As any owner of a rare hunting dog knows, the reputation of that breed often rides on your shoulders when you show up for a hunt test or a day afield with friends. Your dog may be the only representative of the breed that your fellow hunters ever encounter, so it’s likely to leave a lasting impression—good or bad. For Domenick Muoio and his Standard Poodle, this pressure isn’t overwhelming; on the contrary, he enjoys the chance to show what Poodles can accomplish in the field. “I don’t think tha...
Aug 21, 2023•12 min
As a new hunting season approaches, we all begin the process of digging through our upland gear. We check over the vests and chaps for tears and holes from last season’s briars, and if you’re like me, find shotgun shells in various pockets or crevices of my hunting gear containers laying wherever it was that they last fell at the end of the previous season. Looking these items over it brings to mind how we often tailor our gear to the game we intend to pursue. We were thinking of heading out wes...
Aug 18, 2023•7 min
What is the difference between a ruffed grouse and a partridge? The answer lies in physics; one is flying, and one is not. Jokes aside, ruffed grouse stand as one of the most challenging birds to hit on the wing. I credit this more to do with their habitat than anything else. Ruffed grouse reside in dense foliage, shrubs, young trees, and conifers near water in many forms, whether a river, stream, pond, or bog. George Bird Evans said in The Upland Shooting Life , “I know of no bird shooting that...
Aug 16, 2023•17 min
I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect, but as best as I could tell, my quail seemed as happy as could be. I’d just moved the young quail that were approaching four weeks of age into their new pen outside – a modest 4’ by 8’ encloser that gave them birds enough space to be happy, plenty of shade to stay cool in the heat of the afternoon, and enough exposure to sunlight to keep them warm and content. I was, however, a little nervous. Read more at projectupland.com ....
Aug 14, 2023•9 min
The Norwegian Hound, also known as the Dunker, is one of the seven Norwegian native dog breed varieties—a scent hound with outstanding hunting qualities. The mottled color and glassy eyes make it quite distinguished and different from other hare hounds. Read more at projectupland.com .
Aug 11, 2023•15 min
“The Congressional Sportsman’s Foundation is very concerned with how some of the BSCA language is being implemented by the Department of Education,” said Taylor Schmitz, the Federal Relations Director for the Foundation. “We are hoping we can get the Administration to reverse course, and that a legislative fix by Congress will not be necessary, but it might come to that.” The Administration is being pressured by both sides of the political spectrum regarding whether or not it’ll reframe its inte...
Aug 09, 2023•13 min
Most waterfowlers have a favorite image, one that captures the essence of the hunt along one of North America’s migratory flyways. It might be sculling boats and rafts of bluebills on the Great Lakes, canvasbacks and sink boxes on Chesapeake Bay’s Susquehanna Flats, or flights of mallards navigating impossibly tight Arkansas timber. In Texas , one of the most endearing images might just be a prairie hunter shooting over a trained steer. Inland and coastal Texas hunters first shot ducks over oxen...
Aug 07, 2023•11 min
Weatherby’s addition of a new side-by-side shotgun can be viewed as a welcome newcomer or a resurrection story. The original Weatherby Orion side-by-side shotgun was first produced in Spain from 2002-2003. Next came the Athena D’Italia side-by-side shotgun, which was Italian-built. The newcomer is a very exciting play on the entry-level side-by-side Turkish market called the Weatherby Orion SxS. Its $1,099 MSRP makes it a real player in a small line of side-by-sides under $1,200. Read more at pr...
Aug 04, 2023•10 min
The upland scene has recently seen many first-time Mearns’ quail hunters. My hunting buddy, Kyle Hedges , and I are no exception. Mearns’ quail are the ultimate bucket list quail species in the United States. They are rivaled, perhaps, only by the mountain quail . In the age of social media, many hunters have discovered this dynamic little bird with males so beautifully colored they almost don’t seem real. Their beauty, coupled with their gorgeous oak-juniper savanna habitat, means Mearns’ quail...
Aug 02, 2023•9 min
My first bird dog, Cooper, and I had just begun our journey into the uplands when I learned about falconry . Initially, I found falconry through social media. Online, I saw folks using various species of birds to hunt multiple species of game, including goshawks on quail , red-tail hawks on squirrels, and falcons on prairie grouse. What set falconry apart from any other sport I enjoyed from afar was seeing the various ways falconers incorporated dogs into the hunt. So many different breeds of do...
Jul 31, 2023•9 min
f you find yourself reading this, it is because you are interested in becoming a bird hunter. In the cultural sense, upland bird hunting is the pursuit of upland game birds with gun dogs to shoot a bird on the wing. This definition and methodology have evolved with time based on strong conservation ethics, something we will discuss in greater detail shortly. Contrary to popular belief, the term “bird hunter” is similar to “big game hunter.” Like someone saying, “I am a deer hunter,” or “I am a b...
Jul 28, 2023•14 min
For most dog breeds , there is no black-and-white answer regarding the best time to neuter or spay your dog. Although several studies now support later sterilization, some breeds still don’t have a lot of data on them. Another component, and perhaps the most important piece that needs to be considered, are the dog’s owners themselves. A dog owner’s ability to keep and maintain intact animals and shoulder additional financial responsibilities that may come with them is a huge consideration when d...
Jul 26, 2023•10 min
One of history’s most famous 16-gauge shotguns was known as “The Little Gun.” It was built by Parker Bros in 1889 and “was billed to Mr. D. W. Parker, then treasurer of the Parker Company.” In 1893, it went to Everel Harnden, the grandfather of the famous “godfather” of ruffed grouse hunting , William Hardnen Foster. Foster would shoot his first grouse on the wing with it at 12 years old in 1898 before he went on to write the iconic classic, New England Grouse Shooting , published in 1942. For t...
Jul 24, 2023•15 min
A wonderful collection of charming stories about days spent afield with gundogs was published in 1938. The title was The Dog in Sport , and in it, author J. Wentworth Day wrote, “There were Ponto and Tanto, the two great, solemn-eyed, double-nosed Spanish pointers who lurked in a dignified way about the house, a gentle gloom upon their countenances. They were the grandchildren of the Spanish pointers owned by my great-grandfather, Robert Asplan, the little, old, dapper gentleman who wore black k...
Jul 21, 2023•16 min
Is steel a more than effective option for upland bird hunting? Before anyone spins this story into something it is not: lead is more effective than steel. I will not claim otherwise. But, the efficacy gaps we have come to believe are infinitely smaller than we think and, in my opinion, insignificant in the discussion of lethality for upland game. Scientists have looked into everything from killing efficiency to the impact of steel on shot patterns. As we will find, the story we have been told do...
Jul 19, 2023•16 min
“Time’s up! Please turn in your exam,” announced my Biology 101 professor. Are you kidding me? There are time limits on tests? Did I even use the right study guide? Feelings of bewilderment and dejection swelled in me as I sheepishly handed over my first big test failure during my freshman year of college. It was a wake-up call to the fact that I wasn’t in high school anymore. Eventually, I figured out what it took to be successful, and I made my way through the course. Just like a high schooler...
Jul 17, 2023•16 min
n Mongolia, among the Kazakh people of the Altai mountains, there is an ancient poem that lists the things every true nomad should have. Chief among these are a “brave eagle” and a “swift dog.” Of course, a fast horse and a loyal wife are important too, but there is a reason that eagles and dogs win the top spots. For thousands of years, trained golden eagles and sighthounds—sleek sinewy dogs built for speed and endurance—have worked together in pursuit of hare and foxes. Read more at projectupl...
Jul 14, 2023•14 min
Snipe shooting over decoys is a relatively obtuse technique and not widely practiced. There’s probably wisdom in that! A good shooter can kill as many, maybe more, by simply walking them. But, as a dedicated practitioner of decoy snipe hunting, and after a bit of soul searching, I’ve convinced myself of a couple of good reasons why – sometimes – it’s a worthy endeavor. First, I’ve found that I can introduce others to snipe hunting with the lure of a decoy hunt. A shoot from a comfortable blind w...
Jul 12, 2023•8 min
The Remington Model 10 shotgun represents a time when shotgun advancement for repeating firearms was happening at lighting speed. First developed in 1908, it was used by the United States in World War 1 as a “trench gun” with shortened barrels. It became the first pump shotgun to use a bottom-ejecting style action. A model 17 in 20-gauge was introduced soon after. The shotgun’s legacy would go on until the Remington Model 29 was introduced in 1930. The only pump-action model shotgun Remington st...
Jul 10, 2023•10 min
The last of the St. John’s Water Dogs were living in Newfoundland in the late 1970s. They were smooth-coated and mostly black, and it was easy to see how such dogs could have been selected into the modern Labrador Retriever in Britain. All retrievers derive from this working fisherman’s dog. Much of the speculation in discussions of retriever origin is really about how this working dog developed, and Labrador Retriever historians have very clearly posited their dog as a derivative of the St. Joh...
