1 00:00:02,759 --> 00:00:05,560 Speaker 1: Hey, everyone, Welcome to The Hooundation's podcast. I'm your host, 2 00:00:05,559 --> 00:00:08,840 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson, and today's episode is all about understanding the 3 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:11,440 Speaker 1: early season dangers your dog might face in the field 4 00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 1: and how you can keep them safe. We are screeching 5 00:00:18,600 --> 00:00:21,239 Speaker 1: toward the next hunting season to the point where we 6 00:00:21,239 --> 00:00:23,760 Speaker 1: should make sure the dogs don't have too much extra 7 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:26,720 Speaker 1: padding on them, and we should also consider that for 8 00:00:26,800 --> 00:00:29,960 Speaker 1: us as well. This is a time of promise and 9 00:00:30,040 --> 00:00:32,440 Speaker 1: that's awesome, but the early season can also be one 10 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:34,159 Speaker 1: of the most dangerous times of the year to let 11 00:00:34,159 --> 00:00:36,840 Speaker 1: your bird dog out and let them wade through the cover. 12 00:00:37,479 --> 00:00:39,880 Speaker 1: Some of these dangers are obvious, some of them aren't. 13 00:00:39,920 --> 00:00:42,560 Speaker 1: That I'm going to talk about all of them right now. 14 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:52,800 Speaker 1: The outdoors isn't necessarily a super dangerous environment, but I 15 00:00:52,800 --> 00:00:55,240 Speaker 1: guess compared to an air conditioned house with couches and 16 00:00:55,280 --> 00:00:58,880 Speaker 1: all kinds of comfort producing stuff, it is. I know. 17 00:00:58,960 --> 00:01:01,440 Speaker 1: I've had my share about door injuries and close calls. 18 00:01:01,920 --> 00:01:04,480 Speaker 1: My first real injury happened while trout fishing with my 19 00:01:04,520 --> 00:01:07,600 Speaker 1: buddy Tim Walker when we were in sixth grade. While 20 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:10,440 Speaker 1: waiters were a thing back then, we were broken young 21 00:01:10,440 --> 00:01:12,959 Speaker 1: and just didn't even consider it. The amount of times 22 00:01:12,959 --> 00:01:15,080 Speaker 1: I rode my bike home with frozen jeans after a 23 00:01:15,080 --> 00:01:18,720 Speaker 1: fishing trip would give most modern parents a heart attack. Now, 24 00:01:18,720 --> 00:01:22,680 Speaker 1: on that particular trip, I well kind of tripped on 25 00:01:22,720 --> 00:01:25,160 Speaker 1: something in the grass along the bank, and when I 26 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:27,560 Speaker 1: checked out the damage, I had a pretty sizable hole 27 00:01:27,640 --> 00:01:30,000 Speaker 1: in my shin from either a fence post or a 28 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:33,119 Speaker 1: barber bare a fence. Tim had to interrupt a wedding 29 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:35,080 Speaker 1: in town to find my parents so they could take 30 00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:37,360 Speaker 1: me to the er, which had to be a site. 31 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:39,800 Speaker 1: I had a different incident later on in my life 32 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:42,160 Speaker 1: while crossing a fence in Oklahoma that was much worse 33 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:45,160 Speaker 1: than getting twenty stitches, because it almost left me singing 34 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 1: soprano for real. I've never had an injury that scared 35 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:51,120 Speaker 1: me as much as mixing gravity, my apple bag and 36 00:01:51,160 --> 00:01:54,480 Speaker 1: a fence post. Now. That was on a white tail hunt, 37 00:01:54,640 --> 00:01:57,000 Speaker 1: which is a good way to get yourself injured because 38 00:01:57,000 --> 00:01:58,600 Speaker 1: you work with lots of heights in the form of 39 00:01:58,680 --> 00:02:01,000 Speaker 1: tree stands, and you work with lot of blades in 40 00:02:01,040 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: the form of broadheads and knives on the tree stand front. 