Bird Dogs & Training  |  04/20/2020

Souls of the Uplands


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Pheasants Forever Summer Bird Dog Issue puts the focus on our devoted hunting partners and loving family companions

By Tom Carpenter, Editor at Pheasants Forever

Don’t tell my boss this, but sometimes it’s hard to believe I get to do what I do for a living.

Such is the case with putting together your upcoming Summer Pheasants Forever Journal: The Bird Dog Issue. We’re starting to put the finishing touches on this collection of how-to’s and why-we-do-its. What a joy … starting with our cover photograph by Ted Wells:

Labrador Retriever (the dog breed owned by the most members, by far), and those heart-melting eyes. The imperfect day (an autumn reality across pheasant country). Native habitat (what The Habitat Organization is all about). And oh that fully-plumed, swirl-tailed rooster.

Maybe just maybe (insert wink here), a little bit by design, those elegant tailfeathers point you right inside to the pages that follow. Here are just a few highlights I need to pull out for you to anticipate:

TOOTLE TRAINING
How anybody can train a bird dog (flushing or pointing dog alike) the fun way, without the toil of dreaded formal training sessions.

WHOA!
Two of our best writers, Christine Cunningham and Andrew McKean, went to the training experts for advice on teaching this critical do-it-all command for both pointers and flushers.

CARRY KITS
PF stalwart Anthony Hauck outlines exactly what you need to carry in your vest, and in your vehicle, to care for your dog in field emergencies … and maybe even save its life.

That’s just of flavor of the how-to’s. But of course, our relationships with our bird dogs run much deeper than the hunt itself.

For starters, there’s a very special trio of short Bird Dog Tales describing our deep relationships with our best friends, beloved family members and essential hunting partners.

I’m also putting the finishing touches on one of my own little pieces, a tribute to my old bird dog Rascal. You’ll have to wait for the words of When the Deal is Done, because I’m not quite done with it yet. Those who read me regularly, though, know I have promised to do this piece when the time was right. It was time. I hope you like it.

I’ll leave you with a flavor of the artwork that Ed Anderson is working on for the story, though. This isn’t the whole thing, but a piece of it … one little soul of the uplands.

If you haven’t yet joined Pheasants Forever, or you’ve let your membership lapse, get in on the Summer Bird Dog Issue! Join or renew TODAY and you’ll get a $25 Bass Pro Cabela’s Card. Now that’s a deal.