cleaning 2.34 good – gtg

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cleaning 1.23 good – gtg

We have been professionally cleaning commercial buildings for many years. Commercial cleaning is usually done evenings, weekends or through the night or whenever the property is empty of staff or visitors. We are able to fit in with you and complete the work whenever suits you best.

We have been fully trained in all aspects of commercial cleaning and have cleaned literally miles and miles of it over the years.

We clean commercial in offices, schools, restaurants, pubs, night clubs, hotels, guest houses, nurseries, play centers, doctors clinics/offices, dental offices, function rooms etc. In fact if you name a commercial property type, we have probably cleaned floors in at least one.

Commercial cleaning is best done when the property is empty or when as few people around as possible, this is because we use high powered equipment which can be quite noisy and to reduce slip or trip hazards. We will always put out wet floor signs and cones to warn anyone in the building that the carpets maybe damp and a possible slip risk.

Commercial cleaning differs depending on business and carpet type. You normally find hard wearing nylon carpet or carpet tiles in an office, school, play center, dental and doctors surgeries etc. Whereas you will find wool carpets in a pub or hotel. Different carpet types require different cleaning methods and chemicals.

We are able to remove most spots and stains and can also remove chewing gum without damaging the carpet. Common stains on commercial carpet are tea, coffee, fizzy drinks, ink, toner to name but a few. We have also had to remove some unusual stains from commercial carpet such as ketchup, brown sauce, curry, burger relish, chocolate and lily pollen.

For office cleaning its normally the walkways (traffic lanes) and under desks that get the dirtiest. Swirl marks from chair coasters under desks are also a common problem. These problems are normally pretty easy to rectify using correct methods, equipment and chemicals.

With pub and restaurant carpets they normally get dirty around the bar and where waiting staff go to and from the kitchen. Quite often if the carpet hasn’t been cleaned for a while the dirt and grease build up will go hard and is referred to as black top. Black top can be removed using the correct methods.

Our commercial carpet cleaning service is for the following: school carpet cleaning, office carpet cleaning, pub carpet cleaning, night club carpet cleaning, restaurant carpet cleaning, wine bar carpet cleaning, function room carpet cleaning, hotel carpet cleaning to name but a few.

For a free no-obligation quote for commercial cleaning please contact us.

We offer a professional commercial carpet cleaning service.

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Choosing The Right Type Of Carpet Cleaning

BY EXPERT CLEANING SERVICES

Do a quick online search for carpet cleaning and you’ll find a variety of different methods. The two most common are hot water extraction — mostly known as steam cleaning — and hot carbonation, often referred to as dry chemical techniques.
So how do you decide which method is best? To start, check the paperwork that came with your carpet, with the carpet manufacturer itself or with a reputable carpet cleaning company. With most carpet manufacturers the most widely accepted cleaning method is hot water extraction.
The use of truck-mounted equipment that injects water heated between 180 and 250 degrees Fahrenheit into the carpet under pressure and then rinses out a pretreated solution referred commonly as steam cleaning, helps removes embedded soiling , bacteria, dust mites and some odors. The most common drawback is a longer dry time. Done well though, the carpet should dry in just 4-6 hours, but if inferior equipment is used for steam cleaning, dry times can take more than a day — resulting in a over wetting and possibly a mildew smell — as well as the soap can be left behind, attracting more dirt.
Using technically advanced cleaning products has greatly reduced the likelihood of re-soiling that for years has been so prevalent with inferior products that left a great amount of residue behind that attracted soiling. The recent use of non residue cleaning technology has now allowed carpet to be cleaned residue free, leaving the carpet in it’s natural state as when it was new.
“The big, big difference with the advanced cleaning solution is it crystallizes as it dries, while encapsulating any remaining soiling that may have been left behind. It’s pet and family friendly and there’s no risk of leaving any type of soap residue in your carpet, which will attract dirt. If the technician used inferior products, leaving soap in the carpeting, you can tell when a customer has that happen to them. It seems like, within a week or two, the carpet seems dirtier than before they had it cleaned.”
Though most carpet types can withstand both methods, always follow the cleaning recommendations of your carpet manufacturer to ensure you don’t void the carpet’s warranty.
Some companies charge by the room, others by the foot. However a company charges, you should know what the fee will be before the technicians begin the work. Ask for a written quote if it’s not offered to you upfront. Look for a company with a good history and that carries workers compensation and liability insurance and has an affiliation with an industry trade association, like the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) or The Carpet and Rug Institute.
The most common complaint, according to the BBB or Angie’s List reports, is companies that offer a discount and then try to up-sell for additional services once they get in the door.
Customers should understand what their bill is before any work is done, “I invite customers to do as much research as they can on carpet cleaning because there are huge differences in carpet cleaning companies. It’s not just about price.” The old adage, “you get what you pay for”, truly applies. Choose your cleaning company wisely, not by their price alone.

We’ve been providing cleaning services for over 60 years. Our services include carpet, blinds, and tile cleaning. Call us for your cleaning needs.

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It’s that time of year again. The time when people tend to spend as much time outside as they do in (if not more). This means that the patio furniture on the front porch and back deck has to be impeccably clean and presentable.
If you have some patio furniture and you’d like a few ideas on how you can keep it clean during the spring and summer seasons, we have five tips that will keep your pieces looking great during the sunshine, rain and everything in between.

Plastic furniture. If your patio furniture happens to be made of classic, the main thing to keep in mind is while it may be durable, without cleaning it on a weekly basis, it can start to look a bit dingy. Usually, all you need to do is get a bucket of warm soap and water, wash the pieces down with a sponge and then rinse them off with a hose. However, if your furniture happens to be white, it’s a good idea to add a bit of bleach or hydrogen peroxide and let it sit for about 15-20 minutes before the final rinse.

Aluminum furniture. This kind of furniture can handle soap and water too. The only other thing that we suggest is that once the furniture is dry, apply a thin coat of high quality car wax in order to protect it until it’s time for you to wash it again.

Wooden furniture. Although the general concept for cleaning plastic furniture is the same for wood, one thing that we do advise is that you wear some rubber gloves (to protect your hands from possible splinters) and that you go with a kind of soap that’s specifically made to clean wood like perhaps Murphy’s Oil Soap. A denture brush is pretty effective for hard to reach crevices. Also, make sure that after you rinse the furniture that you use a soft rag to dry the furniture off.

Wicker furniture. Wicker is one of the most beautiful kinds of patio furniture, but if you try and clean it with soap and water, it can prove to be pretty frustrating. Our suggestion is that you put a small attachment on your vacuum cleaner and then vacuum the furniture to get the dirt and twigs off of it. You can then follow that up with wiping the pieces down with a damp cloth.

Upholstery, glass tabletops and patio umbrellas. When it comes to your patio furniture’s “accessories”, we have a few suggestions. For your cushions and pillows, if they are made of vinyl rather than fabric, mix a teaspoon of dishwashing detergent and Borax into a quart of warm water and put the cushions into the solution for 5-10 minutes before rinsing them off and letting them air dry. For glass tabletops, you can use regular window cleaner although if some candle wax has hardened on them, you can loosen it up by blowing warm air from your blow dryer on it for a couple of minutes and then applying some rubbing alcohol to remove any residue. For patio umbrellas, if you’ve noticed any mildew, to remove it mix 1\4 cup of bleach to a gallon of water and then wipe it down with a rag. That should do the trick.