41 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:06,840 Speaker 1: A long time ago, I had a couple of screwing 42 00:02:06,880 --> 00:02:09,519 Speaker 1: steps hit the eject button at the same time, which 43 00:02:09,560 --> 00:02:12,160 Speaker 1: allowed me to test my safety, harness and the durability 44 00:02:12,160 --> 00:02:15,400 Speaker 1: of my ribs. Turns out, metal tree stands are harder 45 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: than my body, and all that summer long, when I 46 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:20,520 Speaker 1: set the hook while bass fishing, i'd scream in pain, 47 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:23,959 Speaker 1: much to the delight of my fishing buddies. I've had 48 00:02:24,080 --> 00:02:28,200 Speaker 1: enough close calls with tree stands and another crazy thing, 49 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,840 Speaker 1: which is people shooting guns in my direction that I'm 50 00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 1: pretty careful about what I get myself into these days. 51 00:02:33,800 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 1: And I'm pretty careful with my dogs, as I'm sure 52 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:39,480 Speaker 1: you are. When it comes to our hard charging pointers 53 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:43,160 Speaker 1: and retrievers, the opportunities are pretty high for injury, some 54 00:02:43,200 --> 00:02:45,160 Speaker 1: of which can be fatal if you and your dog 55 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:48,720 Speaker 1: run out a look. Of course, the most obvious here 56 00:02:48,800 --> 00:02:52,200 Speaker 1: is heat. Talked about this before. A well bred dog 57 00:02:52,320 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 1: generally isn't going to slow down in the field in 58 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:59,280 Speaker 1: any conditions. They'll often go from berserker to collapse. Is 59 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:01,399 Speaker 1: quite a few people have figured out over the years. 60 00:03:01,400 --> 00:03:03,840 Speaker 1: When states like South Dakota have kicked off their pheasant 61 00:03:03,880 --> 00:03:07,880 Speaker 1: seasons during heat waves, most people would say to not 62 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:10,200 Speaker 1: hunt your dog when the temperatures reach a certain point. 63 00:03:11,120 --> 00:03:15,360 Speaker 1: I guess we could use like eighty plus as a benchmark. Now, 64 00:03:15,400 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 1: I know you Southern listeners are scoffing at that, so 65 00:03:17,560 --> 00:03:20,680 Speaker 1: let me qualify it. Eighty degrees to a Chessia in 66 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:23,040 Speaker 1: northern Michigan is a different thing than eighty degrees to 67 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:27,400 Speaker 1: a pointer in Georgia. Heat tolerance is highly variable amongst 68 00:03:27,400 --> 00:03:30,280 Speaker 1: breeds and individual dogs, just like it is with people, 69 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:32,960 Speaker 1: and it's something that can be worked on. Although I'm 70 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:35,120 Speaker 1: not going to recommend you condition your dog to work 71 00:03:35,120 --> 00:03:37,920 Speaker 1: in blazing heat because I don't want to encourage strangers 72 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:40,280 Speaker 1: to do something like that. So I'll just say this, 73 00:03:41,080 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 1: keep the ego in check when you bump into this 74 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:46,360 Speaker 1: kind of situation. We can look at forecasts that are 75 00:03:46,440 --> 00:03:50,160 Speaker 1: somewhat accurate ten to fifteen days ahead of time, which 76 00:03:50,200 --> 00:03:52,160 Speaker 1: means we shouldn't be too surprised if we have to 77 00:03:52,200 --> 00:03:55,520 Speaker 1: call a trip, cut it short, or move the dates. Now, 78 00:03:55,560 --> 00:03:58,600 Speaker 1: I know not every trip is that simple, but hunting 79 00:03:58,640 --> 00:04:02,240 Speaker 1: your dog to a heat stroker is a worse option. Always. 80 00:04:03,160 --> 00:04:05,960 Speaker 1: Of course, if you have to go, or you just 81 00:04:05,960 --> 00:04:08,280 Speaker 1: can't quite find a reason to not hunt when you 82 00:04:08,320 --> 00:04:11,880 Speaker 1: want to, early mornings are a better idea for obvious reasons. 