Trio's First Pheasant Hunt

There is nothing quite like a crisp cool November morning, an excited dog at your feet, and pheasants on the brain.

Pheasant hunting has been a joy of mine for quite a few years now. It is a very active and exciting sport that really gets the blood pumping. It is a lot of walking which is great exercise for myself and the dog. Mostly though it is the anticipation, the anxiousness of not knowing when a bird could explode from the grass in front of you!

A couple of days ago I took our pup Trio out on his first pheasant hunt. While we did not manage to bring home a pheasant for supper we did get some action and have a great experience.  

I let him explore the parking lot for a while to get him running around and burn off some of his excitement. This was only the second time he had been out in the marsh and all of the sights and smells had to be explored. While he was exploring I was listening for a rooster to cackle as the sun slowly crept higher in the sky.

There! An excited cackle from a rooster pheasant just to the south of us. I had been watching Trio explore the area as the pheasant sounded off and he stopped immediately to listen. Now I knew exactly which way to go and we started off.

We headed south towards the source of the sound, passing through a brush line and into the open field. We had only just begun walking through the tall grass when Trio reached a corner in the field. A flurry of wings and grass erupted right in front of little Trio and he stopped only for a second before he leapt off after the bird. I raised my gun and got off a shot but some tree branches interfered and the bird sailed off into the distance.

I called Trio back and praised him for a job well done. In the few seconds that our first encounter lasted I was able to learn many things about my new puppy! First I could see that he was very excited by finding the bird and wanted more than anything to catch it. This is very important for a bird dog because sometimes a large bird like a pheasant can scare them and cause them to become bird shy. Second I saw how he reacted when retracing the spot where the bird had been, how his tail moved and how he carried himself. It is very important for a hunter to know exactly how your dog reacts when they find bird scent or get "birdy". I noticed how his tail movements quickened and how his overall movements changed, he was moving very aggressively back and forth towards the scent trail. Being able to discern between a birdy dog and just normal excitement will make you more prepared for a flush.

So even though we did not bag a bird that morning we had a great first experience. Trio got his first encounter with a live bird and his first chance to meet the rest of the hunting group as well.

Pheasant hunting is a great sport to share between friends both two legged and four legged!