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1.What areas do you cover?
We operate within the city and surrounding areas.

2.What kind of services do you provide?
We conduct professional carpet steam and dry cleaning; upholstery leather, steam and dry cleaning; inside and outside window cleaning; natural stone, tile and concrete floor polishing. We perform regular domestic and office cleaning, as well as one off spring cleaning and end of tenancy cleaning.

3.What is the minimum of hours for your services?
It depends on the type of the service, as different cleaning operations have different duration. We require a minimum of two hours for regular domestic and office cleaning service, a minimum of four hours for one off cleaning with your cleaning materials and a minimum of six hours for one off cleaning with our cleaning materials. The prices for end of tenancy cleaning service are fixed.

4.Are your cleaners insured?
Yes, all of our cleaners are thoroughly background checked and fully insured.

5.Can I meet my cleaner before the first clean?
We can arrange you a pre-clean meeting with your cleaner to consider whether you feel comfortable with them.

6.Will my cleaner be covered for holiday or sickness?
We always provide a replacement in case of holiday or sickness with the same standard of the service.

7.Should I be present during the cleaning?
It’s completely up to you. You could stay and supervise the cleaning, or leave the technicians work and have your time. Our cleaners could leave the key on a safe place or to an authorized person.

8.Do I have to supply the cleaning materials?
We will appreciate if you provide the basic supplies for the regular cleanings, such as a vacuum cleaner, detergents, cloths, bucket and mop. On your request we could provide everything at a small charge. For our special cleanings, such as carpet, upholstery or window cleaning, we bring the necessary equipment and detergents with us.

9.Can I change my cleaner if I am not satisfied?
Of course. Keep us informed about everything that happens during the cleaning sessions and if you have any complains, we will send you another cleaner immediately.

10.Do you have insurance cover?
We hold Public and Employers Liability Insurance, as well as Accident and Health Policy.

11.Can you give me a price over the phone?
Yes, you can discuss your property specifics and cleaning needs with our office assistants and they will provide you with a precise quotation.

12.Do you conduct cleanings during the weekend?
We work 7 days a week with no extra charge for the weekend days.

13.How can I pay for the service?
You have the opportunity to pay cash, by check or via bank transfer.

14.What carpet cleaning method do you use?
We apply steam or dry carpet cleaning, depending of the type of the fabric.

15.Is it possible the cleaning to take more than one day?
For larger amount of work we usually send a team of cleaners to finish the job within the same day. If you prefer, we could split the work and perform it for two or more days.

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bird hunting 1.234

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If you are looking for an exclusive Texas hunting lease than you need to consider Tajos Hunts on the El Sauz Ranch. Tajos Hunt’s hunting lease is on 50,000 acres of the Nopales division of the El Sauz Ranch which is five miles from Port Mansfield Texas. You’ll find a large and diverse population of game including:

Whitetail Buck – Whitetail deer are popular game on the Tajos Hunts lease and the deer herds have been managed for sport hunting since 1986.
Nilgai Antelope – the most successful exotic in South Texas, Nilgai are native to India and were initially brought to the United States as zoo animals during the early 1920s and the El Sauz Ranch is home to a large free ranging herd. As the largest Indian antelope, adult males weigh over 600 pounds yet exhibit great endurance and can maintain speeds of 30 miles per hour when fleeing danger. They offer very challenging spot and stalk hunting opportunities.
Feral Hogs – Feral pigs in Texas are descended from introductions of European wild hogs for sporting purposes and from escaped domestic swine that have established feral populations.
Javelina – Early Spanish explorers called these small, pig like mammals “Javelina” which was derived from javelin because of their sharp, nearly straight canines. They top out at about 60 pounds and are classified as game animals and are available for year-round hunting excursions.
Feathered game – turkey, duck, geese, dove, and quail are plentiful on the 50,000 acres of the Tajos Hunting Lease. The acreage can produce large numbers of quail when conditions are right, but good populations of quail happen in poor rainfall years due to the varied habitat that covers the ranch. With the large areas of wetlands the ranch encompass, duck hunting is always good and easy to reach
Hunting Lease Memberships

Tajos Hunts is an very exclusive Texas hunting lease which is limited to 35 members. Each member can bring up to three guests on each visit with no limit on the number of visits to the hunting lease. Memberships are available on an individual or corporate basis. The annual membership is $21,000 and includes:

· staff provided lunch and dinner for members and guests – breakfast food is available on a self serve base

overnight lodging in the unique Nopales Lodge
full use of dog kennels
two covered parking bays which offer hunting vehicles and equipment protection from the elements
indoor game-processing facility with a walk-in cooler making game cleaning and storage quick and convenient
a secure and climate-controlled firearm storage and cleaning facility.
200 yard rifle range providing a safe environment for shooting sports, target practice, and sighting-in
swimming pool and deck chairs for relaxing
· fire pit and patio area which is perfect for a cold drink and spinning some tales

Hunting

Each member can enjoy a very diverse hunting experience with the liberal game limits and year round access on this very large Texas hunting lease. The lease year starts April 1st and allows year round access by members on the 50,000 acres for hunting, fishing, bird watching, photography, enjoying the outdoors, or relaxing around the pool. The annual limits of game and fish per member and their guests per year include:

1 trophy whitetail buck
2 management whitetail buck
2 bull nilgai
4 cow nilgai
10 feral hogs
2 javelina
1 spring turkey
daily limits of ducks, geese, dove, and quail for each member and guest as set by State and Federal Law
daily fish limits are set by State law
Each member provides his own hunting vehicle and is free to roam and hunt all of the 50,000 acres as they desire. One blind and one feeder is allowed per member. Most members take advantage of the large size and hunt safari style from a vehicle rather than a blind. If a member requires a turn key approach, a vehicle and guide can be provided at additional cost.

Nilgai and hogs offer year round hunting opportunities. The Nilgai can reach almost 700 pounds and are excellent eating and a very good trophy animal. Nilgai, as well as deer, are managed to provide quality animals as well as numerous hunting opportunities. The fall season starts in September with early Teal and dove season. Dove and quail are usually in good numbers even during a poor rainfall year.

Fishing

The same wetlands that provide superior duck hunting allow members and their guests to fish for redfish and freshwater catfish by driving right up to the water. Or if you prefer, Port Mansfield is just five minutes from the Lodge and gives you access to Laguna Madre and the Gulf of Mexico for some of the best fishing in Texas. By boat, the Gulf Of Mexico is only nine miles away and once through the Port Mansfield Pass you’ll be able to go after the big ones like: Sailfish, Marlin, Tarpon, Ling, Mackerel and Snapper. Laguna Madre is a unique shallow water bay ecosystem that is home to redfish, speckled trout, flounder and a variety of other game fish year round Take your catch back to the ranch and have a fresh fish fry and get ready for another day of excellent hunting and fishing.

Lodging

Member accommodations are in the Nopales Lodge which once served the United States Navy as a missile-tracking station. After extensive remodeling of the original building and several additions the former missile-tracking station now provides elegant accommodations with private cabanas and an inviting swimming pool and patio area. The lodge has 24 bedrooms and 23 bathrooms and a commercial grade kitchen. Nopales Lodge is located within the boundaries of the ranch and just a half mile from Highway 186, is easily accessed year-round and during any weather conditions via a paved entrance.