83 00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:15,600 Speaker 1: Sometimes the temperature never get low enough to be safe, though, 84 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:19,680 Speaker 1: and sometimes the humidity really contributes to that problem. This 85 00:04:19,800 --> 00:04:22,520 Speaker 1: isn't just a weird weather issue for some pheasant hunting 86 00:04:22,560 --> 00:04:25,800 Speaker 1: openers either. If you head at west for sharpiece in 87 00:04:25,839 --> 00:04:28,560 Speaker 1: the beginning of September, you could be asking your dog 88 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:31,240 Speaker 1: to run in the blazing sun over oceans of knee 89 00:04:31,320 --> 00:04:37,320 Speaker 1: high grass in a bad heat situation. Obviously, access to 90 00:04:37,400 --> 00:04:40,400 Speaker 1: lots of water is huge inside and outside of your 91 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:42,839 Speaker 1: dog if you can facilitate that. Now, if you have 92 00:04:42,880 --> 00:04:46,919 Speaker 1: a barrel chested male GSP or really any bird dog, 93 00:04:47,279 --> 00:04:50,480 Speaker 1: this also presents a unique way to royally mess him up. 94 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:53,760 Speaker 1: A big dog with a deep chest that drinks a 95 00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:56,840 Speaker 1: tunnel water in one shot and then goes for a 96 00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:01,200 Speaker 1: run across the countryside is a prime candidate for gastric torsion. 97 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:05,479 Speaker 1: It's also true that an overweight dog is a dog 98 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:07,920 Speaker 1: that will succumb to heat stress faster than a dog 99 00:05:07,960 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 1: that is at a healthy weight. The latter dog gets 100 00:05:11,120 --> 00:05:13,800 Speaker 1: bonus points for not only being at a healthy weight, 101 00:05:13,920 --> 00:05:18,400 Speaker 1: but also being highly conditioned. Again, there's a reason some 102 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:20,880 Speaker 1: folks can run two hundred mile ultra marathons in the 103 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:24,159 Speaker 1: desert and survive just fine, while some folks have major 104 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:26,440 Speaker 1: chest grabbers on their way to the mailbox because it's 105 00:05:26,480 --> 00:05:30,479 Speaker 1: just a little bit too much exertion. The key to 106 00:05:30,520 --> 00:05:33,680 Speaker 1: this early season issue is this, you have to err 107 00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:36,000 Speaker 1: on the side of caution and be very fair to 108 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,440 Speaker 1: your dog. Now. I know you want to go out 109 00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:40,719 Speaker 1: and get that first limited roosters. I know your buddies 110 00:05:40,720 --> 00:05:42,080 Speaker 1: are going to head out and give it a go, 111 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:45,520 Speaker 1: and I know your dog will gladly hunt. But what 112 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:48,640 Speaker 1: do you think is it worth it? Is your dog 113 00:05:48,720 --> 00:05:52,040 Speaker 1: ready and are the conditions such where they aren't dangerous? 114 00:05:53,279 --> 00:05:56,280 Speaker 1: Heat is rough, but it comes with other dangers. When 115 00:05:56,279 --> 00:05:59,080 Speaker 1: I had my previous dog podcast, I interviewed a fellow 116 00:05:59,120 --> 00:06:02,000 Speaker 1: from the Southwest who is a dog trainer and who 117 00:06:02,080 --> 00:06:06,200 Speaker 1: specialized in snake breaking dogs. Where I live, that really 118 00:06:06,240 --> 00:06:09,599 Speaker 1: isn't even a concern, but in so many places the 119 00:06:09,720 --> 00:06:13,480 Speaker 1: venomous danger ropes are all over and the early season 120 00:06:13,520 --> 00:06:17,479 Speaker 1: is when they are highly active. Now, I'm always a 121 00:06:17,480 --> 00:06:20,200 Speaker 1: big proponent of training things yourself if you can, because 122 00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:22,800 