doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Wild Birds vs. Game Preserves

I'm with treblig; I believe a balance can and should be struck between conventional farming and farming game for recreational use. Some farmers strike a very decent balance between a working farm and a fee-and-subsidy driven "preserve" which combines stocking with a pheasant-friendly habitat that allows some carryover providing some essentially wild birds.

I don't know much about the quail hunting side of this, but assume that some such arrangement might be, and probably has been reached.

Point is, we "wild" purists shouldn't spit on such operations, even if they aren't quite to our taste. What should be encouraged is a spectrum of such operations to fit all tastes, kinda like the restaurant business. And we should encourage public policy and private sentiment to support them (kinda like the restaurant business). I know that there are and have been such efforts. But us hunters need to get fully behind them, for the sake of the sport and the way of life that it represents.

As you know, this is old stuff in the Old Countries (I think the Romans stocked pheasants). But we need to do it better, as we have many things--keep it available to any Joe or Jane that really wants it. That's been our genius and I trust we haven't lost it.

Thank You Mr. Armstrong for a moment there I thought I was inching out on that limb a little to far!!!!
More and more as I drive on this country's highways and byways and see these farms being dug up for housing plans and strip malls its literally tearing my heart out!!!
All the best

What you have, treblig, is all the ingredients of a good story, not only a fair idea of how many hunt preserves and why but the strong emotions that go with it. It's as close as you're going to get anywhere. The usual don't-want-to-offend-anyone government conservation and wildlife comment will add a smile.

I’m a VERY avid bird hunter – primarily because I enjoy working my dogs. I can’t get enough of it. The dogs and I just got back from a three week trip to the NE Sandhills – chasing sharps and chicken – about as “wild” as you can get. Grouse open here tomorrow – we’ll be out there. Phez open next week. We hunt all of the wild seasons.

When the wild seasons are over, I have about 200 birds to kill at my hunting club. Except when I take guests, the dogs and I will harvest all of those birds by scratch hunting – meaning that we will not release birds, but will hunt those that have been released for some time and have survived numerous attempts by dogs and hunter, not to mention regular predators. Is that that same as wild bird hunting? No, it is not. It is close to wild bird hunting? Well, I’m not going to answer that question because that is a subjective judgment on which reasonable people could differ. All I can say is that it is sufficiently challenging to be fun for me and the dogs; and we do tons of very challenging wild bird hunting for various species in various areas of the country. One thing I know for sure – preserve hunting beats the hell out of sitting in front of this computer or watching TV, which is all the wild birds only purists can do off-season while I’m out hunting.

The dogs and I also frequently guide for released birds at the hunting club and some preserves. That experience can vary from simply going from planted bird to planted bird to more interesting scenarios. I enjoy this, too, because it gives me a chance to introduce new folks to our sport by showing them good dog work, helping them learn to shoot, etc – plus it allows me to constantly hone my dogs’ bird handling skills without needing to gun. Partly because of doing this work, my dogs often kill over 1,000 birds/year – that’s a good thing. Finally, this helps keep the Old Man fit enough to hunt wild birds for weekend on end in remote and difficult terrain.

Bottom line – preserves serve an extremely valuable purpose in today’s upland world. For fanatics like me, they take nothing away from wild bird hunting and they allow us to extend our season (joy!) and keep both the dogs and the hunters in top form. For people looking to get involved in the upland life, they provide an open door. When I was young and could kill more phez than I could carry by walking out my front door, most rural boys and young men hunted. That is no longer even remotely possible around here, so why would any young person even think about birds hunting, but for preserves? The only chance that exists to create a fanatic like me is to take kids to a place where they can see good dog work and kill some birds. I’ve killed countless birds in 48 years (except when a prisoner of Uncle Sam) of bird hunting and could care less whether I kill more or not on a given day, but young people don’t think like that. Even a poorly run preserve is better than no preserve, IMHO.

We should not look down our noses at preserve hunting any more than we should at clay targets. Both serve a role in keeping shooting alive. In fact I must have killed 250,000 clay targets over the years and at best a fifth of that amount in wild or preserve birds. 95% wild and maybe 5% preserve but that may change in the next 30 years.

I am a far better shooter and hunter because of clay target shooting, a better hunter because of preserve shooting opertunities and a much happier hunter beacuse I know that there are other options for my shooting pleasure. There is no need to harvest a full limit to feel my hunting day has been a success.

While I like to watch a good dog work that is like looking at a good looking woman. Nice to see but more fun to be involved with. In this case shooting a few birds so the dog gets to do more than run around and sniff.

I figure that my dove managment and hunting decreases my farm income four to five thousand dollars. Plus another thousand for the opening day feed and refreshments. My quail management and hunting cost me about half of that amount or more. But if I really wanted to make money on my farm I would sell the SOB and invest the money in something else. In fact, you will find most people who own a farm really only have modest dreams and wants. Getting rich is almost never one of them. Good thing too.

Repeated trips down the same 100yd strip of sorghum knowing the two or three they just put in will flush at the fence line isn't the greatest thing but it's something.

jack

Thanks again guys, I am amazed at the passion that this issue evokes. Don't worry, I will write the story.

Thanks again, Dick

Hunt wild birds if possible. Remember that the worst day at the worst imaginable preserve/hunt club beats the heck out of any day at the office!

Went to a local preserve today for dog "tune-up." Placed our own birds, and had an enjoyable time watching both dogs work.

Its rather fascinating that after a nine month hiatus, the dogs instantly remember what they are to do, and why they are there.

It was a pretty day, and nice to be out in a freshly cut cornfield with dogs, shotguns, and a friend. While not as good as wild bird hunting, it sure beats a day at the office!

JERRY

A member here and friend, Builder, is coming out west in a little while and I'm taking him on a true wild quail hunt while he's here. I don't know what Builder has hunted but I think he'll really, really enjoy these quick little birds. These birds are all about the hunt for miles of walking... and then, in a flurry of noise, they light their afterburners and catapult off the ground and fly 'nap of the earth' like a cruise missile. I think he may be able to provide a east/west perspective afterward.