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Tick Talk: Tracking birds, not bacteria — protecting dogs and hunters in the grouse woods

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by Tom Keer The seaside woodcock cover lay at the bottom of the lowlands and right below the dunes where the mooncussers walked. Coastal regions get more rain than snow, and that moisture is why the woodcock – those original shorebirds – were searching here for worms. Ticks liked the moisture, too, and that’s the challenge of running dogs on spring woodcock. Those several weeks of training pay big dividends come fall, but they can come with a cost – Lyme disease. I’m proud of the fact that not a single one of my dogs has ever contracted Lyme disease and,...

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23 Woodcock In 22 Years – a Book Review

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by Jeff Wilkerson 23 Woodcock in 22 Years: Reflection on Hunting, the Night Sky and Our Place in the Universe Published: November 2024 University of Iowa Press Retail Price: $24 Woodcock cast a magical spell over many hunters. Much has been written about these migratory gamebirds, from lyrical poems and treatises to how-to discussions and biological books. When we ponder these mystical birds, their characteristics, migrations, habitat and hunting, our minds travel toward the north woods of the Great Lakes states or the Northeast. Likely, we imagine a pair of hunters traipsing along a damp bog, alder run or creek bottom following...

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The Role of Conservation and Fair Chase Ethics in the Future of Hunting

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by Charlie Booher Conservation and hunting have been tied in this country for more than a century of recorded modern history, and since time immemorial before then. Neither is an accident. People who hunt have always been intimately familiar with the fluctuating functions of the natural world, ranging from shifts in population dynamics of game to the ways in which certain habitats might be manipulated to achieve our goals. Hunters recognize that our role in society extends to the conservation of all natural resources. We’ve made ourselves responsible for ensuring the health of habitats and wildlife populations for generations to come. We’re...

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First Season of Making Memories Together

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Article and photos by Steve and Jodie Ries, Top Gun Kennel As we reflect back on the initial meeting with the breeder, making our selection and training our spring puppy, the time has come to start making memories together. There’s nothing better than taking a young dog to wild bird cover and watching how our combined training, genetic traits and proper scouting have prepared them to overcome the survival instincts of upland birds. We’ve done our part with teaching them all the basic commands, exposing them to birds, gun fire and the type of cover they’ll be hunting in. Now it’ll be...

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The Loyal Order of Dedicated Grouse Hunters

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by Nate Kennedy It was three Septembers ago. My first real opening day and my initiation to the joy of hunting over a grouse dog. It was hot and humid, and the air grew thicker and thicker as the golden hour set in. I stumbled along through the alders, trying my best to keep up with Tripp Way and his wirehair, Ruby, not wanting to miss any opportunity to learn or, even more, to shoot. It was a day I’ll never forget – and the first of many great days learning from Tripp and his dog. I took notice of every...

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In Pursuit of Knowledge

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by Emily Sliski | RGS & AWS Mid Atlantic Regional Engagement Coordinator The weather this particular October day was a grouse hunter’s dream, but if I had to walk through 10 more feet of woody, dense mountain laurel, I was going to throw my gear into the woods and leave. Part of that was self-inflicted; the price of running flushing dogs in grouse woods. The other is discovering new covers and learning what good grouse cover even looks like. Both I gladly do season after season.  I grew up hunting – a real child of the woods. My dad taught me at...

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