Speaker 1: it just helps your relationship with your dog. It's fun 123 00:06:22,839 --> 00:06:27,279 Speaker 1: and it's rewarding. I don't recommend you snake break your dog. However, 124 00:06:27,839 --> 00:06:31,119 Speaker 1: at least on your own diwy, snake breaking is probably 125 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:34,040 Speaker 1: a bad idea. Now. While I have a weird affinity 126 00:06:34,080 --> 00:06:36,359 Speaker 1: towards snakes in general, and I'm not really scared of 127 00:06:36,400 --> 00:06:38,880 Speaker 1: them in the least, I'd be way out of my 128 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:40,880 Speaker 1: depths to go catch a rattler and then try to 129 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:42,400 Speaker 1: figure out a way to teach my dog. This to 130 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:45,359 Speaker 1: your clear If you dig into this, you'll see people 131 00:06:45,400 --> 00:06:49,440 Speaker 1: have different methods of snake breaking. Some put a rattle 132 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:52,560 Speaker 1: snake or some other kind of snake in a plexiglass 133 00:06:52,720 --> 00:06:55,720 Speaker 1: cage with plenty of holes in it. Then they'll watch 134 00:06:55,720 --> 00:06:58,279 Speaker 1: a dog approach and when it gets close enough, they'll 135 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 1: hit it with the e caller hard enough to make 136 00:07:00,400 --> 00:07:04,320 Speaker 1: an impression. That fella I interviewed talked about that method, 137 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:06,919 Speaker 1: and he said it was a great way to condition 138 00:07:07,040 --> 00:07:11,160 Speaker 1: dogs to be very afraid of plexiglass boxes. His method 139 00:07:11,240 --> 00:07:14,240 Speaker 1: was to actually catch snakes and either milk them or 140 00:07:14,280 --> 00:07:17,320 Speaker 1: defang them. I honestly can't remember, but I'd say defang 141 00:07:17,440 --> 00:07:22,240 Speaker 1: sounds like the better bet. Then he could facilitate situations 142 00:07:22,280 --> 00:07:24,800 Speaker 1: where people could walk their dogs through the scrub brush 143 00:07:24,840 --> 00:07:27,720 Speaker 1: and wherever else and they could actually bump into a 144 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:32,200 Speaker 1: real cage free snake and then give them some electricity. Now, 145 00:07:32,200 --> 00:07:35,360 Speaker 1: I know some folks are staunchly anti ecollar, and I 146 00:07:35,440 --> 00:07:37,920 Speaker 1: get it, but in this situation, it's pretty hard to 147 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:40,400 Speaker 1: argue that it isn't damn near the perfect tool to 148 00:07:40,480 --> 00:07:43,280 Speaker 1: keep your dogs safe in the wild. Of course, this 149 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:45,600 Speaker 1: is also a really good argument for having a very 150 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:48,760 Speaker 1: solid recall on your dog. While we don't deal with 151 00:07:48,760 --> 00:07:50,880 Speaker 1: a whole lot of venomous snakes up in my world, 152 00:07:51,240 --> 00:07:54,480 Speaker 1: we do have a shitload of porcupines up in grouse country, 153 00:07:54,840 --> 00:07:57,400 Speaker 1: and every dog I've ever owned, and every dog I've 154 00:07:57,440 --> 00:08:01,120 Speaker 1: ever hunted with in that rough grouse territory has eventually 155 00:08:01,160 --> 00:08:05,640 Speaker 1: stumbled across one, and some dogs just can't hardly be 156 00:08:05,760 --> 00:08:08,520 Speaker 1: called off of them. But that's a unique problem to 157 00:08:08,560 --> 00:08:12,160 Speaker 1: certain breeds. Generally, a lot of dogs can be called off, 158 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:15,360 Speaker 1: and if you can call your dog off at anything dangerous, 159 00:08:15,600 --> 00:08:17,760 Speaker 1: you should try hard to make that one hundred percent 160 00:08:17,840 --> 00:08:20,480 Speaker 1: success type of thing, or as close as you can get. 161 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:34,199 Speaker 1: During early season hunts, you also just have the reality 162 00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:37,120 Speaker 1: that grass is taller, the brush is thicker, and my 163 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:41,360 Speaker 1: