It's Brutal Out There

Swarming deer flies can drive you out of the woods.

Normally at this time of the year it is cool enough in the morning to not only run dogs but to keep the deer flies at bay.  They usually come out as the day warms and Tony and I are headed for the diner for breakfast.  This morning it was close to 70 at 6:00 am and the deer flies were already swarming as we broke away the first brace.  With Brandy at home with Tim for a week and Max on IR for at least one more day, I was able to get Annie and Trip out of the kennel for a run today.  The heat, high humidity, and still air made bird finding all but impossible and we only moved two grouse in the first brace and went birdless in the second.  By then it was well over 70 and we headed in for an early breakfast.  After breakfast I had enough time before it got too hot to run both puppy braces.  All four of them are doing great and making good progress.

Yesterday was a Red barn day and we ran four braces of dogs.  Pete, Lucy, Maggie and Jagger were all on the truck and most had bird contact with 15 woodcock flushed.  Lucy got dog of the day honors with two nice finds where she stayed staunch and then remained steady to wing and shot.  I'd brag on her more but she's from the Jack X Trip litter two years ago and I don't want to be accused of favoritism.  

21 Woodcock

We're starting to make real progress getting the dogs into birds.  Yesterday we tried a couple of new spots and ended the morning with 12 grouse and 9 woodcock. This morning we started earlier than usual to try and beat the heat.  In three braces of dogs we moved a total of 21 woodcock. The most amazing find was Lucy's.  She went on point about 90 yards away and when I got to her a hen woodcock fluttered up like it had chicks.  Then one by one all four chicks lifted while Lucy stayed put.  They must have been a very late hatch as they were still quite small and didn't fly very far.  Lucy along with a number of the other dogs is now wearing a bellyband to staunch her up.  She got the first taste of it in the woods today.  It's a great training tool when used appropriately but can cause problems when used to excess.  The most common problem with too much bellyband is nonproductive points.  The dogs get overly cautious and stop with the slightest whiff of scent.  you have to catch them busting a bird or failing to back to make it work right.   Like all training timing and being sure the dog knows what the correction is for are the keys to success.