# grouse numbers again



## setterpoint (Feb 20, 2015)

i ask this qustion back a while but hows the hunting look for this year .im finding birds but seem to be spoty some places seem to hold a lot of young grouse but mayby the next stop or two no birds thats in kalkaska county just wondering how some other parts look this year


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## sportsman98 (Dec 6, 2010)

I've only been out a handful of times but I've had the same experience here in Wexford County.


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## stickbow shooter (Dec 19, 2010)

I am out in the field almost daily. I haven't been putting up many grouse at all. This is in Wexford,Manistee counties. The most birds I put up was in Lake county earlier this month.


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## slammer (Feb 21, 2006)

Fair numbers so far


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## augustus0603 (Oct 24, 2005)

We've had very few bird sightings overall in Missaukee County, pretty good in Crawford. Have found a few, small dead birds that were turned over to a biologist. There is a rumor of a West Nile outbreak but has not been confirmed.

Know of a person that found a dead blue jay in the Mid-Forest lodge area that was a confirmed case.


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## slammer (Feb 21, 2006)

There have been confirmed west Nile cases. I get emails from MDCH and CDC for my job. Got at least one in birds and may have received one today for a human case; didn't read it well before I deleted it.



augustus0603 said:


> We've had very few bird sightings overall in Missaukee County, pretty good in Crawford. Have found a few, small dead birds that were turned over to a biologist. There is a rumor of a West Nile outbreak but has not been confirmed.
> 
> Know of a person that found a dead blue jay in the Mid-Forest lodge area that was a confirmed case.


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## RobbyBoy32 (Sep 27, 2016)

I ran the dogs and saw a few grouse in Osceola over Labor Day weekend. Has anyone hunted a DNR GEMS area?


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## longhaulpointer (Aug 14, 2007)

God I hope not, if you want to be scared watch the pensylvania study on grouse and west nile.









slammer said:


> There have been confirmed west Nile cases. I get emails from MDCH and CDC for my job. Got at least one in birds and may have received one today for a human case; didn't read it well before I deleted it.


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## longhaulpointer (Aug 14, 2007)

Sorry what county or part of the state with the confirmed cases of west nile


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

longhaulpointer said:


> God I hope not, if you want to be scared watch the pensylvania study on grouse and west nile.


I don't know what I would do without grouse.Is there a study in Michigan with our bird biologist that we can send samples to?


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## augustus0603 (Oct 24, 2005)

birdhntr said:


> I don't know what I would do without grouse.Is there a study in Michigan with our bird biologist that we can send samples to?


I dont believe there is an official study but it sounds like things are in motion. Still havent heard back if the cases we sent in were confirmed. They called back looking for exact locations where sick birds were found.


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## slammer (Feb 21, 2006)

longhaulpointer said:


> Sorry what county or part of the state with the confirmed cases of west nile





longhaulpointer said:


> God I hope not, if you want to be scared watch the pensylvania study on grouse and west nile.


It's found in dead birds every year in Michigan, has been for quite a while


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## slammer (Feb 21, 2006)

longhaulpointer said:


> Sorry what county or part of the state with the confirmed cases of west nile


4 cases in humans as of 8/31. 2 in Montcalm , 1 each in Oakland and Macomb.

There have been quite a few in wild birds...turkey and crows. Go to Michigan.gov/westnile and see what links you can see. I'm looking at one page right now that shows about 100 positives in birds this year with 22 of those in Bay county


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## longhaulpointer (Aug 14, 2007)

Believe it or not Ohio used to have good grouse hunting, now they are non existent....
Obviously we don't have the same amount of habitat. But if you read the Pennsylvania study that is more in depth than the video, it shows that some birds particularly grouse, have a much higher mortality than other birds like turkey


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## gundogguy (Oct 5, 2008)

Your right about Ohio and grouse populations. when I first got serious about training dogs 1974,
many of my mentors were from the Lebanon and Cincinnati area. They talked about grouse all the time. Though they come to Michigan for Pheasants in the 50'and 60's


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## huntindog1 (Jun 22, 2016)

Indiana used to have grouse heck a long time ago they would trap them and trade Missouri for Turkey's. I go back to my old converts in Hoosier National Forest around Maumee and the habitat has gone. No habitat development in Indiana. Guys it's bad, so bad it ought to be investigated on negligence.

