there were no tracks in the sand. We made a big circle down a dry wash and along a hillside and in about an hour we were back to the truck. It was good to get the dogs out but we needed to find a new area.

I drove into the mountains where there was a chance of working some Mearns quail. This area is a really neat area with scattered oak and cedar trees. Some type of tall grass covers the area. While I was close I did drive right along the barrier between Old Mexico and Arizona. It’s not much of a barrier. Just a barb wire fence and some iron bars running inside the fence.

From the mountains. The line is between Arizona and Mexico.

I turned the dogs out and we hunted into a strong south wind. There are deep draws every hundred yards or so if you are going east to west. Less draws if you go south but the dogs don’t mind the draws. Boss pointed and I had to cross one draw and then go a long way to the south. When I got close, the way the draw ran, he was back on the other side. When I got close he and the other dogs started trailing around. Evidently, the birds had run off. We never came up with anything.

We turned to the west then back to the north. At the head of one of the draws Mann pointed about 150 yards from me. I could see him on point, high on both ends, at about 75 yards. I got to about 50 yards of him, with him still looking good, and I heard a quail flush and saw another fly a short distance. It went down in a clump of brush. I got all of the dogs in to hunt the small clump. None of them even got birdy. I don’t know what happened to that bird.

I carried water with me for the dogs and it’s a good thing. There was no water to be had. We worked our way back around to the truck. I found a spot where I could tie the dogs and feed them before leaving. I loaded the dogs and went looking for a motel.

Sally honoring.

I was back out early the next morning. I had seen a lot of trucks with bird hunters the day before but this morning I never saw a one. I thought maybe, since yesterday was a Monday, a lot of guys had 3 day weekends. I turned the dogs loose in the mountains, again.

We hunted for a couple of hours with nothing happening. My altimeter showed that we were over a mile high and I knew I couldn’t hunt all day there. I decided to load dogs and see if we could find any birds back where I had seen the 3 people the day before. On the way out, on about 5 miles of main road, I saw 7 trucks with dog boxes. Most of the people park well off the main road, as I did both days. So this area is getting hit really hard.

I got back to the place near Tombstone and no one was hunting it. I checked to make sure there was water in the tank before we started, and there was. We started into a pretty good wind to the west. I came to a small dry, sandy creek bed and saw a lot of quail tracks in the sand. I got the dogs in but they must have been old tracks. The dogs didn’t act interested. We went on to the west and then I crossed a tough 6 strand barb wire fence. Just as I got to the other side my GPS showed Boss on point on the side I had just left. So back I went.

Abby honoring.

When I got close to him, Sally and Abby were honoring. Boss was looking straight down, almost, like the bird was right under his nose. When I got close he started moving. I think he was pointing a pack rat. I called him away and recrossed the fence. We circled back and I hit the dry wash in a different place and there were more quail tracks. In the sand a track will stay a long time and it’s hard to know how old they were.

I had given the dogs most of the water I was carrying and when we got close to the stock tank I called the dogs in to drink and I refilled my water bottles. Sally, Abby and Boss just got a drink from the tank but Mann jumped in and drank as he swam around. He is smarter than the others.

Every where I had hunted in Arizona showed signs of a lot of hunters. Everywhere I went there were either lots of trucks or lots of tracks as I walked through the fields. I know there are a lot of quail in Arizona but they have had a lot of pressure. Of the people I had talked to, no one was doing very well. I decided to go back to Oklahoma and give it a try.

When I left home it was 8 below zero and I was heading into a strong head wind. My gas mileage really suffered for a while then came back up some but on the way to Oklahoma I had a really strong tail wind that really had the gas mileage soaring. I drove from Sierra Vista Arizona to Elk City Oklahoma.

Boss pointing a single.

I was raised in Oklahoma but I didn’t start hunting western Oklahoma until 2005. The bird numbers have been down so I haven’t hunted Oklahoma in a few years but I remember some of the places. Oklahoma wasn’t in my plans when I left home so I didn’t have my normal array of maps.

I had bought my license before I went to the motel the night before. I drove around the first place I hunted without seeing any hunters or even any trucks with dog boxes. I turned the dogs out and started to the north into a strong wind. We hadn’t gone far when all of the dogs got really excited. I think a covey of quail flushed but I neither saw nor heard any.

About a half mile farther in, I saw Boss and Sally, 75 yards from me acting really birdy. I started to them, then saw a small covey of quail running from Sally and Boss toward me. About the time I saw them, they flushed. Only 6 birds so I didn’t shoot. I don’t know if this was all that was left of this covey or only part of it ran toward me. They flew over a rise where I couldn’t see where they went down.

We went on to the north edge of this property, turned east for about a quarter mile and started back south. I had parked near a frozen stock tank and when we got close, again the dogs acted as though a covey of quail flushed. Boss went 500 yards to the east and all of the dogs were checking everything out.

Mann on point.

I had used most of the water I carried with me so I found a 3 pound hammer in my truck and broke the ice in the stock tank. I refilled my water bottles and filled a pan for the dogs. We walked down the fence line about a mile south then moved over and hunted back toward the truck. We got into some big areas of prickly pear. I think the last few dry years have really allowed the prickly pear to flourish.

We got to the truck and I watered the dogs again. All except Mann. I checked the GPS and he was on point about 150 yards away. As I started to him the other dogs came along. By the time I got close Abby and Sally were honoring. I took some pictures then walked in front of Mann. A small covey flushed. Only 5 birds. Again, I didn’t shoot. This could have been part of some of the other quail that we had moved but this late in the year I don’t want to be the one that kills too many out of a covey. I would rather have birds to work our dogs on than a bird in my hand.

The dogs were hot and with all of the prickly pear maybe sore footed. I decided to drive to where I wanted to hunt the next day, about 30 miles, and look it over and rest the dogs for a while.

Bodie pointing a chukar.

As I turned the corner near where I was going to park the truck in the morning I saw 2 quail in the road. They were crossing off the property I wanted to hunt to a harvested corn field, on private ground. I tried to flush them to see how many birds were in the covey. I only saw 3 and a little while later another. But it would make a good starting place for the next day.

As I drove around I saw places where I had found quail in the past. I decided a short hunt in one of the places wouldn’t be a bad thing. A lot of years ago I had hunted this spot and only needed 2 birds for a limit. One of my dogs pointed and when the covey got up I killed one with the first shot and at my second shot 2 birds went to the ground. I thought, “now I’m over my limit”. I got the first bird and went to where the two had dropped and a quail flew off. I found my last bird and was relieved that I didn’t kill too many. I think the second quail thought the one I shot had just lit there so he did too.

I found a good way into this property and turned the dogs loose. About 50 yards in I looked and 3 of the dogs were about 5 yards behind me and one about that much in front. I thought the prickly pear had really worked on them. We went to the truck. Abby jumped onto the truck and when I petted her before letting her into the box my hand almost stuck to her. She was covered in sand burrs. I got my needle nose pliars and went to work on all four dogs. That was the reason they weren’t hunting. We went back to the motel.

Boss pointing a single.

The next morning when I got up it was 16 degrees and the wind was from the north at 25 miles an hour gusting to 40. Not going to hunt and not going to hang around a motel. I headed home. With the 25 mph wind and gusts of 40 head wind, my gas mileage, that I had built up with the strong tail wind, plummeted. Oh, well. I had missed a lot of the super cold weather that had settled on Missouri and most of the United States and I got to spend 6 days with my dogs.

I had to recycle some pictures. My server was busy. Whatever that means.

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