doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com September doves and new dogs

The noted essayist and English professor Havilah Babcock wrote a piece titled "My Health is Better in November" A wonderful read; but for me, I suddenly felt better today, September 1st. Dove season opened here in Texas, high school and college football season started, and my chocolate lab puppy Bella, made her first retrieve. After a long dry spell of 10 years, I decided last May that I needed to be trained by a lab. So once again, a dog owns me. At the risk of being drummed out of the SxS society, I must confess I left the doubles in the vault and shot a Winchester model 12 16 ga with 26" IC choke in memory of the old man. May all of you have a great hunting season.

The worst dove hunt ever. I hope everyone had a better day in the dove fields yesterday than me . The doves were flying I had a nice spot in some shade between a small pond and a recently harvested Sun flower field. The birds were flying all around me the people across the pond were getting plenty of shooting and the closest people to the side of me by a couple of hundred yards limited out. All day long and I got two shots. At least there was water for the dog to keep cool in the oppressive heat. She even deserted me to sit with my buddy who was getting the shooting. The rest of the season can only improve. good luck to everyone.

Gary, it may not have been a double but it was a nice gun selection nonetheless.

Sat with my dog and 1911 Sauer 16 ga for an hour by my dam. Worst I have ever seen. Two doves came in all evening. My buddy shot both of them and dog made one water retrieve and found the other in tall cattails. I wish I knew what happened to the doves around here. Its been like this for about four years. I suspect herbicides, especially those designed to kill grasses such as pigeongrass.

Great looking pooch. I did the "enie-meanie-minie-moe" at the gun safe early Saturday morning and pulled out my Ithaca M37 28 and 20. Divided the limit between the two. Nothing wrong with a little trombone action opening day....Shotgun season is a long journey; mine starts first Saturday in Sept with doves and ends on May 15th with turkeys.

We did well Saturday, limits by 10...Snob shoot, 20 bore Westley Richards and E grade Lefever...Today went to town (inside city limits) to shoot Eurasion collared doves...Them suckers is smart..About a million of them when we pulled up, 1 shot all gone...

LD, I've never seen a collared dove in a rural setting. Never in a corn field. They are all over town, however. Pretty much replaced park pigeons around here.

Bruce, David and I went out at 4PM Saturday afternoon

Bruce shot a 410 BSA side by side

David shot a Rem 1100 in 410 and an American Arms O/U in 24 gauge

I shot my Charles Daly in 410

The three limits of doves have been cleaned and are in the fridge soaking

Mike

GMCS, I hear you. It is torturous to sit withing 300 yds. of folks wearing the doves out, and not get a flight past you, which was my opening day morning. But...you if you are on your property and they are on theirs, that's the way it goes. Good luck next time!! Steve

Last doves that came by me yesterday in the sunflowers was a pair of big collared doves, though I didn't realize it at first. I made a perfect right and left on them with the .410, the second dead in the air before the first hit the ground. There was at least three in that pile of birds pictured in the other thread. Those breasts went in the freezer with all the rest.

SRH

Opening day in Virginia found me hunting over a waterhole. Planned on taking my 16 gauge CH, but the farmer had placed cows in the field and padlocked it. Given the shooting can be fast and furious I put the Parker away and dug out a Fox SW 16 gauge ejector gun with 30" barrels choked full/full, two boxes of RST's and we walked in the half mile. Found out quickly I was old, but my dog was older. With the heat and humidity it was all we could do to lug all the stuff to the waterhole.

Shooting started out very slow, but picked up towards the evening (typical for the waterhole shoots I've been on). With a bit of luck I managed to take some home. Too late to take a photo last night, so I put them on ice and cleaned them this morning. My 12.5 year old Golden did well. Found at least 6 birds we would have lost in brush/tall grass. Anyway, a few photos:





And of course the young dog had to grab one up and she's damn pretty so I snapped a picture of her as well:

Nice pics, tut. I see you have learned what I also have, that ejectors are a very nice piece of hardware when the dove shootin' is fast paced. A man could do a lot worse than a 30", 16 ga. Sterly ejector for doves.

Good shootin'.

SRH

Chuck, did you shoot them in Mexico? I didn't think you were going to be able to take your guns with you.

No, Joe, we are still in Kansas, leaving tommorrow for a hunt with Daryl in Saskatchewan. We'll be relocating about the middle of December...

Chuck,
Sounds like you're having fun. I'm wishin I was retired already.

I did get down to Yuma for the one day. We got permission for our group to hunt some private property over a section or two of cantalope which had been harvested/with many which had been just turned over and left to rot. We shot limits of whitewings in an hour or two. Then back to town for breakfast. Afterward we went out to find some Eurasian dove. We found a spot under a patch of trees that had them exclusively. I burned thru nearly a flat of 3" shells at the passing shots of the singles and small groups. Many were very high. Later that evening, we had grilled dove tacos that had been butterflied and marinated in several concoctions. A great dinner. The Repro with the CSM barrels did very well.

You guys are driving me nuts - I am sitting here in the People's Republic of MA watching our "protected songbirds" flit around and coo in the pine trees behind my house. I still jump every time I hear that "we-we-we-we" as they fly by.

I gotta move . . . .

Dove tacos? Now theres a thought...Might give that a try when we get back..Still seeing good numbers of Pheasants, lots of failed standing corn still up..most of it about belt buckle high, so should be huntable...Hang in there Doverham, your turn is coming..

A group of 20 or more of us have been gathering for a "dove weekend" at the "Camp" belonging to one of our more affluent friends for many years. Most participants are the sons or grandsons of the original guys (going back for 50 years or so). I've been attending for over 20 years.

We shoot all three days of the Labor Day weekend opener. Usually we attend private or pay shoots in the middle GA area and we'll often split up into several shoots on the different days.

This weekend was another resounding success with great food, great friends and great shooting. Having enjoyed the good luck of dodging hurricane Isaac our fields were all in perfect shape. The places I shot, all private shoots, were all three purpose planted (sunflower, corn, and milo)and manipulated just for the dove shoots. We bagged a mixture of mourning doves and eurasian ringnecked doves.

My gun of the year was a 1900 Remington 16ga ejector gun with 30" open choked barrels. Perfect!...Geo

Geo: You win. Gil

We had "two" new hunters with us, one in his forties and the other just six. I think both are hooked for life. Saturday's evening shoot was nothing short of spectacular, with wave after wave from nearly every point on the compass. Here is the six year old with her dad and the bird he dropped just outside camp between morning and evening shoots: