Wow! This summer just doesn’t want to go away. But, being mid November, I just couldn’t use my head and went into a couple of places I should have known better then to go. Both trips took some time to get to, so I didn’t begin my hunts until about ten oclock. Usually, this time of year that wouldn’t be a problem. But not this year.
I didn’t see what the temperature was when I left the truck, but when I got back to it yesterday, it said 82 degrees. It moved down to 71 after we got moving, but that is still too hot. Normal high is 49 degrees. Not a cloud in the sky and the sun beating down on the brown coats of my dogs. I was down to a tee shirt. No big deal for me, but both days, it was for the dogs. Being excited, I threw caution to the wind, and the dogs could have paid for it.
Tuesday, I should have learned, but we ran into some springs along the way to help, but Thursday we found no water, and I was liberal with giving the dogs water early, thinking we would find some, but we didn’t. By the time we got back to the truck, they were finishing off my gatoraid and just walking from shade to shade. Two very stupid and selfish hunts by me. I could have ruined or even killed one of my most prize possesions.
Yes, the dogs were having a ball most of the time. They were going like hell and doing their best to find birds. But the smelling was like early September. At one time, I saw Layne, kind of pointing but then trot off. A small covey of chukars ran across the trail in front of me and to the opposite side of the hill. They weren’t twenty yards from where Layne was pointing. I called the dogs over and led them to where the birds ran across the trail. They didn’t even act interested and finally after several minutes, Grady pinned one down two feet from him. I assumed from that, that we probably hunted past several birds on the way up the mountain. I also watched the dogs walk right over the top of this bull snake. They never even noticed him.
Anyhow. The purpose of this post is to remind us all of the dangers of the heat on our dogs. It’s hard not to go on a long hunt for chukars in the middle of November and worry about the heat and water, but I should have. I had a gallon of water and two gator aid bottles. Normally, that would have been plenty. But my love for chukar hunting could have been disasterous for my dogs. I should have known better after the first trip.
Four or five hours in the hot sun was way too much. But even with the hot and dry conditions, I was getting some decent dog work.
But most of the time, I could tell that they weren’t real sure the birds were there.
Even with the heat, I was excited to be getting into the birds. Even on day one with the extra water we found, the dogs slowed quite a bit and when they both found a shaded spot, they’d take a break in it. I should have taken that as my cue to head back to the truck. I still had room in my game bag.
The dogs were anxious to get into the truck but I made them pose for a picture. They weren’t to excited but we got it done.
I gave them a day of rest and two days later I was chomping at the bit to be back on the mountain. I had a place about five miles from the last spot and I was sure it held some birds. And it did. We hadn’t been out for fifteen minutes and the dogs were on point.
I snapped a picture and moved towards Grady. The birds flushed early but flew around me and towards Layne, who was backing. I dropped a chukar and Layne was on top of it. She proudly brought it back to me and I was ready for a fun day.
Ten minutes later, the dogs were once again on point.
Thanks for the zoom lens, because they were about 280 yards uphill. I made my way to them and shot a double with each dog bringing a bird to me.
Not a half hour on the hill and 3 chukars in the vest. Like always, I gave the dogs a drink of water after a retrieve. I gave them a little extra because it looked like it was going to be a short day. Before I knew it, we were 3 hours into the hunt and a long ways from the truck. The dogs would come back for a drink and I began rationing. I was on their last bottle. They were still hunting hard but their range was getting shorter and I was getting the signal that they were on point and when I got to them, they were just hugging the shade of a bush. Although they were still hunting on the way back to the truck, the intensity was not the same. They had eaten their peanut butter and honey sandwiches and finished one of my gator aids and I got one final point from them. I shot a chukar and Grady made the retrieve.
He brought it half way back to me and then began to eat it. He chewed the head and neck off and was working on the back of it by the time I got to him. I gave the two of them a good swig of my last gator aid and headed back to the truck with both dogs at heal. We stopped at every shaded spot we could find, but there weren’t many. About 300 yards from the truck I could tell they saw it. I let them finish off my gator aid and head off too the truck. By the time I got to the truck, they were both laying underneath it and panting hard. I took my jug of water out of the truck and Layne came out for a drink. Grady was too tired, so I put some water in a bowl and crawled under with him. He drank some, but was totally exhausted.
We were on the hill for almost 5 hours and Grady had covered almost 17 miles while Layne had done 23. It was 71 degrees and dry as could be. I layed there with them for almost a half an hour. I finally coaxed Grady out and put him in the back seat with Layne. He still didn’t want to drink any more water. On our two hour drive home in the air conditioned truck, I kept a close eye on Grady. He finally quit panting and looked normal. Every thing was fine.
At home I helped him out of the truck and he drank some water from the bucket and ate a few treats. He was going to be okay. I had Barb snap a picture of Grady, Layne and me with our take for the day. I wanted it as a remembrance of how I almost lost a dog because of my eagerness to get a limit of birds. Notice there are only seven. Guess who got to finish eating one of the chukars.
Looks like the heat will be gone tomorrow. Also, I think both dogs forgave me, but I’ve been doing some pretty big sucking up to them.
