"Tune-up" Pheasant Hunt

Went out to Hastings Island Hunting Preserve this morning with my friend Mark and his 10-month-old Vizsla.

We went out from 7:30 until 9:30 hunting pheasant.  Thought a "tune-up" hunt would be a good idea before Ken and I head out to South Dakota for six days on the prairie.

The cover was VERY thick in much of the hunting areas. Bailey "bumped" (flushed the birds without pointing) about 8 pheasants but never did point one.  Not sure if he didn't pick up their scent before they took to wing or if he just wanted to try and "jump" them.  Last year, we had gone out hunting on a foggy morning and the wet birds did not fly.  Bailey had learned during that hunt that he could catch the pheasants as they ran and he was bring them back to m from the field.  Not so today.  I was glad about that.  The wild birds in South Dakota will be tougher and not allow Bailey to crowd them before they head to the sky.

I could have taken down about four of the birds, but did not want to reward Bailey for the "bumps" and I didn't want to fill my friend's bird card.  Well, also there were the two times I had the "safety" on  my shotgun.  That didn't help either.

Mark did get a couple nice pheasants.  One of the birds was one flushed by Bailey that flew right over Mark's head while he hunted 50 yards away.

Bailey did point four "hot spots" and one skunk. On Bailey's very stylish skunk point I almost stepped on the black and white little critter as I was searching for the assumed  hidden bird.  Lucky for me it did not spray me as my foot almost came down on him.

We got out of the skunk's area but then Bailey and the other young Vizsla circled around and the next smell Mark and I got was the skunk's fragrance. I thought he had sprayed the dogs, but fortunately he hadn't, but we didn't know that until the dogs came back to us.  I was wondering how I was going to bring a skunk soaked dog back home in the Jeep.

After the hunt, we took a round at the trap shoot stations.  My 20 gauge seems fine.

I don't think either Bailey or I am in the 'hunting shape" we need to be in for South Dakota.

Two hours and Bailey is wiped out for the rest of the day and I needed a nap.

More conditioning is in order over the next couple weeks before we go.

 My two-liter water backpack will come in handy for the dogs if they run as hard as Bailey did today

A year later ( November 2011) and another pheasant hunt posted below.

Pheasant hunt with Bailey for Thanksgiving meal