old nemesis, fences can be harder to see. If you 164 00:08:41,440 --> 00:08:43,200 Speaker 1: hunt a hell of a lot of places that, while 165 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:47,200 Speaker 1: birds live, your dogs will eventually hit a fence. Some trainers, 166 00:08:47,280 --> 00:08:50,120 Speaker 1: like Tom Dokin will actually teach dogs how to go 167 00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:53,160 Speaker 1: through fences, which is cool as hell, but that only 168 00:08:53,200 --> 00:08:55,200 Speaker 1: works if you see the fence ahead of time, or 169 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:57,800 Speaker 1: your dog sees the fence ahead of time, and then 170 00:08:57,840 --> 00:09:00,040 Speaker 1: you can help them. There are a hell of a 171 00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:02,280 Speaker 1: lot of broken down sections of fence posts and other 172 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:06,040 Speaker 1: abandoned metal farm machinery, old cans and sheets of tin, 173 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:08,600 Speaker 1: and all kinds of things that can slice open a 174 00:09:08,679 --> 00:09:11,320 Speaker 1: dog that is running at full speed or doing his 175 00:09:11,400 --> 00:09:14,360 Speaker 1: best impression of coming off the top rope in five 176 00:09:14,400 --> 00:09:18,840 Speaker 1: foot tall slow grass, over and over. This is often 177 00:09:18,880 --> 00:09:21,839 Speaker 1: a young dog problem because they haven't learned to preserve 178 00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:24,760 Speaker 1: their energy and are generally total lunatics their first few 179 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:27,600 Speaker 1: seasons in the field, but it's also something that can 180 00:09:27,640 --> 00:09:30,439 Speaker 1: be as minor as a painful scrape on their undercarriage 181 00:09:30,520 --> 00:09:33,800 Speaker 1: or something that can kill them. I know that seems crazy, 182 00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:37,040 Speaker 1: but imagine a bird dog running full steam into a 183 00:09:37,120 --> 00:09:40,720 Speaker 1: barbed ware fence. One of the most violent things I've 184 00:09:40,800 --> 00:09:43,840 Speaker 1: ever seen in the outdoors happened when I was finishing 185 00:09:43,880 --> 00:09:46,760 Speaker 1: up a pheasant hunt in north central Minnesota, and I 186 00:09:46,800 --> 00:09:49,640 Speaker 1: happened to be driving right past a slough that had 187 00:09:49,679 --> 00:09:52,520 Speaker 1: some other hunters in it. They had kicked up a 188 00:09:52,520 --> 00:09:54,920 Speaker 1: two year old type of eight point buck and he 189 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:58,120 Speaker 1: wasn't bounding like deer do when they think they have time. 190 00:09:58,320 --> 00:10:00,880 Speaker 1: He was going full greyhound to get the hell out 191 00:10:00,920 --> 00:10:03,559 Speaker 1: of there. And my hunting partner and I watched as 192 00:10:03,559 --> 00:10:09,560 Speaker 1: he hit a single strand of barbed wire. It was ugly, ugly, ugly. 193 00:10:10,040 --> 00:10:13,360 Speaker 1: He went assd over apple cart hard, got up, shook 194 00:10:13,400 --> 00:10:16,120 Speaker 1: it off, and kept running. But I promise you he 195 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:20,080 Speaker 1: was all cut up and definitely hurting. I also can't 196 00:10:20,080 --> 00:10:22,280 Speaker 1: imagine what it would have been like if he had 197 00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:24,720 Speaker 1: dipped his head and caught that strand on his neck 198 00:10:24,840 --> 00:10:28,040 Speaker 1: or his face instead of square on his chest. Now 199 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:30,920 Speaker 1: this spring, I spent some time with Brent Reeves down 200 00:10:30,920 --> 00:10:34,600 Speaker 1: in Arkansas where he chases coons with his hounds, and 201 00:10:34,679 --> 00:10:37,079 Speaker 1: he mentioned something to me that really isn't on my 202 00:10:37,240 --> 00:10:41,920 Speaker 1: radar here but makes total sense while talking about getting 203 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:45,040 Speaker 1: caught in the field, and that was that if you 204 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:47,920 Speaker 1: have a dog that gets a open wound somehow, a 205 00:10:47,960 --> 00:10:51,000 Speaker 1: little scrape, little cut whatever on its paw on its 206 00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:54,400 Speaker 1: belly really anywhere, and it ends up in the wrong water. 