A friend sent me a picture of his 9 month old pup, that he bought from me, pointing a woodcock. He said, “I’ve heard some dogs won’t point them.” This got me to thinking about some of the dogs I’ve owned that wouldn’t point just any bird that didn’t fly away from them.
When I started in Sally came in front of me, saw Luke and Lucky and honored.
Betsy pointing a pigeon.
Sally on point.
A lot of years ago I had a dog by the name of Rusty. He was an English setter out of a female I owned by the name of Judy. Rusty was a white and orange dog. He was named by the kids because he looked like he had rust poured down his face.
My son in law, Bobby Eades, and I were hunting near Eldorado Springs in Missouri. We had crossed a large fescue pasture to hunt a bluff area, away back from the road. On the way back to the truck we saw a wet weather creek, that ran into the fescue for about 150 yards, with just a few trees growing along the edge. The farmer hadn’t planted the creek area in fescue so it was easier walking. The dogs hit the creek and a woodcock flushed right in front of Rusty. He didn’t even pay it any attention until I shot. When the woodcock hit the ground he retrieved it.
After retrieving the bird he must have thought, “oh, you want those birds,” because he started pointing them. Bobby and I both shot our limit in that 150 yard stretch. I don’t remember whether the limit was 3 or 4 but we had points after we had our limits. I have never seen that many woodcock in a small area since. We must have caught a flight resting.
Another dog I had named Lady wouldn’t point a new type bird until she retrieved one. Dennis Garrison and I were running in a field trial near Holden, Missouri. It was a money raiser for a boys home. You had two hunters, two dogs and five birds. Whoever got their birds in the shortest time won. We turned our dogs loose and about 10 yards in Lady went on point. About the time I called point she went on. Dennis’s dog pointed and when the chukar flushed he killed it. Lady ran over and retrieved it to me. We went on through the field and had 4 birds. We weren’t finding the last bird so I took Lady back around to where we had turned out. She went to almost the same spot of her first point and pointed again. This time she held until I walked in. I shot the chukar and she retrieved. We won second or third but if she had of held on her first point we would have probably won first.
A few years later I was hunting in Montana. I talked to a farmer that was combining some wheat about hunting where he was working. He said, “sure if you want but I have a better spot.” He gave me directions to another place of his about 8 miles away. He said, “park under that tree.” I must have looked at him kind of funny because he said, “you may be surprised but you won’t see many trees between here and there,” and he was right.
I parked under the tree and turned all 5 dogs loose. We went through a pasture to a low area that only had water in it during a rain. Lady was older and didn’t make the big casts that she did when she was young. She was in the bottom with me and the other dogs were running on top along the edge. I saw her turn then move on. Three sharp tail grouse flushed right in front of her. I knocked one down and she retrieved it.
I then managed to kill a limit of sharp tails, over her points. I never saw another flush close to her that she wasn’t pointing the rest of the trip.
All dogs are not this way. I only killed one Hungarian partridge and it was pointed by one of the other dogs. That was the only Hun I saw.
If dogs pointed anything that held for them we would be flushing meadow larks and all kinds of stink birds. Just a few weeks ago I worked Betsy and Sally on chukar. At one time or another I have used the other dogs when I was guiding. At Bird Fever, Luke, Lucky, Tur Bo and Dolly pointed pheasants, chukar and quail.
I never saw any of them that didn’t point the first time they saw one of these birds. But they still don’t point trash birds. I see them from time to time turn their head and watch a stink bird fly. They know they are there but they don’t point. I don’t know why but I’m glad they are this way.
Tur Bo pointing a single quail.
Sally Joe pointing a pigeon.
Luke buried in the weeds on a Kansas quail hunt.