Nearby

Nopales Lodge is conveniently located to the Port Mansfield 3500 foot runway or Valley International Airport in Harlingen is less than 30 minutes from the ranch. The Ranch is less than an hours drive from Mexico and the beaches and activities at South Padre Island.

Summary

Tajos Hunts is a unique Texas hunting membership because of it’s location, size, and facilities. It will appeal to both an individual for his own enjoyment or for a corporation who wishes to reward employees or entertain clients with excellent hunting and fishing trips. Since membership is limited to 35 members, you need to act quickly.
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When to keep and when to kill the prickly pear

Like most things in life, the prickly pear cactus has it pros and its cons. For anyone who has ever had a brush with prickly pear glochids, those tiny, barbed spines that can inflict a world of hurt, it might be difficult to envision particular positives at that moment. But fans of the slightly tart, almost citrus flavor of nopalitos, made from the tender young pads of the cactus, are happy to extol the prickly pear’s culinary virtues. The brilliant magenta fruit of the prickly pear – the tuna – can also be eaten raw (once denuded of its spines and peeled) or used to make sweet jellies or syrups. In his accounts of experiences in the area now known as Texas, Spanish explorer Cabeza de Vaca noted the prickly pear as a staple of the native peoples’ diet. During times of drought, the prickly pear has long served as an emergency source of food for livestock. Ranchers have often initiated controlled burns or used “pear burners” to rid the cactus of its painful spines, making it easier for cattle to eat.
But while a plate of fajitas con nopalitos washed down with a prickly pear margarita is all fine and tasty, what about prickly pear and wildlife?
In moderation, prickly pear is an excellent plant for whitetail deer, javelina, and other wildlife. As a bonus non-nutritional benefit, bobwhite quail and small mammals utilize the cactus for screening and protective cover. It can also serve as a protective “nurse plant” for more desirable woody and herbaceous plants. Like many other native plants, it has its wildlife-beneficial features, as long as it is limited on a property. It also occupies an aesthetic place on the Texas landscape, particularly during the spring when its delicate pink buds blossom to showy yellow flowers. However, when landowners have too much of a good thing and prickly pear density and abundance suppress native grass, forb, and shrub diversity, then it needs to be controlled. In addition to crowding out other native plants, over-abundant prickly pear can also limit some wildlife management practices such as mowing and discing due to concerns about spreading the prickly pear.
Unlike other cacti which tend to grow slowly, the fast growing prickly pear can spread at a sometimes alarming rate. This tends to happen in pastures that have been subjected to long-term overgrazing. Once prickly pear gets established in dense stands, the only way to reduce its dominance is to kill it. Options for doing so include digging out the plants (roots included) by hand or with equipment, which is labor intensive, and the plants must be gathered to prevent creating new plants from loose pads. Prescribed fire followed by immediate grazing can reduce its dominance and has other benefits, but the most practical, long-term solution for problem prickly pear is to have it professionally treated with a herbicide.
It takes a strong herbicide to take down prickly pear and, if not carefully applied, it can kill other desirable plants. Herbicides that control prickly pear are almost all controlled use herbicides, which means you must have a license to buy and use them.
Because many landowners do not have a controlled use license for prickly pear herbicide, or the experience to assess the value of leaving some prickly pear for wildlife, Plateau offers prickly pear removal as one of its many Wildlife Management services. Plateau takes the time to thoroughly treat each plant individually to get the best possible kill without wasting expensive herbicide, and to make sure that only the target plants are treated.
The best time to treat prickly pear is when the invasion is still limited to small, but abundant, plants. Select plants should be retained for the positive benefits they provide, including cover and food. While prickly pear control can be done year round, the best seasons to do so, if a herbicide is used, are spring to early summer, and then in the fall, as post-treatment rainfall is important to move the herbicide into the soil. But, as we all know, Mother Nature doesn’t always follow the calendar, so ideal windows can shift from year to year. Summer applications can also be very effective if soil moisture levels are adequate and rainfall is expected.
Because successful herbicide application takes planning, landowners in need of prickly pear control – or those in need of an assessment of their prickly pear situation – should contact professionals like Plateau prior to the ideal treatment seasons so a treatment plan is at the ready when the time is right.

Early summer is also the only good time to do foliar herbicide applications for mesquite. Half-cutting mesquite is best done during the spring/early summer period as well.

Article From Plateau Land and Wildlife Management
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#11 Protect Yourself From Bugs

The spring woods are full of several of God’s creatures, and some consider turkey hunters a good meal. In the Deep South, the creeks and sloughs are guarded by alligators and snakes. Nevertheless, to be honest, the real deep wood’s villains are the insects.

Gnats, chiggers, mosquitoes, biting flies and ticks are annoying and some can carry diseases. For this reason, hunters that rely on a spray repellant should make sure that the product has an adequate amount of DEET. Use caution however when using DEET as the concentration strengths vary, and some of the DEET is absorbed through the skin.

A better choice is to use a ThermaCell – a butane charged repellant that works remarkably.

Another choice for repelling insects is to wear a bug suit. These tightly meshed outfits serve as a thin “body armor” to protect you from bites.

Either way you choose, be prepared and know that insects can spoil your trip if you allow them to.

#12 Stay Out of Sight

When setting up in the pre-dawn hour on a roosted tom keep in mind that if you can see the turkeys then the turkeys can see you. A turkey’s vision is actually keener than that of a human.

I usually try to slip to within 100 yards of the turkeys I plan to hunt, and use natural vegetation to hide my movements as I approach my setup location.
Do not try to get any closer than the landscape will allow because you risk spooking the turkeys in the opposite direction.

#13 Stay Away from Obstacles

When setting up, keep in mind that turkeys normally do not like to cross natural barriers – like fences or creeks. Often hunters believe a turkey that was previously fired up and gobbling at will lost interest when he stops gobbling, but many times he has just run into an obstacle.

Knowing the terrain you are hunting can pay big dividends, by helping you avoid natural “hang ups.”

#14 Know Non-Verbal Turkey Talk

When closing the deal on a gobbler just out of gun range rely on non-vocal sounds that turkeys make when feeding; the easiest of which is to scratch in the leaves to simulate feeding turkeys.

Another non-vocal method of attracting turkeys in the morning is with the use of a wing to imitate turkeys scraping their wings in the tree. A wing can also accurately mimic a turkey flying down from the roost.

Exercise caution when using or carrying a turkey wing into the woods.

#15 Use Caution Gobbling

Though a gobble call may work sometimes, generally it will spook more subordinate gobblers than it will lure. Use extreme caution if you choose to use this call, as it will attract other hunters.

Gobble calls can be excellent locator calls, and at times can attract dominant gobblers, but they can pose a danger as they sound exactly like the birds you are hunting.

#16 Use Decoys, But With Care

In states where allowed, decoys add a realistic touch to a turkey calling setup. With the realism found in today’s models, care should be used when using decoys.

I have found that placing a jake decoy directly behind a hen decoy produces a very effective arrangement. I also like to use a jake with two or three hen decoys to imitate a flock of birds.

Keep in mind that when using a jake decoy that most approaching longbeards will move around to the front of the decoy, in an effort to challenge the “juvenile” head on.

Remember decoys can fool other hunters also. Always have a clear view well past shotgun range to reduce your risk of being shot.

#17 Know Your Woods

Being a good woodsman will win out over being a good caller any day. I have hunted with nationally known calling champions that relied solely on their calling prowess, and many times went home empty handed.

