InterestsDog Hazards Dogs 1 2 Quail Dogs Cheap Dog Boots Upland Dogs Dog Accidents 
StatesKansas Iowa Missouri
Upland BirdsBobwhite Quail Pheasant Self Guided Quail Self Guided Pheasant Upland Bird Review Bird Comparison
Upland HunterBird Forecast Hunter Expectations Recommendations Bell Curve Testimonials Hunter Types Pheasant Hunters Hunt Planning Game Birds | Check BackCheck back, in terms of bird finding dog power specific to bobwhite quail also has a distinction from that of grouse or pheasant hunters. The better bobwhite quail dog does not make physical check back with the hunter there by retracing ground previous covered. The better quail dogs will have visual check back keeping the hunter within direct line of sight when on the outside edge of the linear bobwhite quail holding cover. However, once on point in that cover the hunter is then required to find the dog with the beeper collar the most effective means of doing so. Upland bird hunters vary in opinion. This article is just one set of upland bird hunter opinions. 
Dogs that run edge and prefer downwind edge are those with a lot of quail hunting time. Spending time "quartering" such as many of the field trail based dog training manual recommend means a dog spending useless time running around cut crop fields or too deep into the cover outside of the narrow strip the quail occupy. 
Running the edge is not enough. That same edge running bird dog must dive into the target cover his exposure to coveys has conditioned him to expect to find birds. That edge dived into continues to be "quail edge" such as this thin spot in the lightly wooded, brush and grass ground cover. |
Singles or CoveyBobwhite quail hunters will concede there is a time when a circular or quartering bird dog is an advantage. That is after the covey flush and singles are hunted. The dog that will then work a tight circular pattern of a hundred yards or so where the bulk of the covey after covey flush set down to locate the singles after covey flush will yield more points. These same bird hunters also state that dogs learn to make the distinction to change hunting pattern when on singles after a covey flush. In the same breath, they also say that without the initial covey find (meaning long running, sight check back, edge dog) that singles action would never occur. A further distinction of the effective bobwhite quail bird finding dog on singles is the dog that will listen to the covey calls to vector in to find the scent cone for point. This is well often observed by a dog that changes hunting speed when on edge they run faster than on singles where they slow down. How a bird dog achieves this speed changing skill is simply answered with they just do. | All upland bird hunter opinions count. When reading this highlighted piece, the upland bird hunter is cautioned this article was written for the non bird dog owner, the novice and experienced upland bird hunter combined. It is an illustrative piece not intended to be directed toward any one hunter sub group. | The difference between self guided bird dog owning hunters and those that are not is tested by those that view this picture, below. Non dog owners see two dogs. Do it yourself bird dog hunters see one on point, one on back. The quality of the pictured point and back then is evaluated. The points seem average stand-ups without lifted front leg or intense leaning the field trialer will want. One tail average and the second good. The quality of the backing is questioned as the second dog is right on top of the first. This may be caused by limited visibility or the second dog pressured into the scent cone and pointing rather than backing. Getting down into the weeds of detail such as this is what distinguishes the do it yourself dog owner from that hunter simply walking behind dogs with no understanding of what is going on right in front of him. 
Just one snapshot into the many intangibles of a do it yourself hunter organization is that the hunter of dogs trains and owns his own dogs. That same do it yourself dog owning hunter hunts for his dogs and his enjoyment of watching those dogs in action. Such hunters readily agree. Non-bird dog owning hunters cannot understand this aspect that can only be experienced. 
Same dogs as the picture above under different conditions demonstrating a high quality backing. If it is about the dog work then it works well with Mid-America Hunting Association. |
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