No Dog, No Boat Duck Hunting

[MarshCallUser]

2 things you can do.

Buy waders and find wade in only areas. Take half a dozen decoys and find where the ducks want to be. Be ready for nut kick after nut kick with this method. Wading to find ducks sucks.

Find a cheap kayak that is stable enough to hunt out of. Float a small stream and jump shoot ducks.

 

[TheGDog]

2 things you can do.

Buy waders and find wade in only areas. Take half a dozen decoys and find where the ducks want to be. Be ready for nut kick after nut kick with this method. Wading to find ducks sucks.

Find a cheap kayak that is stable enough to hunt out of. Float a small stream and jump shoot ducks.

Huh? Sorry... whaddaya mean "be ready for nut kick after nut kick"??

 

[MarshCallUser]

Huh? Sorry... whaddaya mean "be ready for nut kick after nut kick"??

Walking in waders for hours sucks. Kinda like being kicked in the nuts.

 

[86indy]

This is how I started hunting, I waded everything. A jet sled to carry gear and a cabelas floating decoy bag is what I used. Back in college my buddy and I had lots of free time so we would go look at spots and wade them teal season or warmer weather and figure out what was do-able. If you take a swim at least its not 10 degrees out. Also an extendable decoy hook was a huge help.

 

[nettereo16]

If you go the kayak route I highly recommend something large and wide. Makes carrying decoys/gear much better and it's a lot safer than the smaller sit ins.

I got the Ascend H12 and made myself a blind with garden mesh and camo netting. I hunt public and this lets me gets past deeper water to keep out those who walk in and also through shallow flats to keep out the real duck boats!

It works awesome!!

 

[Slugz]

Check out the Beavertail Stealth sneak boats. They convert to a layout. Very wide. Paddle easy. We have two and love em.

 

[86indy]

Check out the Beavertail Stealth sneak boats. They convert to a layout. Very wide. Paddle easy. We have two and love em.View attachment 265090

I've had a field and stream kayak, stealth 2000 and a 1648 mod. The stealth is a basically a kayak that can carry a good hunting load, but be warned they are heavy and catch wind. I had a trolling motor on my stealth and never looked back. The stealth is unbelievably stable as well.

 

[Z71&Gun]

Neoprene waders with tight belt, camo life vest and a fishing pole with dull treble hook and a bobber. Lots of folks do this. A kayak is a great investment as it kind of does the work of a boat and a dog if you’re brave and willing to paddle. Float tube is another good option because you can get some cover material and actually hunt from it on land like a layout, in the reeds, in waist deep water like a floating bench or dress it up like a muskrat hut in deeper water.

 

[Z71&Gun]

Neoprene waders with tight belt, camo life vest and a fishing pole with dull treble hook and a bobber. Lots of folks do this. A kayak is a great investment as it kind of does the work of a boat and a dog if you’re brave and willing to paddle. Float tube is another good option because you can get some cover material and actually hunt from it on land like a layout, in the reeds, in waist deep water like a floating bench or dress it up like a muskrat hut in deeper water.

Float tube life is cold AF though. I’d skip it for my money and get a kayak.

 

[T28w]

I guess I need to maybe clarify the dog statement. I have picked up ducks I’ve shot less than 5 times in the past 15 years. So I hunt with dogs basically every time I go. I’ve seen a lot of dogs. I have seen very very few dogs trained by owners, who haven’t spent a significant amount of time with a pro, get a dog to what I would qualify as “good”. 6k is not a lot of money to have in a dog when u consider what a pup from proven pedigrees cost and then a trainer at $600 a month. Just had a guy we hunt with get a another dog after he finally accepted his dog was just not going to be what he wanted. She has her MH title but just isn’t a good hunting dog.

It takes one of 2 things to have a good dog
1. Time, energy, and resources to train with
2. money to pay someone else to train them
Then u have to get them in the field and let them hunt.

 

[KurtR]

I guess I need to maybe clarify the dog statement. I have picked up ducks I’ve shot less than 5 times in the past 15 years. So I hunt with dogs basically every time I go. I’ve seen a lot of dogs. I have seen very very few dogs trained by owners, who haven’t spent a significant amount of time with a pro, get a dog to what I would qualify as “good”. 6k is not a lot of money to have in a dog when u consider what a pup from proven pedigrees cost and then a trainer at $600 a month. Just had a guy we hunt with get a another dog after he finally accepted his dog was just not going to be what he wanted. She has her MH title but just isn’t a good hunting dog.

It takes one of 2 things to have a good dog
1. Time, energy, and resources to train with
2. money to pay someone else to train them
Then u have to get them in the field and let them hunt.

How does a dog get a mh but not a good hunting dog?

 

[T28w]

How does a dog get a mh but not a good hunting dog?

no drive

 

[T28w]

really good trainers can get a title on just about anything. they are that good.

 

[KurtR]

no drive

hard to believe a dog with no drive does triple 100 plus yard marks with very difficult blinds and the obedience thats goes with being a mh. just getting through senior with a low drive dog seems to be a really difficult task. Which kennel got that dog the mh?