207 00:10:54,800 --> 00:10:57,800 Speaker 1: You have the recipe for infection. Now up here we 208 00:10:57,840 --> 00:10:59,800 Speaker 1: know about blue green algae and not to swimm our 209 00:10:59,840 --> 00:11:02,400 Speaker 1: dog anywhere near it when it blooms. But in a 210 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:04,120 Speaker 1: hell of a lot of the country, the only water 211 00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:08,880 Speaker 1: your dog might encounter could be awfully stagnant. This, as 212 00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:12,880 Speaker 1: Brent emphasized multiple times, is a good reminder to do 213 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:15,840 Speaker 1: a post hunt checkup on your dogs and to investigate 214 00:11:15,920 --> 00:11:18,520 Speaker 1: anything thoroughly if you think your dog might have gotten 215 00:11:18,559 --> 00:11:22,240 Speaker 1: cut or scraped up while you're in the field. Heavier cover, 216 00:11:22,559 --> 00:11:26,920 Speaker 1: even just thicker than late season grass, poses another issue. 217 00:11:27,040 --> 00:11:31,800 Speaker 1: Besides just obscuring dangerous objects in the field, you can 218 00:11:31,840 --> 00:11:34,800 Speaker 1: lose sight of your dog easier, and they can lose 219 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:38,880 Speaker 1: sight of you. And also anything else that might be dangerous, 220 00:11:38,880 --> 00:11:41,320 Speaker 1: like milk trucks cruising down the gravel road next to 221 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:43,760 Speaker 1: the slew you're hunting. I have a good friend who 222 00:11:43,840 --> 00:11:45,720 Speaker 1: is staying in a motel one time on a hunting 223 00:11:45,760 --> 00:11:48,080 Speaker 1: trip and his buddy's dog ran out into the highway 224 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:50,360 Speaker 1: and that was the last of that dog. It's a 225 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:53,360 Speaker 1: cautionary tale. I know it's not exactly like running through 226 00:11:53,400 --> 00:11:56,280 Speaker 1: the slow grass and popping out on a road trafficing 227 00:11:56,360 --> 00:12:00,240 Speaker 1: dog's a bad, bad deal. Keep your dog in check 228 00:12:00,559 --> 00:12:03,000 Speaker 1: because you can't see them in that grass a lot 229 00:12:03,040 --> 00:12:05,400 Speaker 1: of times, so having that control and being aware of 230 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:08,760 Speaker 1: how they hunt is huge. You also have to factor 231 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:12,720 Speaker 1: in the reality that the wind might be blowing, that 232 00:12:12,880 --> 00:12:15,680 Speaker 1: dry grass is loud to them, and their senses are 233 00:12:15,960 --> 00:12:20,040 Speaker 1: just taken over by the environment. That's an opportunity for 234 00:12:20,080 --> 00:12:23,360 Speaker 1: a real mistake to happen. Now there's another aspect of this, 235 00:12:23,440 --> 00:12:25,840 Speaker 1: the cover game, that comes into play in the early season. 236 00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:29,280 Speaker 1: One of the only times I almost accidentally shot a 237 00:12:29,360 --> 00:12:31,280 Speaker 1: dog was in high school when a buddy and I 238 00:12:31,280 --> 00:12:35,679 Speaker 1: were hunting grouse in southeastern Minnesota. We were young, dumb 239 00:12:35,800 --> 00:12:38,800 Speaker 1: and didn't think we'd actually find one, but we did, 240 00:12:39,520 --> 00:12:42,240 Speaker 1: or at least my buddy's Springer Spaniel did. It was 241 00:12:42,280 --> 00:12:44,560 Speaker 1: a young bird, and it was in September, and I 242 00:12:44,640 --> 00:12:47,120 Speaker 1: just happened to be walking along and a grouse popped 243 00:12:47,160 --> 00:12:49,680 Speaker 1: up into a tree not very far away and sat 244 00:12:49,720 --> 00:12:52,600 Speaker 1: there like a stupid feathered bowling pin. Now, I know 245 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:54,920 Speaker 1: some folks won't shoot a grouse in a tree, but 246 00:12:55,080 --> 00:12:57,880 Speaker 1: seventeen year old Tony would and I almost did, but 247 