That said, try convincing this to someone who just walked for an entire day only to kick up one hen.  Or, someone who suddenly became dog-less. Sometimes the slow days make our minds wander and cause even the most dedicated upland addicts to question what exactly they’re doing. But for every moment we start to question, life seems to throw us unexpected reaffirmation. We love it. Both the good and the bad.

So as the rest of the hunting blogosphere starts reflecting about how this past year was ______ (insert: great/fun/hard/too short… etc.), I’ll leave you with a video that accurately sums up my 2011-2012 upland season. The good? I “found” some birds. The bad? My dog wasn’t always there to find them for me. The result? The realization that no matter what, if you’re lucky enough to be hunting, you’re simply lucky enough.

I’ve seen pointing labs and retrieving setters, but flushing deer? This is getting ridiculous.

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

All Beau wants for Christmas is the ability to hit the fields running next fall.

This was supposed to be a cakewalk; what I ended up with was a dog that can’t walk.

By mid-Saturday morning, the action was exactly what I had anticipated. Most birds were flushing wild, but there were enough  “heart attack hens” and tight-holding roosters left to keep all four dogs busy. Beau was flying back and forth and a bit hard to control with so much scent wafting through the air, but I was ok with this. After all, this was supposed to be her payday for a season’s worth of work. Her tail was wagging, feathers were stuck to her muzzle and there was a renewed jump in her step – until that jump slowly morphed into a limp.

It started off as  barely noticeable, just a small hitch in her giddy-up while walking from field to field, but It quicky  escalated to  her rear left leg being hoisted to her gut while she hopped along in front of me. As if to say “I’ll just play it off as no big deal, he’ll still let me hunt,” she tried to stay ahead of me as if nothing was wrong. Not so fast pooch.

She was crated for the rest of the trip and with that, my hunt quickly turned into a nature walk. The spark was gone, the interest fleeting. There I was, hunting with some of my best friends, laughing along the way as we got closer to our limits – but with an unsettling emptiness looming within me. An emptiness I hope will be filled by next fall.

This week Beau was diagnosed with a completely torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL). She’s not even two years old, she was just beginning to come into her own and now both she and I have to start over. This past evening she looked up at me while sitting awkwardly next to the kitchen table with the easiest expression I’ve ever read on her face: “I’m sorry.” A look of remorse stared me in the eyes and neither of us knew what to do.

She knows something is wrong but not to what extent. I know what’s wrong but not what this means for our future. Both of our hearts are caught in our throats. By the time her second birthday rolls around in February, hopefully I’ll have more answers. For now all I have is an extra bag of bones and ambiguities.

To have surgery, or not to have surgery, that is the question…

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

Twelve-year-old Kayla and her dog Zoey proudly display her first rooster and her pink shotgun. Kayla is a Pheasants Forever youth member from Montana.

I’ll be the first to admit when it comes to the products I buy, the colors I wear, and the activities I participate in, I fall in line with what’s considered a “gender norm.” I own an SUV, grew up wearing blue, hunt and fish more than I should and sport what I consider to be a respectable hunting beard. This all sounds pretty normal for a 25-year-old guy except for one small fact: I love pink guns.

Nine-year-old Audrey practices with her pink BB gun before going on her first hunt.

From birth, society instills what’s generally accepted as being normal or “ok.” Deviate too far from these norms and your path through life may become a tougher row to hoe. Hence my first reaction to pink firearms: “Wow, that’s dumb. I wouldn’t be caught dead in a pheasant field or duck blind next someone who carries that.” However, before I start to make my old Gender and Communication professor cringe, I’ll confess I was viewing these bright and shiny synthetic guns from the wrong vantage point.

I’m not going to rush out and buy a pink shotgun, because frankly, I don’t want one. That  said, I love the idea of them. They represent a larger acceptance of the hunting and shooting community and help bridge the gap to an oftentimes neglected portion of the outdoor world. Women hunt. Girls want to hit the field with their dads…and even moms. And believe it or not, some wives and girlfriends would love an invitation to come along and chase birds with you, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong if it takes a pink gun to get that conversation started.

More pink guns = more women shooters = more hunting households = more kids involved in the great outdoors = future conservationists. Seems like a win-win situation. If a shiny, synthetic gun that flairs ducks from 100 yards is the easiest way to get more people involved in the lifestyle we love, then let them flair away because at least you’ll be in good company.

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

A dusty Pheasants Forever membership decal is often a source of pride come fall.

