Post by Treerooster on Dec 9, 2015 19:57:36 GMT -6
And Now For Something...Completely Different.
I was bird hunting along the river here in NE Colo and Pine, my Wirehair, slammed into a point. One of those points where the dog is running along, hits scent, then turns and skids to a stop. He was intense. I move in with gun at the ready and when I got about 6 or 7 yards from the dog it flushed. Except it really wasn’t a flush…a red fox jumps up and runs. The dog gives chase but I bark out a strong NO, and he stops. I see the fox running on and figure he is long gone. I couldn’t believe the fox let us get so close, but the wind is howling and maybe we just surprised it.
We hunt on.
About 300 yards later Pine is 80 yards in front and I see him jump the fox again. No point this time and he gives chase. I yell NO! Pine either doesn’t hear me because of the wind, or his selective hearing kicks in. He just missed the opportunity of a lifetime and he isn’t going to let it get away again.
I really don’t think Pine will catch the fox but still don’t want him chasing it. Then the fox makes a hard right and decides to cross the river. Big mistake. The river is about 30 yards across and from 1 foot to 3 ½ feet deep. Pine has longer legs than a fox. He catches up to the fox about two thirds of the way across the river in the deeper part. I am moving as fast as my gimpy leg will let me (bad hip) and can see Pine’s head go toward the fox and quickly snap back 5 or 6 times. When I reach the bank of the river Pine grabs the fox and starts back to me with the retrieve.
I cross a small, shallow part of the river and meet Pine on a sand bar. He looks so proud bringing me back that fox. When Pine drops the fox at my feet and looks up at me with that dog smile all I can muster, in a normal monotone voice is, “You’re not supposed to do that”.
I’ve had my dogs bring me various things over the years. A few rabbits, some birds, mostly crippled and a few not. Even a hen turkey one time. I never, in my wildest dreams, thought my dog would bring me back a red fox…much less on a water retrieve!
I was bird hunting along the river here in NE Colo and Pine, my Wirehair, slammed into a point. One of those points where the dog is running along, hits scent, then turns and skids to a stop. He was intense. I move in with gun at the ready and when I got about 6 or 7 yards from the dog it flushed. Except it really wasn’t a flush…a red fox jumps up and runs. The dog gives chase but I bark out a strong NO, and he stops. I see the fox running on and figure he is long gone. I couldn’t believe the fox let us get so close, but the wind is howling and maybe we just surprised it.
We hunt on.
About 300 yards later Pine is 80 yards in front and I see him jump the fox again. No point this time and he gives chase. I yell NO! Pine either doesn’t hear me because of the wind, or his selective hearing kicks in. He just missed the opportunity of a lifetime and he isn’t going to let it get away again.
I really don’t think Pine will catch the fox but still don’t want him chasing it. Then the fox makes a hard right and decides to cross the river. Big mistake. The river is about 30 yards across and from 1 foot to 3 ½ feet deep. Pine has longer legs than a fox. He catches up to the fox about two thirds of the way across the river in the deeper part. I am moving as fast as my gimpy leg will let me (bad hip) and can see Pine’s head go toward the fox and quickly snap back 5 or 6 times. When I reach the bank of the river Pine grabs the fox and starts back to me with the retrieve.
I cross a small, shallow part of the river and meet Pine on a sand bar. He looks so proud bringing me back that fox. When Pine drops the fox at my feet and looks up at me with that dog smile all I can muster, in a normal monotone voice is, “You’re not supposed to do that”.
I’ve had my dogs bring me various things over the years. A few rabbits, some birds, mostly crippled and a few not. Even a hen turkey one time. I never, in my wildest dreams, thought my dog would bring me back a red fox…much less on a water retrieve!