00:12:57,960 --> 00:12:59,960 Speaker 1: my buddy yelled out that Eddie was coming in high, 248 00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:02,480 Speaker 1: and that stopped me from pulling the trigger. Now I 249 00:13:02,480 --> 00:13:04,839 Speaker 1: didn't see him coming, of course, but that dog was 250 00:13:04,920 --> 00:13:07,000 Speaker 1: running in there, and that grouse was not very high 251 00:13:07,080 --> 00:13:09,840 Speaker 1: up in that tree. There wasn't any other reason for 252 00:13:09,880 --> 00:13:11,839 Speaker 1: that grouse to do that move. And I still think 253 00:13:11,880 --> 00:13:15,320 Speaker 1: about it often, even though nothing bad happened. There is 254 00:13:15,360 --> 00:13:19,400 Speaker 1: something about having the safety off and being milliseconds away 255 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:21,440 Speaker 1: from shooting in a situation where you might kill your 256 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:24,280 Speaker 1: buddy's dog that sits with you for a long time, 257 00:13:24,920 --> 00:13:27,520 Speaker 1: and it's one of those core memories that shows up 258 00:13:27,520 --> 00:13:30,000 Speaker 1: in your brain right when you're about to fall asleep 259 00:13:30,040 --> 00:13:31,760 Speaker 1: every once in a while, so you can remember that 260 00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,760 Speaker 1: you've always been kind of a dipshit. I guess this 261 00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:37,840 Speaker 1: is the last point I want to make here, and 262 00:13:37,880 --> 00:13:40,600 Speaker 1: it's an important one. A hell of a lot of 263 00:13:40,600 --> 00:13:43,400 Speaker 1: the bad stuff that goes wrong with dogs out there 264 00:13:43,640 --> 00:13:46,720 Speaker 1: at all times of the season, but particularly the early season, 265 00:13:47,280 --> 00:13:51,520 Speaker 1: is directly our fault. Think about it this way. You 266 00:13:51,600 --> 00:13:54,040 Speaker 1: know how excited your dog is to get out there 267 00:13:54,080 --> 00:13:57,600 Speaker 1: for the first time, Well you are too. Maybe you're 268 00:13:57,640 --> 00:13:59,560 Speaker 1: with three or four buddies and you haven't seen each 269 00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:04,040 Speaker 1: other since last season. The anticipation's high, the competition is there, 270 00:14:04,120 --> 00:14:06,880 Speaker 1: and everyone is a little rusty from nine months off 271 00:14:07,240 --> 00:14:10,199 Speaker 1: or however long the off season's been for them. Now, 272 00:14:10,200 --> 00:14:12,240 Speaker 1: maybe you and your buddy's crack open a bottle of 273 00:14:12,280 --> 00:14:14,440 Speaker 1: whiskey every night and by morning you're all running a 274 00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:18,200 Speaker 1: little slow and a little foggy brained. This might seem crazy, 275 00:14:18,559 --> 00:14:21,320 Speaker 1: and the numbers might be outdated now, but I know 276 00:14:21,400 --> 00:14:23,760 Speaker 1: for quite a few years there was a safety harness 277 00:14:23,800 --> 00:14:28,320 Speaker 1: company that tracked fatalities from tree stand falls. At that time, 278 00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:32,040 Speaker 1: about two dozen a year died from falling out of 279 00:14:32,040 --> 00:14:34,480 Speaker 1: a tree stand, and about half of those died from 280 00:14:34,520 --> 00:14:37,520 Speaker 1: falling out of ladder stands, which should be the safest 281 00:14:37,520 --> 00:14:39,960 Speaker 1: stands out there, given they have actual ladders for you 282 00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:42,480 Speaker 1: to climb up and down with, and most have shooting 283 00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:46,040 Speaker 1: rails that further envelop the hunter, but not all. And 284 00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:48,640 Speaker 1: what happened with most of those fatalities was that someone 285 00:14:48,640 --> 00:14:51,000 Speaker 1: would climb in hunt for a few hours and then 286 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:54,400 Speaker 1: get sleepy, and when they fell asleep, they'd pitch headfirst 287 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:56,520 Speaker 1: out of the stand. And if you're wondering, if that 288 00:14:56,560 --> 00:14:59,840 Speaker 1: does you any favors. It doesn't. Now I'm not saying 289 00:15:00,000 --> 00:15:01,920 Speaker 1: you have to go cold turkey on your hunting trips. 