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## longhaulpointer (Aug 14, 2007)

Funny, I grew up in cincy, now live just north of Lebanon. The 50s and 60s were the golden age of pheasant hunting in Ohio. Believe it or not, I worked with a guy when I was younger who was a kid in the 50s who said he used to bring a shotgun to high school. Said it was fairly common in Wilmington (still a farming community) for kids to bring a gun to school, then walk the the railroad tracks home and hunt pheasant and rabbit on the way home from school. Times have changed for sure. However, some of the local schools still close for opening day of deer season which in Cincinnati is still looked upon as something crazy


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## Expert (Sep 16, 2017)

I have photos from the 50s at 12 and van **** area of 5 + pheasants my uncles and dad would get during a morning hunt off our backyard. My dad moved "way up north" from downtown Detroit so he could pheasant and rabbit hunt. 

Habitats change. Now you need to go to the Dakotas to hunt pheasants like that...


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## micooner (Dec 20, 2003)

longhaulpointer said:


> Funny, I grew up in cincy, now live just north of Lebanon. The 50s and 60s were the golden age of pheasant hunting in Ohio. Believe it or not, I worked with a guy when I was younger who was a kid in the 50s who said he used to bring a shotgun to high school. Said it was fairly common in Wilmington (still a farming community) for kids to bring a gun to school, then walk the the railroad tracks home and hunt pheasant and rabbit on the way home from school. Times have changed for sure. However, some of the local schools still close for opening day of deer season which in Cincinnati is still looked upon as something crazy


Oh yeah the good ol days same here.


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## fowl (Feb 15, 2003)

Anyone have thoughts on grouse numbers this year? Seem to be pretty scarce in my usually productive covers. I noticed that some of the usual food sources, particularly soft mast, are not real plentiful.


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## ryan-b (Sep 18, 2009)

fowl said:


> Anyone have thoughts on grouse numbers this year? Seem to be pretty scarce in my usually productive covers. I noticed that some of the usual food sources, particularly soft mast, are not real plentiful.


Woodcock seem to be all over. Grouse are another story this year. Covers that had great numbers last year don’t seem to have near them this year.


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## NbyNW (Jun 30, 2012)

Finding woodcock in good numbers, but it varies cover to cover. We are a little nervous the Grouse numbers aren't strong this year. Only found one group of young birds together so far. Still optimistic its early and been warm so far.


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## bedlyblaster (Jan 1, 2003)

grouse numbers are way down in the west central part of the state that i hunt. areas that had good grouse numbers last year are disappointing at best this year. would really like to know what happened! we are supposed to be in the upswing in the cycle. i was hoping for better than last year. i think we had poor brood survival and or poor adult survival with the warm winter. not seeing any woodcock either.


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## BassFisher91 (Sep 11, 2005)

This morning was the first day of hunting that my dog and I did not put up a grouse, and it was the longest day of hunting for us too. Granted we were hunting a new cover that I didn't know what to expect from it. Woodcock on the other hand were numerous. NE LP.


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## setterpoint (Feb 20, 2015)

had four flushes on grouse three woodcock flushes in two hours of hunting but had a few mornings maybe one or two grouse im finding the same thing that alot of others on hear there not in the same places as last year at least not yet hunted one stand of aspen had a few birds up opening day last year was full of grouse the dirds we have been lucky to get all were feeding on diff stuff not one of them were eating the same thing


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## Alex Andrzejewski (Jun 28, 2017)

setterpoint said:


> had four flushes on grouse three woodcock flushes in two hours of hunting but had a few mornings maybe one or two grouse im finding the same thing that alot of others on hear there not in the same places as last year at least not yet hunted one stand of aspen had a few birds up opening day last year was full of grouse the dirds we have been lucky to get all were feeding on diff stuff not one of them were eating the same thing


In 3 times out over the last two weekends, about 6 hours overall, I've put up 13 grouse and 5 woodcock, but 4 of those woodcock came today. Finding lots of birds on the edges of aspen thickets near water and alders. The coverts I hunt in N.E LP and Mid-Michigan GEMS have been dry but productive. Getting the 6 month old pup some good work. Gets better and better everyday. Finally broke my 0 for forever poor shooting streak this afternoon.


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## fowl (Feb 15, 2003)

Sounds pretty consistent that most are seeing less birds than last year. After seeing pretty good numbers last year I was optimistic that this year would be even better. Wonder if the cool wet weather had an impact on brood survival.


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## MrFysch (Feb 9, 2008)

Grouse numbers are way down from my observations in the western UP. LOCAL guy with knowledge I respect said 29 days straight of May rain was the culprit?