As we roll across the prairie into the fourth state of our five state Rooster Road Trip, we’ve encountered wild flushing birds, sunny skies, crisp winds and friendly faces throughout. However, one startling theme has shown itself in gravel roadside conversations with fellow hunters; “No, I’m not a Pheasants Forever member.”

One prime example of this happened while we were loading up our dogs next to a WIHA area in Kansas. A pair of veteran uplanders pulled upside us with a brace of English Pointers and a Brittany and proceeded with the typical hunter pleasantries.

Our conversation quickly turned to bird numbers and one of the gentlemen brought up Pheasants Forever’s Pheasant Hunting Forecast and some of the habitat work that’s taken place in the area. Naturally we asked if they were members of our organization. “No, I’m not a member or anything, I just like reading some of their stuff.” “Well, why aren’t you a member then?” I quizzically responded. The driver of the truck looked up from filing down his nails and all too quickly said “Because there’s no birds where we’re from.”

So what comes first, the chicken or the egg? One membership won’t magically make birds appear at the end of your driveway, but everyone’s collective membership does in fact make a profound difference. With nearly 90 cents out of every dollar raised going toward Pheasants Forever’s wildlife habitat mission, I’ll let you do the math for a 130,000 member organization.  Finding $35 dollars (a portion of which tax deductable) to spend once a year on a membership isn’t asking too much when it comes to supporting the wild places we all know and love.

If you’ve made it this far, chances are you enjoy the entertainment value of Rooster Road Trip and the wildlife conservation work Pheasants Forever is dedicated to. So let me ask you this, “Are you a Pheasants Forever member?”

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

I first danced with this pretty girl at the gun club. We took things slow and I broke a few clays that were laid up nice and easy from the trap house. But we just couldn’t keep our hands off each other and our relationship soon escalated to a fast and furious romance at the 5 stand course. She knew just how to make me smile.

With classic pheasant, duck and bird dog high-relief engravings on the 3 respective sides of the receiver, and a trigger pull that fit me just right, I knew this was meant to last, she was more than just good looks – she had a substance, class, and style all her own.

Being a one gal type of guy, it was important to me that we’d get along no matter where we were. And with her weighing in at just over 7 lbs., having the ability to handle 3” rounds while possessing a low profile ventilated top meant I could swing her anywhere from Minnesota to Arkansas.

Unfortunately, just like any young romance, her impact ejectors will eventually toss me to the dirt and with the conclusion of my Rooster Road Trip, so too will our relationship come to an end. But like any true love, I won’t give up until I’ve saved enough pennies to bring her back into my life.

I just hope my bird dog doesn’t get jealous.

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission requests hunters provide the number of the band, and the location and date it was recovered. Bands may be reported by calling 402-471-1756.

Considering the fact that this same area produced more birds than any other state on last year’s trip, we were jacked.

As of this afternoon, I haven’t been disappointed. After all, I was lucky enough to witness my dog, Beau, retrieve my first-ever banded… pheasant? Yup, that’s right, I slid a wild, banded rooster into my Browning game bag and at the risk of sounding like an amateur, it feels pretty cool.

Andrew and Beau pose with their Nebraska banded ringneck.

What’s the story behind these bejeweled birds? From the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission:

Game and Parks is capturing wild birds in the focus area and putting leg bands on them. The purpose is to help understand how pheasants move and use the study area, portions of Hitchcock, Hayes and Red Willow counties, as well as hunter harvest in the area.

This study is being completed within the Southwest Focus on Pheasants Initiative that is being spearheaded by both the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and Pheasants Forever.

For more information, check out this great video of the nighttime pheasant capture and leg banding taking place:

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

Although I don't own slippers, I'm sure I'll be clicking my heels to get back to Kansas in the near future.

I think I finally understand why Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz was so bent on getting back home (to Kansas). She was a bird hunter.

Don’t let those ruby-red slippers and that little hairball of a terrier fool you, she’s clearly a Danner wearing, Browning toting, bird dog following type of gal at heart. I mean, how could you not be when you’re from a state that has more public land than poor Toto could ever hope to see while strapped to the back of a GSP?

Our fist morning in Kansas found us smack dab in the middle of a wild game petting zoo – and our pockets were full of pellets. From mule deer and turkeys to prairie chickens, quail and pheasants – there was more than enough action to test Beau’s olfactory fortitude as well as my shooting skills.

Luckily, for all parties involved, the morning’s flushes and points were occasionally followed by hits and wagging tails.  There isn’t much more an upland addict could ask for (although it would be nice to unlock the secret to consistently bagging quail, but that’s a rant for a different day).