290 00:15:02,040 --> 00:15:04,640 Speaker 1: I don't care if you shoot Heroin into your toes, honestly, 291 00:15:05,160 --> 00:15:07,360 Speaker 1: But what I'm saying is that when things go wrong, 292 00:15:07,480 --> 00:15:10,760 Speaker 1: it's often our fault, and it often just isn't like 293 00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:15,200 Speaker 1: one little decision or one little moment. There's like a 294 00:15:15,280 --> 00:15:17,760 Speaker 1: series of things that lead up to it. It might 295 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:20,200 Speaker 1: be that we just aren't paying attention when we should be, 296 00:15:20,800 --> 00:15:23,120 Speaker 1: or we aren't on our a game because we just 297 00:15:23,280 --> 00:15:26,240 Speaker 1: can't be. Of course, this is a little like a 298 00:15:26,240 --> 00:15:28,640 Speaker 1: lot of things in life where something just breaks bad, 299 00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:31,320 Speaker 1: and that's how life works. But if we can do 300 00:15:31,360 --> 00:15:33,800 Speaker 1: our best not to facilitate that moment for ourselves and 301 00:15:33,840 --> 00:15:37,800 Speaker 1: our dogs, that's always a solid move. These are things 302 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:40,840 Speaker 1: we should think of all season longer, but they won't 303 00:15:40,880 --> 00:15:44,400 Speaker 1: necessarily be top of mine in September when you're woodcock hunting, 304 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:46,680 Speaker 1: as they will be by the time you're two or 305 00:15:46,680 --> 00:15:49,360 Speaker 1: three months deep into the season and making your way 306 00:15:49,480 --> 00:15:53,000 Speaker 1: south for something other than a worm eater hunt. Think 307 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:55,600 Speaker 1: about this stuff as the off season winds down and 308 00:15:55,640 --> 00:15:58,920 Speaker 1: we approach the actual season because it's important, and think 309 00:15:58,960 --> 00:16:00,720 Speaker 1: about coming back in two weeks because I'm going to 310 00:16:00,720 --> 00:16:03,400 Speaker 1: talk about how we often think about dogs as individuals 311 00:16:03,640 --> 00:16:06,960 Speaker 1: and we should, but they also have universal traits and 312 00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:10,480 Speaker 1: behaviors that we should acknowledge and understand as well, because 313 00:16:10,520 --> 00:16:12,920 Speaker 1: that's how we train them better and have a better 314 00:16:12,960 --> 00:16:17,160 Speaker 1: life with them. That's it for this episode. I'm Tony 315 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:20,360 Speaker 1: Peterson and this has been The Houndation's podcast. I just 316 00:16:20,360 --> 00:16:22,640 Speaker 1: want to thank you guys so much for listening. Cal 317 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:25,320 Speaker 1: and I here really appreciate it. The whole meat Eater 318 00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:27,960 Speaker 1: crew does. Honestly, without you, guys, we are nothing, so 319 00:16:28,080 --> 00:16:30,880 Speaker 1: thank you for showing up for us. If you need 320 00:16:30,880 --> 00:16:34,120 Speaker 1: some more hunting content, you are in luck. Over at 321 00:16:34,320 --> 00:16:38,520 Speaker 1: them meedeater dot com. You can find tons of articles 322 00:16:38,560 --> 00:16:43,400 Speaker 1: on relevantnews, stories about the outdoors, how to stuff recipes. 323 00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:49,760 Speaker 1: We have hunting videos dropping almost every week. We have 324 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:54,240 Speaker 1: more podcasts in our network than anybody out there. We've 325 00:16:54,240 --> 00:16:57,600 Speaker 1: added some new shows lately, like Lake Pickles Backwoods University, 326 00:16:57,640 --> 00:17:00,040 Speaker 1: which is awesome. He's doing a great job on that. 327 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:03,800 Speaker 1: That's on the Bear Grease Feed. Tons of cool content. 328 00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:06,640 Speaker 1: We drop something new every day. Go to the meteater 329 00:17:06,680 --> 00:17:07,760 Speaker 1: dot com check it out