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## Gnoyes (Jan 23, 2013)

I'll second late May and early June being unusually cold and rainy. Have only jumped one family group of birds this year... it was a week before the opener. Still seem to bump at least a couple of adult birds in each cover. The hot weather can make for a perceived difference in bird numbers as the birds often prefer non-traditional cover when its hot and dry.


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## setterpoint (Feb 20, 2015)

had six grouse up this morning two solid points had the birds naild other flushes dog worked running birds 3 that ran and flew one wild flush got that bird


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## Gamekeeper (Oct 9, 2015)

I'm at <3 grouse/hr. so far. Mostly adult singles. Have seen some broods, birds were small. 
Central LP.

There's been huge gains in habitat, so, sooner or later, it will fill out with birds. I'd expect WC to blossom first.
These are the earliest of the upcoming glory days, if habitat means anything at all for grouse.


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

I'm on the fence with the numbers overall.Last year was excellent and in late August into Sept I was finding a lot in areas that are not productive at the moment.(poplar/aspens)So I did some exploring and found some singles and a few pockets in areas.I hunted at least 20 hrs in three days with maybe 3 per hour flush rate at best.As for woodcock it was fantastic.Everytime I parked my truck my dogs had one instantly.They tied my dogs up constantly and I was getting worn out and getting tired of having to go in and make the flush so I could move on.9 woodcock and one grouse and some fine dog work although sat and sun were to windy but the woodcock held and most grouse ran out and flushed.They don't like it when they can't hear well and get fidgety.Today at my last spot I walked 30 Yds and Annie went on point then Dixie honored then I gave it a minute and the dogs were still solid so I assumed it was a woodcock and when I made the flush it was a grouse and I missed.So I gave the dogs the that's my girls praise and called it a day.I went away with one thought from this weekend(life is beautiful)and it just doesn't get any better than this


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

I'm not seeing the grouse in my normal spots like last year, been scouting new areas and it's really hit or miss but I would say 3 to 4 flushes an hour, and hardly any Woodcock right now. The 70° temps are limiting my time in the woods I'm only able to hit the edges for a quick run 20 to 30 min run, switch the dogs out and hit the other edge and back to the truck to cool down and hit another spot really quick, unless I'm running a creek bed ect.


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## NbyNW (Jun 30, 2012)

birdhntr said:


> I'm on the fence with the numbers overall.Last year was excellent and in late August into Sept I was finding a lot in areas that are not productive at the moment.(poplar/aspens)So I did some exploring and found some singles and a few pockets in areas.I hunted at least 20 hrs in three days with maybe 3 per hour flush rate at best.As for woodcock it was fantastic.Everytime I parked my truck my dogs had one instantly.They tied my dogs up constantly and I was getting worn out and getting tired of having to go in and make the flush so I could move on.9 woodcock and one grouse and some fine dog work although sat and sun were to windy but the woodcock held and most grouse ran out and flushed.They don't like it when they can't hear well and get fidgety.Today at my last spot I walked 30 Yds and Annie went on point then Dixie honored then I gave it a minute and the dogs were still solid so I assumed it was a woodcock and when I made the flush it was a grouse and I missed.So I gave the dogs the that's my girls praise and called it a day.I went away with one thought from this weekend(life is beautiful)and it just doesn't get any better than this


Just to clarify, Are you saying you put in 20 hrs fri to Sunday this past weekend hunting? That's including drive time? 
Do you have a gps tracking how many miles you go per day walking? 
What type of dogs do you have that can handle this heat?


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## Alex Andrzejewski (Jun 28, 2017)

Hit three new coverts down the road from an old honey hole. Two woodcock and 4 grouse in about 2 hours and, according to my phone, only 3.7 miles of walking. Thick cover of choked aspen and lowland conifer make the going tough. The young pup flushed a woodcock that flew downhill and never cleared his head by more than a foot, as it was happening I jumped a log to get into shooting position. He hupped to the flush and as a turned my safety off and then on again after I saw I had no shot a grouse went off not 6 feet from him. Never got a shot. Good day in the field.


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

NbyNW said:


> Just to clarify, Are you saying you put in 20 hrs fri to Sunday this past weekend hunting? That's including drive time?
> Do you have a gps tracking how many miles you go per day walking?
> What type of dogs do you have that can handle this heat?


