Gun Dog Magazine is the best magazine for hunting enthusiasts who are owners of retrieving breeds. Each issue is guaranteed to be filled with useful information devoted to you, your dog and the sport of upland bird and waterfowl hunters.
I’M NOT ONE TO SHY AWAY from telling the truth about the ups and downs I have while training and hunting with my bird dogs. Things aren’t constant rainbows and butterflies like what is portrayed on social media. I think social media gives novice upland hunters a false sense of what it’s like training a bird dog. If one only went by what they saw on social, one would think training a bird dog is simple and easy. It’s not. Training our beloved flushers, pointers, and versatile breeds is rewarding beyond measure but takes patience and time. It can take months, even years, before you have a consistent bird finding dog that knows the commandments of bird hunting. A dog will eventually learn, with guidance, what cover holds birds, how…
NOVEMBER is a golden month for upland hunters. Temperatures drop, most seasons are open, and it marks the start of chasing the most sought-after bird in the uplands: the ring-necked pheasant. Running roosters are fun to hunt, and bringing one to bag is a true trophy. Here’s how to bag more birds this season. SATELLITE IMAGERY To find the roosters, you need to locate prime habitat that will hold them. Utilize onX Hunt’s satellite imagery to do this. OnX Hunt offers both a 2D view as well as 3D, which can be beneficial when you’re scouting from home and looking for terrain details. For early season-roosters, you’ll want to locate cropland, in particular corn and soybeans that sit adjacent to water or grasslands. Birds like to feed on both corn…
MOMARSH FIELD HOUSE DOG BLIND When it comes to finishing ducks and geese to the spread, concealing your dog goes a long way. The MOmarsh Field House Dog Blind is a great way to keep your dog hidden and ready to make the retrieve. Built on a cot design, the blind allows your dog to sit up out of the marsh and to stay comfortable on long hunts. The mesh bottom allows the water to easily drain as well, helping them dry off and keep warm in cold weather. The Field House blind is also foldable, making it easy to carry into hunts or to stow away when not in use. $200; momarsh.com STONE GLACIER CHINOOK MERINO GLOVES Stone Glacier’s Chinook Merino Gloves are like a second skin on your…
When it comes to important gear for hunting, your boots rank in the top three, if not the number one spot. Foot health is what is going to keep you hiking across the uplands behind your gun dog all season long. Blisters and hot spots will keep you sidelined, and ill-fitting boots can lead to knee, back, and hip pain—all of which put stress on your joints. This stress can lead to health issues down the road that you want to avoid at all costs. Proper boot fit and the right boot for the uplands is important. Here are five boots made to withstand years of use and abuse all while keeping your feet happy and healthy. MEINDL COMFORT FIT BOA SPEED HUNTER For those hunters with wider feet, the…
SHARP-TAILED grouse are known for their dark, rich meat. The flavor is close to duck, and like duck, the meat can taste strong and livery to some. If you’ve had sharptail before and didn’t like it, ask yourself if you took care of them in the field. Nebraska hunters, for example, often chase sharpies in early September and forget that the birds stuffed in their vests are stewing away in the heat of lingering summer. Sharpies are dark-meat birds with a flavor profile that I could best describe as minerally and herbaceous, and poor care in the field will only make those flavors stronger. For the best-tasting sharp-tailed grouse, get the birds on ice as soon as possible after they hit the ground, and allow air flow between each bird…
THE SHOTGUN landscape is ever-changing, and one brand whose stock is rising is Spandau. The brand is based in Turkey and imports shotguns to the States via SDS Imports in Knoxville, and their newest offering—and first semiauto shotgun available in the U.S.—is the inertia-operated S2. Since Benelli’s patent expired on their inertia-operated system, a number of companies have offered inertia shotguns, but few are as affordable as the S2. MSRP for this shotgun starts at just $444, and a gun with a full camo dip costs just $557, making the S2 one of the least expensive autoloading shotguns on the market. The obvious question, then, is how well this gun will hold up over several seasons and hundreds or thousands of rounds. Turkish guns have a reputation for being “cheap,”…