Jul 08, 2023•13 min
Understanding your dog’s body language is crucial. Appraising the direction and quality of the wind and assessing the moisture in the air and on the ground are clues to triangulate where bird smells might be coming from. Identifying surrounding cover and how that particular bird species retreats away from pressure aids in pinpointing a potential flushing location. When you can understand these practical elements of approaching a dog on point, you can position yourself more strategically. Learnin...
Jul 07, 2023•12 min
Each September, bobwhite hunters across the country wait impatiently for state wildlife agencies to publish their outlooks for the upcoming bobwhite quail season. A portion of these outlooks is determined by how many adult birds survived the previous winter. However, summertime bobwhite nest success and chick survival carry much more weight when deciding whether or not things look good for bobwhites. A vast majority of regional bobwhite populations turn over annually. In some cases, annual turno...
Jul 05, 2023•9 min
“Chukar dog” is a title held by many breeds whose owners love the thrill of chasing one of the hardiest upland game birds in the world. These dogs brave the dangers and extremes of chukar country while traveling on average three times as far as their owners walk in a day. Here are some of the basics to ensure these elite athletes have a good hunt and many seasons to come. Read more at projectupland.com ....
Jun 30, 2023•10 min
As you may have guessed, the steps to a better-tasting bird begin moments after you lace up your boots. As little shot as possible to get the job done is the goal, so this means understanding what shotgun choke you are running. A tighter choke, like a modified, may require you to wait until birds reach 20 yards before taking the shot as a tighter pattern at a closer range means far more pellets in your game. Read more at projectupland.com .
Jun 28, 2023•7 min
Rosie, my German Shepherd mix, loves any outdoor adventure I can throw at her. Although she’s not necessarily a hunting dog per se, I take her small game hunting, fishing, horseback riding, and camping with me all the time. My dog gets extra exercise and high-quality life experiences when she tags along on my outdoor adventures. Bringing Rosie camping with me also adds peace of mind. Her shepherd-like qualities mean she checks in with me regularly, stays close to me on the trail and in the woods...
Jun 23, 2023•10 min
Saying I’m into dogs is like saying Manitoba winters are “a tad chilly.” I spend most of my waking hours hanging out with, thinking about, reading about, and writing about dogs. One of my favorite reads as of late is a blog connected to the Institute for Canine Biology website run by Carol Beuchat, Ph.D. Dr. Beuchat’s post, “ Celebrating the Preservation Breeders! ” was a sort of good-news progress report on several breeding projects designed to save vulnerable breeds of dogs. Along with the rep...
Jun 21, 2023•28 min
The name of the breed in Hungarian is Magyar Vizsla. The official FCI translation is Hungarian Short-haired Pointing Dog, but in English the breed is most commonly called Vizsla or Hungarian Vizsla. “Magyar” means Hungarian. There are several theories regarding the origin of the word “Vizsla”. Some authorities claim the word is of Turkish origin meant “to seek”. Others suggest that it was the name of a village on the Danube. Whatever its origin, today Vizsla means “ pointing dog ” in the same wa...
Jun 16, 2023•27 min
When it comes to selecting a bird dog breed, there’s a common piece of advice handed out: “Choose a dog that hunts the way you hunt.” This is all well and good if you are a seasoned hunter—or if, in fact, you’ve ever hunted at all—but if you are coming into hunting completely green, it’s tough to imagine what your hunting style will be. And before you dive into the minutiae of the various breeds, you have to answer a fundamental question: flushing or pointing dog? I arrived at this important dec...
Jun 09, 2023•12 min
Many countries are home to iconic and world-renowned firearms manufacturers. Inventors and engineers like Bartolomeo Beretta of Italy, Samuel Colt of the US, and William Anson and John Deeley of Great Britain are just a few examples. These are names that are synonymous with innovation, craftsmanship, and quality. Despite Canada’s notoriety as a country with restrictive firearm laws, Canada is not without its own iconic firearm manufacturer. H.W. Cooey Machine & Arms was founded in 1903 as Co...
Jun 07, 2023•18 min
For those of us whose hearts have been enthralled by bird dogs and bird dog training, it’s easy to imagine as beginners that everything we do is tied by a silver cord to an ancient past and that there’s one tried-and-true process for training a bird dog, passed down in an unbroken generational succession from master to disciple. There’s some truth to all that, but just a little. Our dogs’ genes and breeding may reach back a few centuries, and a working and companionate relationship between Canis...
Jun 05, 2023•13 min
