The Arizona quail season came to a screeching halt on February 11, which left bird hunters with a case of wondering what to do next. Like other wingshooters hoping to extend the season, a friend and I went for a two-day hunt in New Mexico because their season remains open until the 15th.
As usual, reality catches up and then sets in. It’s time to start planning other seasonal activities. It’s also a great time to get a bird dog puppy, which I did in the form of a 12-week-old liver and white English pointer that we named Pancho.
The time frame logic on this is that I can start getting him ready for when bird hunting season rolls around again in the fall, as he will be mature enough to start hunting, provided the training I do now sets him up for success down the road.
Our training will be kept extremely light with an emphasis on Pancho learning to ‘come’ when his name is called (he already does this) to ‘kennel’ (go inside a dog crate on command) and to stay with me (not get lost) when we start going out on fun runs with the big dogs.
On our fun runs, Pancho will be introduced to gun fire via a .22 caliber starting pistol. He will learn to associate the bang with good times as I will fire it while he is running around exploring. There will also be walks through town to get him used to more sights and sounds. He will be meeting all kinds of really nice people which helps in his socialization and again generates confidence in different surroundings.
When he turns four months I will introduce him to planted pigeons. What he gains from this is that birds are extremely fun and he can use his nose to smell and eventually point them.
The short term goal will be to set Pancho up so that he will be hunting this fall in Montana and Saskatchewan.
The long term goal is to develop a bird dog that I can brag about for the rest of his life, at the same time creating a lot of great memories for myself when he moves on. I’m looking forward to Pancho’s adventures!