Knowing the woods where you hunt instantly helps put the odds in your favor. Knowing where turkeys like to feed, loaf, and strut enables you to strategically move and stay one step ahead of your quarry.

Turkeys are hard to stalk, but with a knowledge of the land enables you to circle around ahead of where they want to be, and in the process place yourself in a position for a possible shot.

Remember also that you cannot call a turkey to a place where a turkey does not want to be.

#18 Shoot Humanely

Hunters using shotguns for spring turkeys should aim for the area where the feathers meet the caruncles on the neck. A turkey must be hit in either the neck or head to anchor and humanely harvest. Shots to the body only serve to cripple a turkey and many times the birds are never recovered but die a slow lingering death

Archers faced with a side profile of a turkey should aim at the wing butts. A sharp broadhead is recommended as these heavy bones shield the vitals (heart and lungs) which are approximately the size of a baseball. When faced with a head-on shot, an archer can aim for the upper chest area near the beard and impale the vitals. An archer should aim for the middle to upper spine on a turkey facing away.

In short, any shot taken at a turkey must be a shot to kill and not merely wound.

#19 Use Blinds

When hunting with a novice hunter it is a good idea to employ a blind. Several manufacturers make blinds in all shapes and sizes. Using a blind enables most movement to be safely hidden from the keen eyes of an approaching turkey.
I like to use a pole blind, which is lightweight and easy to set up. It also gives me the freedom to have complete use of my hands while operating calls when turkeys are just out of range.

Last season I hunted out of a tent blind and was amazed at the results. I was able to completely stand up and stretch my legs while remaining hidden from my quarry.

The only detriment to using a blind is the lack of mobility. However, the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages.

#20 Use a Turkey Vest

The turkey vest is one of the most critical aspects of apparel I wear when turkey hunting. I carry virtually everything but the proverbial kitchen-sink in mine. In it, I have an assortment of turkey calls ranging from box calls to several types of friction calls. This variety of calls enables me to make a wide range of turkey talk from mellow to raspy yelps and from faint to high pitch cutts. I also carry extra head nets and gloves for hunting companions who inevitably forget theirs.

I use the back of my vest to tote decoys and hopefully my long-bearded gobbler. My vest has a place to carry a water bottle as well as a flashlight. Best of all my turkey vest has a snap out seat that cushions my backside from the hard thorny and sometimes damp ground, which enables me to sit still longer.

WORDS OF WISDOM

As hunting legend Ronnie “Cuz” Strickland once said, “Any long beard is a good turkey.”

Taking a long beard under fair chase conditions is a tough proposition at best. The quest to take a mature tom can come extremely easy at times, and then cause you to go stir crazy other times.

Simply put, there are no absolutes in turkey hunting. Turkeys will defy logic at times, but most of the time they follow their daily routines.

Thanks to the efforts of the National Wild Turkey Federation, the wild turkey numbers 5.6 million birds in North America. Turkeys flourish in 49 of the 50 states, and in Canada and Mexico.

Our turkey hunting heritage is a legacy that we must pass on to those who come after us. We are most privileged to hunt the majestic game bird.
I hope this article whet your appetite for a spring turkey hunt, and I hope it culminates in a savory turkey dinner.

Be sure to identify your target, hunt safe, and introduce a new hunter to our great outdoors!

By Mike Lambeth

Moultrie Feeders
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Weekly migratory bird hunting reports are posted from early September through early February.

North Zone Dove: Rain showers in North Texas hurt the flight a bit last week, but locals are not complaining since the region has been without rain for some time. Good flights of mourners resumed their pattern over soybeans and corn after the rain. Abilene saw half-limits to near-limits of mourning doves. Better shoots were had in the afternoon. No cool fronts are in the forecasts for the next week, especially with high pressure dominating the region. Prospects are fair to good.

Central Zone Dove: High winds and water last week put a damper on dove hunting. Uvalde, San Saba, Waco, Sabinal, Del Rio and Hondo were steady for mourning doves and whitewings. Expect hunting to improve around San Antonio as the area dries. Whitewings are good around Columbus and Sealy. Brenham hunters have enjoyed good shoots as well. Scorching temperatures have done nothing to prompt a new influx of birds. Hankamer and Devers has enjoyed good afternoon shoots. Prospects are fair to good.

South Zone Dove: The season opens Sept. 17, and corn, milo and wild sunflowers have held the largest concentrations of birds around Lytle, Uvalde, Del Rio and the Rio Grande Valley. Conditions are wet in the Valley so afternoon water shoots should not be as profitable as in dry years. Doves have been pressured in Central Zone fields around Uvalde and Del Rio are staging just over the zone boundary in corn, milo and sunflowers. A wet summer hurt sunflower production around El Campo, however, strong concentrations remain in the township and around Danevang. Prospects are good.

Teal Season: Opening day of teal season on the coast was steady on the coastal prairies, though many insisted best flights occurred later in the morning. Sunday was much slower as birds seem to disappear in historically steady locales. Many hens were harvested, giving rise to the notion that the first wave of adult drakes continued south. Good hunts were posted in Wharton County rice fields and leveed ponds. Eagle Lake and Garwood hunters reported good shoots. Collegeport hunters shot limits. Playa lakes in the Panhandle gave up good shoots. Water supplies there are in good shape from summer rains. Along the coast, biologist Matt Nelson said Mad Island WMA near Bay City averaged around three birds per man for the weekend. Justin Hurst WMA near Freeport saw slower results with just over a bird per man. The Guadalupe Delta WMA near Port Lavaca is closed due to flooding. Prospects are good.

2010-09-15

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bird hunting 4.56

We put together a group hunt for white-tail and mule deer bucks and had a good response and a few more had circumstances come up which forced them to back out of the hunt. It’s understandable with most people interested having to drive over 6 hours to get to the Area. We hunted the southwest part which allows all terrain vehicles. Our plan was to take my Kawasaki Mule down river to the area where no motorized vehicles were allowed and hike in back where most others would not be hunting. The plan worked well as most hunters were in the all terrain vehicle area.

The first night I arrived solo and after spending the last few minutes of day light scouting out where we were going the next day, I started cooking up some chili waiting for the crew that was meeting me there. It was a great campground with not many others around and plenty of places to setup camp. The crew (Blake, Brian, and Loren) pulled in around 8pm pulling a 32 foot camper which definitely proved to be more comfortable than the tent I had packed. We attacked the chili pot and turned in knowing the next day was going to be a long one.

The First Morning Hunt
We woke up a little past day light knowing that we had no idea where we were going to hunt so we spent some time scouting. It was some seriously rough country down along the Canadian River bottoms. After going up and down many rough hills and canyons, we finally found out that going straight down the river bed was the best way to get to where we wanted to hunt. This was the roughest terrain I had taken the Mule on since I got it at uvcountry.com and I was seriously impressed with its abilities and doing what it did loaded with 4 adults and gear.

We were almost to our planned hunting area when Blake spotted a decent 6 point whitetail in the river bottom crossing where we had just driven. Brian had not shot a deer before so Blake told him to get out, load up, and take his best shot. It was a quick shot with extreme excitement on top of that so it resulted in a miss. I was pretty happy just seeing a buck that early in the hunt and figured it had to be somewhat in rut to be unwary enough to cross right where we just drove. At least we still had the whole hunt in front of us.