Don't track miles when hunting. My daughter has done it with me on my spring runs and I average 3.4 miles in 2.5 hours.I have gsps and ran the pair most of the time but did run them separate and the other two.Also a lab and another gsp.20 hrs hunting is my estimate it may be a off some.Probably 24 to 26 including one spot that takes 45 minutes to get to. Friday was sun up til 130 then 430 til dusk with lots of miles.Saturday was Windy and I hunted specific spots none more than an hour some were a half hour or less but was out all day with a nap in the woods.Sunday was hot and I hit small coverts til 1 and pulled the plug as the heat came and the wind backed off.


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## Zeboy (Oct 4, 2002)

Been in the central UP since Friday morning. Have logged over 20 hours of hunting. Our flush rate is less than 1/2 of what it was last year in this area. Hunting some very good covers and just not finding the birds like we did that past couple years. So much for the cycle being on the upswing. I think that all the rain here earlier this summer took a toll on the broods??


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## fowl (Feb 15, 2003)

Reports sound pretty consistent. I've been hunting grouse and woodcock for around 17-18 yrs. Bird numbers last year were good, I was excited. Have a dog in his prime and thought the stars were aligning. By this time last year I had a lot of birds in front of the dog and a fair amount in the bag. This year is the worst I've seen. The hot weather isn't helping, but the birds just aren't there. Grouse or woodcock.


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

I am optimistic on a three day weekend I had woodcock in every stop and the action was non stop.I moved a fair amount of grouse this weekend as well but I worked long and hard for it.The woodcock always held.Friday the grouse held decent but Saturday they didn't as expected with the wind.Had many points I walked in on that produced nothing but when I got the dogs moving they trailed and worked the ground with grousey demeanor.I think the birds ran out and flushed before I got there.Can't hear them in that wind to well.I am pleased that the dogs were honest and held.It's was nice to have a bunch of finds and have the second dog honor without being competitive or pressure the birds.Reading others reports makes me wonder how I managed to have found so many birds.It was truly one of my best weekends in all my years for both birds combined.The last two years really good for grouse but woodcock was less than usual.A local I spoke with asked me if I checked the high ground with Oaks and I said I never have and he just gave me a strange look like I should know something about it.I don't care for walking up and down ridges all day but he did make me wonder.Most of my pre scouting spots were loaded with birds and are adjacent to high ground Oaks but I never go there.I have had people in that area mention high ground in the past to me when I mention that action was slow


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## fowl (Feb 15, 2003)

what region are you hunting? How far north?


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

fowl said:


> what region are you hunting? How far north?


Alpena areas


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## Jager Pro (Nov 8, 2013)

Only been out twice so far. Flushed 0 birds at one spot but ended up getting 4 per hour at another which is pretty good for me with no dog. Only 1 shot so far and no dead birds. Also no woodcock yet.


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## setterpoint (Feb 20, 2015)

dog pointed six grouse three were togather others singels in about an hour hunting today but birds are spoty yesterday one bird i jump it  places we had a lot of birds up last year are just not there cant seem to get a pattern on them this year all seem to be feeding on diif things


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

Ten flushes yesterday in 45 mins with 3 WC flushes. Dog obviously is not steady, it's her first year and she has training on pigeons but it was too much for her last night but great experience lol, we will continue to get better. Talk about frustrating, and fun at the same time!!


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## gundogguy (Oct 5, 2008)

Timber said:


> Ten flushes yesterday in 45 mins with 3 WC flushes. Dog obviously is not *steady*, it's her first year and she has training on pigeons but it was too much for her last night but great experience lol, we will continue to get better. Talk about frustrating, and fun at the same time!!


Help me out here so I may better understand your situations yesterday. Is your dog a pointing dog or flushing dog?
By steady do you mean that your flusher is chasing birds that have left the ground, or that your pointer is not holding point and is busting birds before you get there to the point of contact???
Thanks.
Hal


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## BassFisher91 (Sep 11, 2005)

Timber said:


> Ten flushes yesterday in 45 mins with 3 WC flushes. Dog obviously is not steady, it's her first year and she has training on pigeons but it was too much for her last night but great experience lol, we will continue to get better. Talk about frustrating, and fun at the same time!!