 

[T28w]

ill find out, not sure. its close to where we hunt in Louisiana.

im in west central alabama, not exactly duck capital of the south, and there are 5 pro trainers within 60 miles of where i am.

the state cattle ranch here is 30 min away and host a lot hunt test/field trials so see dogs and trainers from all over the country. hosted the master nationals a couple years ago.

if you as an individual take a dog to a MH, i think you have done extremely good. thats says a lot about your dedication to it.
But considering these guys for the most part have no other jobs and maybe 16 dogs at a time, they get really good at passing them on these test. wouldnt you agree.

 

[T28w]

also "no drive" may be different to you and i

 

[KurtR]

ill find out, not sure. its close to where we hunt in Louisiana.

im in west central alabama, not exactly duck capital of the south, and there are 5 pro trainers within 60 miles of where i am.

the state cattle ranch here is 30 min away and host a lot hunt test/field trials so see dogs and trainers from all over the country. hosted the master nationals a couple years ago.

if you as an individual take a dog to a MH, i think you have done extremely good. thats says a lot about your dedication to it.
But considering these guys for the most part have no other jobs and maybe 16 dogs at a time, they get really good at passing them on these test. wouldnt you agree.

to a point but once you get to that master/finished level you need a dog that will listen and be able to do the work as the standards are super high. Most the trainers I know have to much pride to train a dog that wont be able to perform in the field as well as the test. My dog now I hope to get to seasoned this year and end goal is to run a grand down road . My reason I got into the dog games is to have a better hunting dog and be able to do stuff with him year round. With over 100 ducks and geese retrieved by 10 months I think he will be good at hunting now getting to the upper level of the hrc I think will be challenging being this is the first one trying to get to this level. Its crazy the amount of time and effort put in would be really disappointing to have mh level dog that doesnt hunt. Im probably holding him back more than him holding me back with my lack of knowledge and just being able to read dogs.

i would say drive is wanting to do the training and then hunting would be getting the birds even on hard retrieves all day long.

 

[T28w]

Most the trainers I know have to much pride to train a dog that wont be able to perform in the field as well as the test.

i know some like this, and some arent to that level where they can turn whoever they want away. for them its not a pride thing, its a paying the bills thing. they usually have a conversation with the owner after a couple months when they see what they actually have in the dog.

Its crazy the amount of time and effort put in would be really disappointing to have mh level dog that doesnt hunt. Im probably holding him back more than him holding me back with my lack of knowledge and just being able to read dogs.

which is exactly why i said dont worry about a dog right away. a good pedigree pup aint cheap, and neither is every thing you are going to need to get the dog to a MH/HRCH level. not to mention having the land and varying terrains to train on. and what people dont understand is when you by a puppy, you have no clue what you are actually going to end up with as a finished dog. the most predicable way to get what you want in a dog is to buy a started dog from a good trainer.

you should get with the trainers you know and learn from them, my brother has done this with 4 diff trainers and has never had one say "no" but he works for them as a bird boy when he goes.

i would say drive is wanting to do the training and then hunting would be getting the birds even on hard retrieves all day long.

i think of drive as a dog that will throw dirt in your face when you send him to get a bird or bumper, cast him and he looks like he shot out of a cannon, and comes back with the bird just as fast as he went to get it.

 

[KurtR]

i know some like this, and some arent to that level where they can turn whoever they want away. for them its not a pride thing, its a paying the bills thing. they usually have a conversation with the owner after a couple months when they see what they actually have in the dog.


which is exactly why i said dont worry about a dog right away. a good pedigree pup aint cheap, and neither is every thing you are going to need to get the dog to a MH/HRCH level. not to mention having the land and varying terrains to train on. and what people dont understand is when you by a puppy, you have no clue what you are actually going to end up with as a finished dog. the most predicable way to get what you want in a dog is to buy a started dog from a good trainer.

you should get with the trainers you know and learn from them, my brother has done this with 4 diff trainers and has never had one say "no" but he works for them as a bird boy when he goes.


i think of drive as a dog that will throw dirt in your face when you send him to get a bird or bumper, cast him and he looks like he shot out of a cannon, and comes back with the bird just as fast as he went to get it.

on the drive i think the same. I train with a guy who has a girl out of and fc x afc and if you are a second late on a whistle she is already to far. Fun to watch run. Been throwing lots of birds when its not -20 this last week and picking up lots of info. I live on acres of land to train on so thats huge advantage to be able to go out the back door and train and have a bunch of water that will work for tech ponds. Club has its first training day this year this weekend. First test is first week of June im sure i will be more nervous than the dog

 

[T28w]

You will be fine. You are doing it right it sounds like.

If u hang around that trainer long enough I think u will see what I meant by them being able to pass “almost” any decent dog. Just ask them to breakdown a setup. Learn what is going to cause a dog to fade, what is going to suck them towards something. Why is the dog going to pop and how are u going to prevent it. There is so much more to it than it seems. They know how to keep the dog out of trouble in the test. When u know that, it makes a world of difference vs an average joe.

Kyle sculley at river bottom retrievers was the trainer u asked about earlier.