We owe it to the waterfowl.

[Marc]

When I was younger, I used to do a lot of duck hunting with my father and it was frustrating on how many birds fell and how many we actually recovered. If we recovered 50% of the birds we knocked down we were doing good. They'd fall in the grass and you'd go looking for them and if you were really lucky you found it.

Then when I moved away from home and hunted with a buddy a couple of times with a dog I couldn't believe the difference in the recovery rate. Pretty darn near 100%.

The following winter I got myself a Labrador retriever and spent all winter training him. His first fall at 11 months he recovered 26 duck and a goose. We only lost 2 ducks that fall and we looked hard and long. I say we because it's not the dogs fault I made a bad shot and the duck managed to get away. So I take half the blame on the two we lost that fall. Not bad considering a dog's first year.

I spent most of that winter refining his skills and after his first year he's been 100% since. Trust me it's not because I became that much better of a shot and killed all the ducks. We searched for quite a few birds with the introduction of steel shot.

The following winter I started reloading my own steel shells, which cut the cost down, and I was able to create a better shell for my money, it hit harder and killed more ducks and geese.

In my opinion, every serious duck hunter needs a Labrador or Chesapeake Bay (thicker coat but not as friendly around others) retriever. It's amazing how many of those lost birds people would have recovered with a retriever. It's surprising how well a duck can hide in the grass and how much land they can cover in a short period of time. If you were serious about duck hunting I'd seriously consider your next investment to be a retriever.

I'm not trying to single anyone out or anything, this goes for anyone out there that hunts Ducks and Geese. I believe, and I'm sure Dano and other duck hunters who own retrievers as well, that if you're going to be shooting ducks or geese over a marsh, or field for that matter, you should be using a retriever of some kind. You owe it to the birds to ensure they get found, put down and added to your daily bag limit. The only way to increase your recovery rate is:

1. Spend more time at the trap and skeet range in the off-season

2. Let the birds get closer before you shoot

3. Get yourself a retriever.

If you did all 3 of these things I could almost guarantee you that your recovery rate would be darn close to 100% The last couple of percentage would be determined by how well you trained your retriever and how much natural instinct he had.

Marc.

[NEEHAMA]

well put, i would like to point out #2 letting the birds get close enough
i know in my dark and dirty past i shot alot of geese and watched them fly away. i would get so excited on their approach and if they were just out of range i would let rip on them anyway. i could hear my pellets hit them but they would not fall. i would like to point out that i don't do that anymore. i'm cured. but it's still very tempting. i recover most of my birds because i wait for closer shots and i have an amazing strain of purebread super lab.

oh ya and i turn all my ducks into sasauge so
when i blast them with 3" bb shot and put holes in them it's ok! and man 3" bb for ducks is the answer!! .... over kill...lol...lol!!

[Marc]

Well put Neehama, Geese can also be misleading because of their size compared to a duck. One rule of thumb is don't shoot until you can see their eyes.

Another is to set your furthest decoy from you at max range for the type of shell your using, lets say 40 yards for steel BB or greater shot for geese and don't shoot at anything that flies out of that furthest decoy. It took me a while to figure out what was in range and out of range because of their sheer size compared to ducks.

Marc.

[rrfred]

well said ; finding a way to retrive is essential, one way i did it when my buddies dog was not around if i was puddle jumping ducks- was to take a fishing rod with 2 trebles a few feet from the lines end and a lead sinker, if the duck tumbled in the water out of wading reach or my boat wasnt available, would cast beyond the duck etc. catch line it over the bird, reel in slow and presto -recovered bird, never one lost even with a few reeds, and water lilys in the way.

[Dano]

Well said, Marc.
One thing to add, my dog really enjoys retrieving. I get a lot of pleasure from watching her while we are out. I've made some great shots this year yet my best memories are the retrieves.
I hunted without a dog about 6 years ago, a buddy at work asked me to take him out and I went to a spot where I knew it was shallow enough to wade to pick up birds and had a large enough open water area so they should fall where I could get them. We did ok, but I remember the ones we lost the most. I know any dog I've ever owned would have got them. By the time I got to where I last saw them, they had either hidden well or dove under water and vanished...
Field hunting can be done with much success without a dog but the long recoverable birds are no sure thing without a dog. The field I shoot has a small slough and I back my blind onto it. The day we shot 24 mallards we had 5 fall over the slough and 3 sail out into the tall grass beyond the cornfield. Three or four fell into the slough. We got all these birds but did lose one, it fell with 3 others and although it was right in front of us in the corn stubble, it took a few minutes to find. It fluttered upwhen the dog tried to grab it and flew 3' over the ground just ahead of the chasing dog, no chance for a shot. Then it curved out towards the barn so I didn't shoot, gained more altitude and flew away! I guess shooting is the only fault I can see here....
Good time to post this Marc. Anyone thinking of getting a dog should think about doing it soon as it will be in the 10-11 month afe group come next fall and have a good full summer of training in already!
Dano

[NEEHAMA]

hey thanks marc, good idea with the 40 yard decoy marker.

[BCHunter]

great idea Marc!

Neehama man did you ever get out to the field?

[Marc]

Well said, Marc.
One thing to add, my dog really enjoys retrieving. I get a lot of pleasure from watching her while we are out. I've made some great shots this year yet my best memories are the retrieves.


Yes Dano that was one important thing I forgot to mention, I got all tangled up in deep thougth talking about the other things I forogt to mention one of the great benefits of hunting with a dog.. The best part of hunting with a dog is watching the dog work. He or she gets so excited and they just love it. I actually enjoy watching the dog do his thing more then the actuall shooting. Trust me the dog lets you know when you shot and missed a bird. Nothing more embarassing then when the dog looks back at you aftrer a shot and nothing falls out of the sky. It's like he's wondering "what the hell is wrong with you how did you miss that one."

My dog gets all excited when ever I put my hunting clothes on, and play a couple of tunes on the duck call. It makes it so much more enjoyable hunting with a retriever. When your out hunting alone it's nice to have a dog to share your lunch with and some quality talks.:biggrin: They dont call a dog "man's bestfriend" for nothing.

Marc.

[NEEHAMA]

bc i have not been there yet this year. it's calling my name though..

[emkul]

the only problem with a fourty yard decoy is geese always have a tendency to land on the out side of your decoy's so now all your birds are landing at max range.your best bet is set your blind on the down wind side of your spread that puts the birds right on your head.and scout watch the birds in the field watch what dirrection they want to land and be on the x.
i

[Farmer]

Good post Marc.
One extra point though. Watch the flock after you shoot. Quite often you will see a low flier drop or glide to the ground up to a quarter mile away.
Kidney shot and wing tipped ducks will often go 100 or 200 yards.

Gord