If it's a pointer get yourself a whoa barrel (55 gallon drum works perfect). A 55 gallon drum is cheap. Especially if you're ever up in the area of M-33 north of I-75 at the M-33 warehouse place. Put your dog on it 5 mins every day, I do it twice, once in the morning and once at night. If he moves a leg lift him up, and set him down/drop him down on the barrel all while saying 'whoa'. It has helped my dog tremendously with staying steady. The dog has a hard time keeping balance while on the barrel if he moves his leg. I often times pet his back while lifting his tail and say 'whoa' at the same time. I release him only using the words 'ok Redd' and tap the top of his head when the training is done. 

Just an idea. Good luck. Between this training exercise and my dog realizing he's not going to get feathers in his mouth without staying steady he has improved vastly even since the beginning of this season (this is his first season).


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

gundogguy said:


> Help me out here so I may better understand your situations yesterday. Is your dog a pointing dog or flushing dog?
> By steady do you mean that your flusher is chasing birds that have left the ground, or that your pointer is not holding point and is busting birds before you get there to the point of contact???
> Thanks.
> Hal


I have a English Setter that I picked a couple of months ago that is pointing to close most of the time and or busting birds before I have time to get there. And I have a 3 year old Lab that imop is awesome.


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## St. Clair Slayer (Aug 31, 2009)

Between wind rain and warm weather last weekend I only ran the dog for a few hours in Missaukee and Roscommon counties The dog pointed half dozen or so woodcock and one grouse. She had a few points with no one home that I think may have been spooky grouse that busted before I came along. Just great to be out with the dog. Hopefully we get some cooler weather soon. Grouse sightings for my first outing of the season were lower than last season. But the season is still young.


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

Timber said:


> I have a English Setter that I picked a couple of months ago that is pointing to close most of the time and or busting birds before I have time to get there. And I have a 3 year old Lab that imop is awesome.


Are you running the dogs together? And is the lab a flusher or PL.How was the dog with pigeons? When training with pigeons or domestic game birds you are in a controlled environment and you know when,where, and what.In the woods you have no idea or the dog about the 3 W's so things have changed to some degree. My technique for training on wilds which is all I do besides a few pen raised birds at an early age and is simple.When the dog bumps,flushes,or points and the bird flushes with dog in pursuit is to bring the dog back to where the bird was and command whoa and hold the dog steady for a minute or two.And repeat every time a bird is mishandled.Don't shoot at birds not pointed.For a young dog you may want to run the dog in less productive ground and burn of some steam before hitting that honey hole you have there.When you do get into them and the dog gets worked up take the dog back out the way you came in where you know there wasn't birds and let the dog settle down and run then go back in.Keep a close eye on the dog and every time you see him catch scent command whoa to help create distance on points.Some folks like to walk in and grab the collar and have another person flush the bird and then walk the dog out of the area.Training on wilds is much different as you can't predict the three W's and that your going to find that many birds and get the pup pumped up.And for the record I am not a pro trainer,just a man who can't stop hunting birds even if it kills me.


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## Botiz (Oct 21, 2010)

longhaulpointer said:


> Funny, I grew up in cincy, now live just north of Lebanon. The 50s and 60s were the golden age of pheasant hunting in Ohio. Believe it or not, I worked with a guy when I was younger who was a kid in the 50s who said he used to bring a shotgun to high school. Said it was fairly common in Wilmington (still a farming community) for kids to bring a gun to school, then walk the the railroad tracks home and hunt pheasant and rabbit on the way home from school. Times have changed for sure. However, some of the local schools still close for opening day of deer season which in Cincinnati is still looked upon as something crazy


I grew up in that exact area. I went to a very small high school but we would have guns in our trucks all the time. That was 2002-2006.

Hell, one of our electives was an "outdoors skills" class and if you signed up for it, one of the things you did was go to the science teachers farm where he taught you how to shoot a gun.


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

birdhntr said:


> Are you running the dogs together? And is the lab a flusher or PL.How was the dog with pigeons? When training with pigeons or domestic game birds you are in a controlled environment and you know when,where, and what.In the woods you have no idea or the dog about the 3 W's so things have changed to some degree. My technique for training on wilds which is all I do besides a few pen raised birds at an early age and is simple.When the dog bumps,flushes,or points and the bird flushes with dog in pursuit is to bring the dog back to where the bird was and command whoa and hold the dog steady for a minute or two.And repeat every time a bird is mishandled.Don't shoot at birds not pointed.For a young dog you may want to run the dog in less productive ground and burn of some steam before hitting that honey hole you have there.When you do get into them and the dog gets worked up take the dog back out the way you came in where you know there wasn't birds and let the dog settle down and run then go back in.Keep a close eye on the dog and every time you see him catch scent command whoa to help create distance on points.Some folks like to walk in and grab the collar and have another person flush the bird and then walk the dog out of the area.Training on wilds is much different as you can't predict the three W's and that your going to find that many birds and get the pup pumped up.And for the record I am not a pro trainer,just a man who can't stop hunting birds even if it kills me.