The First Afternoon Hunt
We decided to spend the whole day out hunting and not head back to camp so we split up and started scouting around looking for good traveled trails and rubs. There was a huge bottom land area that I ended up stalking the whole afternoon. I found some great rubs and really good evidence of deer bedding up in a few places. The tough part was finding a good place to setup. Most of that part of the country is either totally flat fields or extremely rough canyons. This area was the fields. It would have been great to have a tree stand around a few cottonwoods I found.

After a couple hours I just had to stop and take a lunch break and what a lunch it was…

I found a great trail to setup on and built a little ground blind. The wind was quite severe bringing on wind chills in the 20s(at least that’s what it felt like). Dark came quick and I had not seen anything moving at all. I had spent the last hour on a ridge overlooking the river. Everyone else only saw a couple does, but where there are does there are bucks!

I also had thoughts going through my mind this whole time because of the public hunting and orange suits all over the place. There were quite a few hunters out there and you just had to respect the space around each one and find your own place. My biggest hope was that everyone else would just respect the space I was hunting and find their own. You can see here about how it was in most places we hunted. The scary ones are the ones close to you that you don’t see.

Can you find Waldo in Orange in one of the next 5 photos?

…and we also had a fair share of “off road groups” who had nothing better to do than drive their rigs straight down the river during the first weekend of deer season. I’m sorry but that’s flat out disrespectful – bunch of jerks! (ok take a deep breath Allen)

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Stovall Ranch, 70,000 acres, Low fence, Brewster County
Lodge elevation: 3023 ft

A KnockOut Guide Service
Keith & Jordan Oliver, Seth & Heath Noble.

Solunar Table said it was a “Good Day” to hunt. It was.

8 hours after leaving Austin, driving West by Southwest, I was still in Texas. On US 385 South, 31.8 miles south of Marathon, I turned down a dirt road. The GPS told me it was called, “Dove Mountain Rd.” named after Dove Mountain. 19 miles down the dirt road I started to doubt my directions. 25 miles down the dirt road I found the KO LODGE.

I thought it was a six hour drive, and now that it was 9:00pm, can you believe that Keith Oliver was standing outside in 33 degree weather (later I found out he was also sick) waiting to greet me? I met the guides (his family); the other hunters; went to bed; listened to Mr. Size 19 shoe snore; and then the hunt began.

Speaking of the “hunt,” I have never hunted Mule Deer. In fact, I didn’t know that Texas Mule Deer are Desert Mule Deer, which are different from Rocky Mountain Mule Deer. Apparently 90% of the forms that your Taxidermist might use are for the Rocky Mountain Mule Deer, so you might want to double check to remind him if you harvest a Desert Mule Deer.

Jordan and Keith took me out in a 1984 CJ-7 for our morning hunt. I could talk about the Mule Deer we didn’t get; yes, that big, wide, mature, 10 point frame. Or, I could tell you about the Black Bear we saw at a 100 yards while trying to flush the Mule Deer. I fumbled for my camera but failed to produce a photo of either!

Note to self (Lessons for a Beginner) after my first Desert Mule Deer Hunt:

Don’t JUST look in the distance, look within 100 yards, especially in any draws, gullies, or coulees.
Make sure you tell your Guide to speak direct and blunt if you are a beginner. What is the point of asking me what I think when I don’t have anything to compare it to?
Discuss your harvest goal before leaving for the hunt, so that if you see a potential deer there is no time wasted talking.
Clearly discuss the distance at which you can make a clean, comfortable kill shot so that when you are within that distance there is no time wasted talking.
Be honest with yourself… are you going to get nervous on the trigger since it is your first time to hunt a Desert Mule Deer. If so, communicate.
Consider that if you are shooting your first deer you might want to harvest a mature representative of the species, rather than hold out for that huge “trophy” that you might not even see.
A very important indicator of the potential size of the mule deer you are hunting will be the amount of rainfall in that area during the last Spring.
Day One: Morning Hunt
21.2 Miles of spotting; 6.0 mph moving average; 4 mph average speed.
We saw a mature 10 point frame (didn’t get off a shot) and a Black Bear. The Outfitter has never seen a bear but there have been rumors of a bear recently which I guess, turned out to be true.
Chris (another hunter) harvested a SCI Gross Green score of 137 6/8 Desert Mule Deer.
Seth (guide) added a fox to his Medicine Stick.

Day One: Afternoon Hunt
29.4 Miles (Total Trip Miles, which means we only drove 8.2 miles); 6.9 mph moving average; 3.3 mph average speed; 4:15 hrs Moving Time; 4:33 hrs Spotting Time
Jordan and I left the camp house and didn’t have time to get settled before we came upon a couple of does down in a Gully to our immediate left. We paused and Jordan noticed a buck. All of a sudden a 2nd buck steps into sight and the two Mule Deer started to wrestle. We were able to catch it on tape, so enjoy. After watching the two bucks, Jordan decided that one of the bucks was a mature 8 point and if I agreed, he thought I should harvest the buck.

Day Two Morning Hunt
53.0 Miles Total Trip Miles; 6.7 mph moving average; 3.7 mph average speed; 7:53 hrs Moving Time; 6:18 hrs Spotting Time
We saw three mule deer does, one 8pt immature buck, a covey of quail, and an animal running very fast in the distance that we couldn’t identify. We looked for Aoudad (Barbary Sheep) since we were told they are in the area but never saw one.

Day Two Afternoon Hunt
We saw three more mule deer bucks but no shooter. The other group of hunters saw nothing but a family of Javelinas.

Day Three Morning Hunt
We saw lots of bucks and does, but the hunter had a particular size he was looking for and chose not to shoot.

Day Three Afternoon Hunt
84.1 Miles Total Trip Miles; 6.9 mph moving average; 3.9 mph average speed; 12:12 hrs Moving Time; 9:21 hrs Spotting Time
I shot a fox in the neck at about 75 yards with my .223 with 5x Leupold; and when I shot it a family of Javelinas flushed and I shot the two largest. I have always thought about mounting two big Javelinas and now I will. I have attached a number of photos, including an image of the GPS tracks from our travels.

Conclusion:
I found this trip to be very educational. The Guide and his sons did a great job. The diversity of wildlife, the indian caves, the amazing landscape, the amenities of the lodge, and the excellent food made for a great trip. Originally, I was invited by another hunter to join this group. At the last minute, the other hunter did not show up, and because I was the guest of the other hunter, I did not do ANY HOMEWORK on where I was going or what I needed to bring.

Bottom line, this caused me to not be well organized, to be “stressed”, and worst of all, to not be prepared. Thank God for the Walmart in Ft. Stockton where I bought a sleeping bag, but otherwise, I showed up without ice, snacks, any type of alcohol to share with the staff, late, and distracted. I didn’t relax and take a deep breath until the afternoon of the second day. I learned a good lesson and won’t let that happen again. It reminded me of a quote I read many years ago, “To do two things at once is often to do neither.”

Related Videos:

How To Score A Mule Deer

Hunting Grapefruit at the Stovall Ranch

How To Field Dress A Deer
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Last Friday I took two of my children, Naythan (10) and Brooklyn (8), on a turkey hunt at the Thunderhole Ranch in Coke County. Things have been so busy lately that the only way I could work in a trip was to take them out of school — even then it was rather rushed. You see, the Thunderhole is nearly 300 miles from our home, and I could not leave for the ranch until after coaching basketball practice on Thursday evening. We arrived just before 2am and I grabbed four hours of much needed sleep before waking the kids and beginning our hunt. I had explained to the kids that it would be a whirlwind tour of the ranch with about as many hours driving as hunting, yet they were eager to join me. I was unsure whether it was the opportunity to be with dad or the chance of missing school that lured them, but I was thankful they had at least shown an interest in hunting.