So far so good, the journey continues and as always, we’ll keep you updated as we sojourn across pheasant country in search of public land, wily ringnecks and full game bags.

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

If your dog can chew through a used tire, you might want to reconsider giving it one of these "treats" before a hunt...

It all started innocently enough. I found myself meandering around a small town hardware store/gas station/local hangout after a long opening morning pheasant hunt. Somewhere between the overpriced energy drinks and drywall anchors the pet aisle caught my eye, feeling quite proud of my pup’s performance that morning I figured it would be worth coughing up a few extra dollars to reward her for a job well done.

Beggin’ Strips? Sure, why not, nothing wrong with a little treat at the end of the field -but wait – what’s that? Do I spy an entire smoked pig femur? Perfect. This would keep the little hellion occupied as I try to warm up to a piping hot bowl of chili.

We arrived back at the farm house and much to Beau’s delight I tossed the bone into her kennel before retreating to the comforts of clanking spoons and college football. No more than an hour later, I went back outside to uncrate the dog and was greeted by a feverishly wagging tail… and no bone.

Zip, nadda, zilch. There was nothing left of what was once an entire femur. “Crud.” Except I didn’t say crud.

The rest of the afternoon was basically a casual walk through the park with my gun over my shoulder and an uncomfortable lab licking my heels. She wasn’t having anything to do with sudden movements and therefore I wasn’t going to be partaking in the flushing of any birds.

Luckily, Sunday morning arrived and after a few extra bathroom breaks Beau was back up to full speed. Lesson learned. It’s one thing to be a bone collector; it’s a totally different thing to be a bone eater.

Have you ever inadvertently made your dog take an off day?

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

…Whether pheasant numbers are up or down, you and your dog are going to be hitting the fields. What’s the silver lining in a down year? You’ll have an excuse to spend even extra time outside with friends and family searching for those elusive ringnecks.

Everything you need for when your pooch gets in a pinch.

The drawback from spending more time afield are more chances for your bird dog to hit fences, find porcupines, step on cattle guards and run into any other worst-case-scenarios you can think of. Accidents happen, and increased hunting time increases the risk of these accidents taking place. You can’t prevent them (no one likes a “helicopter handler”) but you can be prepared for them.

The easiest and most logical action you can take is to always have a canine first aid kit in your truck. Anywhere your dog goes, so should this kit; and I highly recommend Creative Pet Products’ Sporting Dog Premium First Aid Kit, available from Pheasants Forever.

Inside you’ll find:

• First Aid Instructional Booklet
• Skin Staple Gun
• Cold Pack
• Hydrogen Peroxide
• Eye Wash
• 2” Flexible Wrap
• Alcohol Prep Pads
• Gauze Pads
• Iodine & Saline Solution
• Forceps, Scissors & Syringe
• Tourniquet
• AND MORE

This is the most comprehensive “does it all” dog first aid kit I’ve found, it travels well and doesn’t skip out on anything important. I can’t put a dollar figure on keeping my dog alive and well, and I’m guessing you can’t either.

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.

So what better way to kill some time (because that’s all we’re doing until pheasant season starts anyway, right?) than by ruminating about what I am most looking forward to this upcoming pheasant season:

• Growing an epic beard (Marty Stouffer, anyone?)
  

  Nothing beats spending time with your “fall friends” exploring the eccentricities of the road.

• Getting lost on a lonely, old back road and stumbling into some great looking habitat
• Trying out Minnesota’s new Walk-In Access Program (although with the bird numbers down this year, “walkin’ program” may be the more operative phrase)
• Playing the “What’s that stain?” game while staying at a crummy hotel in the middle of nowhere
• Spending time with great friends, the type whom you swear don’t escape their home/cave/relationship unless the leaves have turned color and a shotgun is nearby
• Eating junk food while on the road, justified because “I’ll just walk it off while hunting” (Yeah, right…)
• And last but certainly not least, hitting the fields for a second season with my 19-month-old pup, Beau

Looking at my list, I know that no matter how good or bad a “projected” hunting season is, I’ll be out there just the same. Oddly enough, it appears the things I enjoy  most about chasing roosters have more to do with the “being” than the birds (although a heavy game bag never hurt anyone!).

As fun as it is seeing a bird fold in front of me, it’s hunting behind my dog that I’m most looking forward to.

What are you most looking forward to this upcoming pheasant hunting season?

The Over/Under blog is written by Andrew Vavra, Pheasants Forever’s Marketing Specialist.