I'm not running the dogs together not ready for that and don't know if i ever would at this point but that's a topic for another day. Lou my Lab is a flusher. 
Betty is my one year old English setter I bought a few months ago, that has been pointing pigeons in a controlled environment with electronic launcher with a pro trainer. Betty is not steady on pigeons, she will point them and crowd them, and has not been allowed to chase them. I plan to continue training with a pro once he is available. 
Betty runs pretty big and its hard to get to her, and place her back where she initially pointed the birds. Im trying to keep her somewhat closer so i can have more control of the situation, without over doing it and making her sticky, she is some what soft it seems, but lots of drive in the wood. I'm trying to figure it all i know it'll take some years, and keep telling myself not to lean on her to hard in her first year, but not make bad habits, I can take the some drive out, but its hard to put it back in if you know what I mean.


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## setterpoint (Feb 20, 2015)

no grouse today but got in some flight birds young setter did great best shes ever done


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## Frosty1223 (Nov 24, 2016)

Haven't seen too many in midland county for about 3 years now.... woodcock are almost non existent.... haven't even seen any flying at dusk


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## gundogguy (Oct 5, 2008)

Grouse numbers again?? So as this thread moves along, are the grouse numbers up or down?
I'm not interested in your hotspots, just like I would not give up real valued training ideas. 
But are the counties your walking about in producing more or less grouse than expected??


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## Gamekeeper (Oct 9, 2015)

gundogguy said:


> Grouse numbers again?? So as this thread moves along, are the grouse numbers up or down?
> I'm not interested in your hotspots, just like I would not give up real valued training ideas.
> But are the counties your walking about in producing more or less grouse than expected??


Fewer, but patternable, and consistent.
Yesterday, I avg'd 5.6 grouse/hr, but quit to train on woodcock.
It was a rare day. Pre-storm activity.
Today should be 1/3 of that.
And wet.


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

More woodcock yesterday, and maybe 3 to 4 flushes per hour on grouse in NW lower. Betty got lots of whoa training yesterday, and pointed her first limit of Woodcock!


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

gundogguy said:


> Grouse numbers again?? So as this thread moves along, are the grouse numbers up or down?
> I'm not interested in your hotspots, just like I would not give up real valued training ideas.
> But are the counties your walking about in producing more or less grouse than expected??


I would say as whole less here in NW lower, but I have had some really good days with pockets of 10 bird flushes in an hour.


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## Gamekeeper (Oct 9, 2015)

Not that it's easy or anything, but
Without keeping a flushes, and time on the ground log, it's all just a guess. We want to see a few weeks/season's trend, because birds flock up and disperse again, leading to over inflated/under counted inaccurate opinions. By about 200 hrs on the ground, the trend is clear.

You will have visited enough places where there is a statistical likelihood of finding a representative sample of the local birds to form a solid opinion.

Grouse (and especially migratory woodcock) are here today, gone tomorrow, so you need plenty of field time to really be accurate.

Sometimes, they just want to eat in a different spot. Just like people.

I buy field logs, and sit in the truck for a minute to record stuff while it's still fresh. Then, next winter, I go back through them.


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## oilcan (Feb 10, 2007)

I think they are about the same or a little less than last year, the weather hasn't helped the hunting.


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## Timber (Jan 1, 2009)

oilcan said:


> I think they are about the same or a little less than last year, the weather hasn't helped the hunting.


Back up close to 70s next week.


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## setterpoint (Feb 20, 2015)

were finding birds but not in the same places as last year find them in diff stuff


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## Mark4486 (Oct 14, 2015)

My numbers are way down from last year. I’m only getting 2 flushes on my entire property. And I would say 1per/hr. Last year they were every where.


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## huntindog1 (Jun 22, 2016)

Grouse numbers are suppose to be on their way up. Even if numbers are down your gonna have some of the best grouse hunting in the good ole USA. I wouldnt miss the experience of spending time with my son and dogs in the great out of doors for nothing. Its the experience you cant beat even if we dont get alot of birds. Plus what would I tell my dogs if I didn't go. LOL


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