We all came into this hunt as novices: my daughter had never been hunting before in her life; my son had been out with me twice this spring, and while we’d seen plenty of birds we had not fired a shot at a gobbler yet (and prior to this he’d been quail hunting just once and dove hunting twice); and I had killed three hens to date but had never hunted spring gobblers before this year. By virtue of my alleged maturity and prior experience, I found myself in the role of teacher, one I welcomed as an opportunity to pass along my passion for the outdoors. But I would soon find that on this trip, my daughter would be the real teacher and I had much to learn.

Our day began slow and grew even slower as the sun slid higher into the sky. We opted to set up in a ground blind that could accomodate the three of us confortably enough, and I looked forward to spending so much time with my children that day absent the usual distractions of television, homework, and life generally. It’s a good thing, too, as that is just what we did — we spent lots of time together without even the distraction of a turkey gobbling in the distance somewhere.

We hunted most of the day and took a late afternoon ice cream break before climbing back into the blind, which we had moved to the northern end of the ranch near a feeder and high traffic area. It was now about 5:30pm and we had yet to see or even hear a turkey. Throughout the day we had fiddled with slate and mouth calls, examined deer and turkey tracks, watched quail and dove, and generally enjoyed our time together, but it became clear that they were really hoping to at least see some turkeys before leaving. Ten hours of hunting without so much as a glimpse of the intended game can try anyone’s patience, let alone that of young kids.

We goofed around on the calls again as it approached 6pm, making noises that were almost certain to frighten off any birds within a mile. We even joked that we were likely to summon any turkey “field medics” to the area given how sickly our clucks and yelps sounded. Perhaps this was because I allowed my expectations to wane and became a little anxious to get packed up and headed home, or perhaps I just couldn’t ask my children to try to remain relatively quiet for any longer. Either way, I suggested that we could stay as late as 6:30pm but by then would need to load up and head home (this would get us home around 11pm, and I was already rather exhausted). I mentioned that if we were going to stay, we’d need to be a little more quiet and alert. I also gave my kids an out by asking them, “Do you kids think we are going to see any turkeys today, or should we just call it a day and head home?”

“Is your glass half-full or half-empty?” my daughter questioned sincerely. “Half-full,” I said, half-heartedly. “You have to be optimistic!” she stated, knowing I was less than enthusiastic. The teacher became the student, and I learned my lesson quickly. “You’re right,” I declared. “There are some turkeys on their way to see us right now, and we just have to be patient and optimistic.” Pleased with my answer, the young teacher turned to her elder brother and asked, “Naythan, what about you?” “Maybe,” he said with no enthusiasm but lots of honesty. “No, you have to be optimistic,” the teacher repeated. This all but settled the matter, and as if on cue, the feeder went off right away, giving rise to real optimism in all of us.

Looking at my watch every minute or two, I found my hopes slipping away. It was now 6:28pm and I could not justify staying any later than 6:30 given that we’d still not seen nor heard a single turkey. I was most disappointed that my teacher’s lesson would seemingly be lost, and I worried that it would dampen the spirits of this sweet first-time hunter who’d invested nearly twelve hours already. I should not have been surprised (though I admit I was) when I looked up from my watch to see a hen turkey moving toward our blind at about 25 yards. Within the next 20 minutes we spotted three hens, but still no toms and no gobbling. After seeing no activity for about ten minutes, I told the kids we’d give it another 5 minutes or so and if we did not see more turkeys we’d have to call it a day.

About one minute later my son excitedly whispered, “Dad, I see two males.” Sure enough, about 50 yards out were two bright red turkey necks poking up above the grasses and cactus. They slowly made their way toward us, and at 20 yards the lead tom presented a clear view. My son and I had already discussed a plan to count down and shoot simultaneously if the shot presented was one outside of 15 yards (because he was hunting with an old fixed choke .410 and we wanted to ensure a clean kill). We both were in position and I counted down before letting my Remington 12 gauge roar. The bird crumpled instantly, and when my ears could hear again, my son said, “Dad, I forgot to cock my gun — I didn’t shoot.” He was a little disappointed but the disappointment soon left. I was pleased that he again showed patience and safety awareness, and he was pleased that his third trip to hunt turkeys finally paid off with a gobbler, even if he hadn’t pulled the trigger. More than any other game harvest in my life, this felt like a real team effort.

We savored the moment, looking at the beautiful tom and examining his wing feathers that were well-worn from strutting. Although no record-book tom, he was a respectable gobbler with an 8 1/2 inch beard and 7/8″ spurs. We talked about the opportunity we’d shared that day being outdoors together and about the blessing of having our needs met by the animals God has placed on this Earth for our benefit. Then, as we packed up our gear, my daughter said, with a broad smile and a sparkle in her eyes, “Dad, I really like hunting! I’d like to come again sometime.”

Right then and there I knew that I had been much more a student than teacher that day, and suddenly recognized that my cup was far more than just merely “half-full.” While I’ve known for a long time now that lessons learned hunting often transfer to life generally, I had not appreciated how life’s general lessons could so profoundly apply to hunting. My first spring turkey will be forever memorable, not because of the size of the bird’s beard or the excitement of the hunt, but because of who I shared the experience with and the profound lesson I learned that day — from an eight-year-old girl on her first hunting trip ever.

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Texas –

by Texas AgriLife Extension Service

Many Conservation Reserve Program contracts are due to expire this September, and landowners need to give careful consideration as to what comes next for once highly erodible land, according to Texas AgriLife Extension Service personnel.

The land put into the federal program commonly called CRP in the mid 1980s provided permanent grassy cover on this relatively poor cropland, which was a tremendous benefit to wildlife, said Ken Cearley, AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist.

Approximately 36 million acres are currently in the program in the U.S., with about 4 million acres of that in Texas, much of it in the High Plains.

“Landowners today find themselves at a crossroads because their contracts may be expiring fairly soon, and they know they can either re-enroll or break that land back out,” Cearley said.

“If you choose to return the land to farmland, you can expect a significant decrease in its value for wildlife.”

There are a few things a landowner can do, however, to ameliorate some of the loss of wildlife habitat, he said. For example, grain farmers can leave stubble as high and as long as possible in the field for cover, as well as leave waste grain on the surface.

Cearley advised landowners to also think about leaving waterways and drainage areas in grass, as well as leaving a wide band of grass around playas and around field perimeters.

“If you keep the field in grass, you need to go through the mental exercise of deciding what your priorities are. Are you mainly interested in wildlife, livestock or a combination of the two?” he said.

If the land is grazed without any kind of modification, landowners can expect to see brush encroachment in many parts of the state, he said. Denser brush favors white-tailed deer, lesser brush favors mule deer and very little to no brush might favor pronghorns, for example.

“You can enhance the field by modifying that brush,” Cearley said.

“You might want to encourage some brush if your goal is to have white-tailed deer. Or you might need to control some of that brush if you’re thinking about quail production, because quail can get by on 10-15 percent brush cover in many areas.”

DeDe Jones, AgriLife Extension risk management specialist, said landowners choosing to develop the land for wildlife enhancement could see some increased land values and additional income potential in the form of hunting and fishing leases.

