Who's Hunting Tomorrow??

[DHoey]

Great pic!

...hey are you wearing snake gaiters?

Thanks. They're gaiters but not snake gaiters. We do have rattlers around here but as long as it's cold, they don't mess with ya. I started using those gaiters probably 3 years ago and they're amazing. Walking through wet grass would soak my pants and the water would travel down my socks and soak my feet. Using those I will be bone dry, while walking through tall grass in a rainstorm. Protects the bottoms of my pants too.

I told my buddy for a long time that they would change his hunting life and he just laughed......until he finally bought some and figured out what I was talking about

 

[NEhomer]

I use Muck boots for the same reason. They slip on and off and fit like a slipper. My feet stay bone dry through wet grass or standing water. Our birds sometimes seek the swampy areas.

 

[mrwallace2ku]

That's a blue grouse.

i couldn't enlarge the photo to see the bird, yeah blue grouse love high elevations.

 

[NEhomer]

Takin' Whip to a new hunting area this afternoon. Hope I'll have pics but either way, he's gonna be stoked!

 

[DHoey]

Takin' Whip to a new hunting area this afternoon. Hope I'll have pics but either way, he's gonna be stoked!

Good luck, I'm heading out in about an hour as well.

 

[NEhomer]

Well what a nice hunting area. It's a MA State WMA that's stocked and there were plenty of birds on a nicely manicured 450 acres. Tall grasses and shrub growth along a creek and swamp.

For the first bird, Whip went on a beautiful and intense point. When I arrived, I could see the rooster 8ft in front of him. He was LOCKED and the lowering sun was casting light against the reeds...stood there for a half minute to enjoy it and then stepped forward, flushed the bird and folded it cleanly. Not so lucky on the second. He found someone's cripple and he ran it down. I wanted to keep hunting but I did the ethical thing; bagged the bird and headed for the truck. He has to learn to do that too so I considered it training. I'll definitely be Fred Flintstone-ing work on Friday afternoons for a while to head to this place.

 

[Dusty]

Congratulations, a real nice dog you have there and pretty birds. Finding crippled birds is another good reason to have a dog. They stock the state game lands here with pheasants raised on the pheasant farms. The native pheasants are gone long ago to a great degree due to the clean farming methods and the hawks and fox. They have tried introducing pheasants from the mid-west and have these pheasant propagation areas to try to develop them. I am not sure if it is working or not. Back in the late 1950’s when I started hunting, the farms and fields and small wood lots were full of native pheasants. Best of luck and safe hunting for the rest of the season.

 

[NEhomer]

Thanks. Yeah, as for pheasants, it's pretend hunting around here. We have no established natural birds which makes me envious of Neb and romeo and those guys who chase the wild ones.

My buddy Joe joined me yesterday morning and it was his first time seeing Whip work...my boy made me proud. He's just so much fun to hunt with because he's thoroughly obedient, staunch and adjusts his range perfectly. We had a blast though I missed once and my buddy missed twice. We still got a pair of birds for Joe to bring home.

Who's getting tired of Whip tailgate pics?! Just posting this one 'cause the tongue makes it a great pic.

 

[NEhomer]

Shot out of work again today and brought my friend Phil to the State WMA I hunted last week. We recovered another cripple but got three nice points and nice phone videos to boot so it was another great afternoon and limit of birds at this new place. It was rather flooded but we both have the Muck boots and there was a section to get through that woulda soaked leather boots so maybe for that reason, we were the only ones there.

 

[ktg8trgrl]

first day of hunting season in Ga .. my girl is in the woods!!

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Headin out to white-tail country next week to fill a tag... Good lawd I'm gettin anxious to get my hands bloody!

 

[Dusty]

Headin out to white-tail country next week to fill a tag... Good lawd I'm gettin anxious to get my hands bloody!

Good luck! I used to gut them with my bare hands until something changed and now I am allergic to their blood, in that, I break out in hives anywhere the blood gets on my skin. I wear those plastic, long gutting gloves.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Good luck! I used to gut them with my bare hands until something changed and now I am allergic to their blood, in that, I break out in hives anywhere the blood gets on my skin. I wear those plastic, long gutting gloves.

Thanks!

That's strange? I wonder if its the dander & hair, or the blood thats causing it?

 

[Dusty]

Thanks!

That's strange? I wonder if its the dander & hair, or the blood thats causing it?

Hard to say, but I have been doing this since around 1964 and it started sometime in the early 1990’s after I had eight months of chemotherapy for lymphoma. I don’t know for sure but that is all that changed at that point in time. The first season after chemo I shot a small buck and gutted it and got to a steam and washed some of the blood off, but not all and I had rubbed my eye. My hand got hives and my eye swelled shut. Had to take Benadryl for it. Also, I was told by a pharmacist that there are organisms that can live in the blood while it is still warm that can be transferred to you.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Hard to say, but I have been doing this since around 1964 and it started sometime in the early 1990’s after I had eight months of chemotherapy for lymphoma. I don’t know for sure but that is all that changed at that point in time. The first season after chemo I shot a small buck and gutted it and got to a steam and washed some of the blood off, but not all and I had rubbed my eye. My hand got hives and my eye swelled shut. Had to take Benadryl for it. Also, I was told by a pharmacist that there are organisms that can live in the blood while it is still warm that can be transferred to you.

I'm not an allergist or doctor, but essentially all blood is basically the same. And if you are indeed allergic to the blood then I'd assume you wouldn't be able to eat the meat. Epidermal reactions such as the ones you get are typically caused by contact with dander. In order to have a reaction to deer proteins (blood) I'm pretty sure you would have to ingest it. Are you allergic to dogs, cats or horses/cattle as well?

 

[Dusty]

No, but thank you for the information.

 

[NEhomer]

Good luck Dusty~

Found a new bird hunting spot my buddy showed me on some out-of-the-way State land. We just scouted it real quick on Sunday and Whip found two woodcock. I was so psyched, I jumped out of work on Monday afternoon but then the skies opened up and it poured all afternoon so yesterday was a bust. I have to stay late the next couple of days but I can't wait to go with gun in hand maybe on Thursday.

Whip's 2017 bird total is at 12 pheasants so far. Woulda been closer to 18 if we were better shots!

 

[NEhomer]

Out for woodcock at first light, state pheasants later in the morning, cleaning birds, catching a nap on the couch, seeing an acoustic concert by my new favorite singer/songwriter Lydia Loveless in the evening.

...on paper it's looking like a good day!

 

[mrwallace2ku]

NO dogs required, just energy.

 

[NEhomer]

Got blown out of hunting after an hour in the morning due to high gusting winds that made it impossible. Lydia was terrific though so still not a bad day.

We got a number of nice points and took 4 more birds this morning after 4 hours sleep. Whip's up to 16 on the season~