AgriLife Extension recommends six practices to benefit wildlife on former CRP land: controlled grazing, interseeding of forbs and additional grass species, prescribed burning, woody plantings, invasive brush management and fall/winter strip-disking.

“It may seem a little cost prohibitive at first when you think about developing former CRP land for wildlife, however there are several government cost-share programs available,” she said.

Those include the Grassland Reserve Program, Wetland Reserve Program (if there is a playa lake on the CRP land); and the Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program. Any of these programs can help offset the wildlife-development expenses, Jones said.

“There is a lot of income available out there if you develop your land for wildlife,” she said.

The Texas A&M Real Estate Center estimates an additional increase of about $75 per acre in land value if it is developed for wildlife, Jones said.

She said a Tulia hunting operation told her they would see a profit of about $150 per gun during dove and pheasant seasons. Additionally, a Canadian ranching operation, offering a whole hunting experience to six to eight hunters a year, indicated it would net about $10,000 a year off that hunting enterprise.

“The potential definitely exists to increase your overall land value as well as get a little bit of income off these former CRP lands that you develop for wildlife,” Jones said. “Choosing to develop former CRP land for wildlife can be very beneficial to the land, the water, the wildlife and maybe even a landowner’s pocketbook.”

She did advise landowners to do a careful economic analysis in the form of partial budgeting to look at the benefits of developing the land versus the expenses before making any decisions.

Patrick Warminski, AgriLife Extension risk management specialist, said one of the most important things to consider when making decisions about what to do with the land involves the economic costs associated with conversion.

If the choice has been made to put it back into a crop production, the landowner typically will be looking at a dryland wheat or grain sorghum crop in the Panhandle.

“The first thing you have to do is remove the grasses, which will require the use of several different tillage trips,” Warminski said.

For a dryland wheat crop, the landowner can expect to spend between $130 and $160 per acre; and for a dryland grain sorghum crop, the cost will be between $190 to $210 per acre, he said. “And that’s just going to be to get the land back suitable enough to plant those two crops.”

If the decision has been made to use the land for a livestock grazing operation, it may be necessary to remove the old grass and forage with a prescribed burn and apply fertilizer to encourage new growth. The expected cost of that process is about $40 to $60 per acre, Warminski said.

Two other aspects to consider are fence repair and possible water-well repair or water-well drilling, he said. If the fence is in bad shape, to upgrade to a five-strand barbed-wire fence will cost about $6,400 per mile, including gates and corner posts.

For a windmill, the expected cost will range from $20,000 to $44,000, and a submersible pump with electricity will run in the neighborhood of $16,000 to $30,000, Warminski said.

“We know overall through the years CRP has been a valuable contributor to wildlife habitat in country that was formerly cropland,” Cearley said. “We can see that benefit continue if we decide to keep our country in grass and manage it with good land stewardship in mind.”

Landowners wanting more information on decisions concerning CRP land, as well as recommended budgets and frequency of management practices, can go to http://agrilifebookstore.org to find three publications in the “After the Conservation Reserve Program” series.

The publications are “Land Management with Wildlife in Mind,” “Economic Decisions with Wildlife in Mind” and

“Economic Decisions with Farming and Grazing in Mind.”

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As a true Texan born and raised I feel extremly lucky to be living in one of the best states in all of America to enjoy the great outdoors. With the coming of the new fall hunting season I am eagerly awaiting cool weather which will host classic Dove hunts early for me. I really look foward to the begining of hunting season so I can dust off that old shotgun and sight in the trusty deer rifle in preparation of a new hunting season. I like to share my outdoor experiences with others so I have recruited my brother-in-law, son and anybody else willing to put up with me on hot september afternoons to hunt Dove. I take Dove hunting very seriously and plan my outdoor outings very carefully to ensure 100% success. I like to hunt at least two weekends in September, three in October and then start deer hunting in Novemeber. This year I plan to focus most of my hunting time in the cooler months chasing after a trophy wild boar. Last year I shot a nice buck and look foward to adding a fat pig to the tall hunting stories I like to share with others.

Already we have been hitting the coast this summer chasing after the elusive redfish and sleek speckled trout to satisfy our outdoor appetite. If I can’t be out in the mesquite brush hunting then I would rather be knee deep in shallow water heaven filled with tasty game fish. Becuase of the summer heat we prefer to do our summer fishing early in the am or late in the evening. There is nothing better the getting up early at the crack of dawn to head out on the water for some early day wade fishing or relaxing in the sunset of a great evening fishing trip. This year I was fortunate enough to put some great eating fish in the freezer to fry up at the ranch when deer hunting.

I consider myself an outdoor activist and enjoy recruiting new members to our elite society of hunters and fisherman. I am blessed to have an extended family that love the outdoors and have access to family ranch land. One of these locations is a sweet piece of South Texas located near Mathis lake loaded with whitetail deer. The best part of the deal is that I don’t have to pay costly lease fees or trophy fees, it is purely a family run hunt club. All that is required is respect of the land and a promise to lend a helping hand off season to ensure the property is kept in prime condition. If this was not good enough I am also happy to say that my father is part of a historic hunt club of aluminum workers who lease a small ranch near the famous King Ranch. Good bucks have been shot at this location for many years and the place is loaded with huge wild boar. A bonus to this classic South Texas deer lease is the amazing quail and dove hunting that can be had.

I promote hunting and fishing as a way to deal with stress and life in general with a positive activity that can influence our youth to be good stewards of the land. I absolutely enjoy taking my ten year old son hunting and fishing with me on all my outdoor adventures so I can ensure that this great outdoor tradition will be passed on to others. I hope everyones outdoor adventures are plentiful and boutyful this hunting season and would like to wish all the outdoor sportsment good luck affield this year. May you catch that big fish that had been eluding your hook and may you take that nice buck that you have been dreaming about for all those years.
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Sara pointing quail was witnessed by two friends one time and sparked a story which is not true, but possibly could have been. It goes like this: Once, I invited a couple of friends quail hunting. When they arrived, I had Sara ready to go and they asked why I was taking her. I replied that we needed her along to act as our bird dog to find the quail. They began to eye me in a strange questioning way, but shrugged their shoulders and came along. Well, it wasn’t too far into the hunt that Sara stopped and pointed. I told them to get position quickly and away the quail went. They each got one bird and the excitement rose to a high pitch. One of them exclaimed that was a sight to see, a mule pointing quail like a birddog, the only difference being that she did not point her tail straight up or lift one foot, she just used her ears. The other said that the birds had spread out along the edge of the river and he had marked them down. Let’s go after them! I told them as calmly and politely as I could that we couldn’t go after the quail down by the river. They wanted to know why and I told them the reason. If we go down to the river, the quail hunting would be over. Sara wouldn’t hunt quail anymore because she would rather fish than hunt!

We had a few Santa Gertrudis cows and bulls. One of the bull calves was selected for a show calf and the training began. After the show, we kept the little bull for a herd sire. He was really a gentle natured bull. That is until one day before it was planned he got loose and joined up with the cows up top. We called all the land that was not under irrigation up top and everything else down bottom. I went up to get him on Sara Gay and took his halter and a lead rope. I hitched up the girth pretty tight and roped the bull that was now approaching 1200 lbs. and would be close to 2000 when he was fully grown. He stood still while I put his halter on and loosened the lariat. Well this bull definitely did not want to leave the cow that he had just bred and I did not know for sure that we were going to be successful taking him back down bottom. I nudged Sara Gay and she slowly took up the slack and the bull began to pull back. Sara leaned into the load and rocked over in her shoulders to the other foot and pulled the bull off his balk and we began to move. We moved off at a good pace and Sara kept the bull moving right along and got him back in the barn pens where he belonged without a hitch except for his protesting all the way.

When we were hunting elk or deer in the mountains, Sara would see about half the animals before I did and I saw the others before she did. I guess it was different lighting for different types of eyes that made the difference as to what was seen first. Sometimes when we were going down a steep slope, something would begin to pinch her and she would turn in toward the high side of the trail and buckjump in place a couple of times, then I would get off and check it out to find the problem. I finally quit using a crupper under her tail and would use the back cinch behind under her tail and this proved to please her much better and kept me from sliding forward as well. We were coming back at night one time with no moon and hardly any light at all when Della the mule that was in the lead at the time stopped abruptly. Don Vestal got off and cautiously felt with his feet in front of Della and discovered that the trail had been washed out and therew as a drop off. Don got back on and turned Della around and gave her her head. She worked down the bank to the side of the trail and went on down the trail. The next time that she stopped, Don got off and found the back of the horse trailer. I cannot end the story about Sara Gay just yet because she is still living and enjoying her oats every day. At the time of this writing the date is November 6, 2006. In March 2007 she will be 39 and holding. People have asked why I still keep her and I tell them that we have been over hill and dale together and she saved my bacon several times by not panicking in adverse situations that could have gotten me hurt badly or worse.
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Free range stalk.
Written on: 12/24/2007 13:23 by: wheeless621 Click a star to rate this entryAverage user rating: 4.8 (of 5 total)
Yesterday, a man that my father-in-law does some work for invited us to go hunting on his 2000 acre ranch. He is a quail hunter and isn’t real big on deer hunting. I’ve been all over this ranch several times and know my way around it pretty good. We built the roads so I know where they all are and where they go. As most of you have heard me say, 99% of my hunting is done on a 15 acre plot outside of town. My Father-in-law went to one side of the ranch and got in one of the owners son’s stands. Not me, I get enough sitting at my own place. I started at the gate and walked the other half of the ranch. The place is one hill after another with shooting lanes for his quail hunts checker boarding most of it. I wanted the chance to hunt like I used to before my dad lost his lease in SanSaba Co. 10 years ago. I put all the gear I could carry on and headed out. I got to use my binos for the first time in years. I walked and glassed for about two hours. I got tired and sat down for a bit on the side of a hill, where I had a real good view, and started glassing from there. Finally I saw some movement just past another hill about 400 yrds or so away. All I could see were three does with my binos but they were just past the edge of the hill. I started out walking parelell to them till I could put the hill they were beside between me and them. Then made the trek across the open ground between them and me. While I was where I couldn’t see them they had walked up the hill I was going towards. When I finally crested the hill (after what seemd like hours because the dry grass sounded to me like I was walking on broken light bulbs.) They had just reached the top of the hill also. I was expecting to be loking down at them instead we were eye to eye at the crest. I had just seen one of their heads and she had noticed my movement. I had to freeze in my tracks. I had blundered up into a spot with no cover. So I just was squatting there trying my best to look like a harmless old bush. I guess she bought it cause she went back to eating. But I was still out in the open with her not 20 yards away. Finally she turned her back to me and I was able to move to some cover. Haven’t had to low crawl in a while, but I managed. They walked back down the same side of the hill they had come from and I followed. I didn’t shoot any of them, I just wanted to see if they had brought their boyfriend with them, which unfortunatly they hadn’t. But I had a great time. Man, I miss this stuff. But he told us we could come back again. So maybe next time I’ll get to test myself against someone a little more wary. I have no doubt that if that doe had been a mature buck it would have all been over when I first crested the hill. I wouldn’t have gotten that second chance. But hey, I’m a little rusty, alittle older and a good bit fatter than I was back in the day. All in all, though I came home empty handed I had a great time that brought back some wonderful memories.
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Tuesday, September 4, 2012

As Charity’s family babysitting time had expired, plus there was make-up homework to help the kids with and laundry to do, Charles headed out to “Prairie Chicken Paradise” on his own. He was making his way out to the paradise, in an area that used to surprise us when birds got up, but we’ve been surprised enough years to now know that a flock resides in these very low, almost nonexistent dunes on the way to our usual hunting grounds a mile and a half away from the road. It was there that he took his only bird of the day, with unknown numbers jumping right into the sun, he instinctively fired at the sound of the wingbeats since he couldn’t see and was able to put one on the ground between him and Sam.

They made their way back to the deep dunefield that has consistently produced for us throughout the years, but not a flush was to be had. BB began tracking hard, so since there seemed to be nothing else going on, Charles and Sam followed along. BB was tracking a coyote, who jumped up and ran, but Charles was in no mood for fur and called the dogs off to head for home. It was time to enjoy the company of our family and good friends in the Nebraska Sandhills.

Despite the long summer drought and unseasonably hot conditions, Charles, Charity and the dogs were able to have success on their traditional sharptail grouse and prairie chicken opener by relying on proven approaches to covering ground and relocating known coveys that they’ve hunted for over a decade.

Preparing the trip’s harvest for the freezer, minus 2 grouse that were already consumed.
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Nothing says Memorial Day Weekend like a family picnic. And this past May 26th, the TexasHuntFish.com Team (Debra, Diana, and Chris) was invited to attend a “family picnic” of sorts for the Texas Big Game Awards Edwards Plateau Region. As we arrived in Burnet, Texas and entered the Galloway Hammond Center you couldn’t help but feel right at home. We were greeted with rows of tables lined with red and white checkered tablecloths, BBQ Brisket and sausage, cobbler, and good old-fashioned iced tea. Kids of all ages were running around having a great time. Sounds like a picnic to me.

As we made our way around the room, we met Lee Loeffler with Texas Land Bank and asked if he could use some TexasHuntFish stickers for his table. He obliged and asked us if Allen Shannon put us up to this. Turns out that Lee and Allen are friends and he just spent the weekend with him on one of their famous family camp outs. Click Here to read Kamping For Kids II by Allen Shannon.

Next we found the hosts of the evening, David Brimager, Assistant Vice President of the Texas Wildlife Association and Dr. Dan McBride, President of the Texas Taxidermy Association and big supporter of TWA. These guys are tireless supporters of TWA, TBGA, the TPWD and the Texas Youth Hunting Program, and not to mention two of the nicest guys on the planet. The room was buzzing with excitement as the awards ceremony neared and the room was filled with the smoky smell of country BBQ.

As the food was being set up, we were fortunate enough to talk with two custom knife makers, Charles Miller and Mike Morgan, about their passion for knife making. They both work out of the Burnet, Texas area using the best materials available. Knife making is a true art that takes time to master. While Mike’s craftsmanship is of a high quality, he still considers himself an apprentice and explained that it takes years to master the craft. Charles Miller is highly knowledgeable and had some very interesting things to say about his journey into knife making.

Find out more about Charles Miller Custom Knives and Mike Morgan Custom Knives.

Coming Soon Diana’s interview with Charles Miller

The cowbell sounded and dinner was on! We enjoyed fine country BBQ and I have to admit that this was one of the best “banquet” meals I’ve had in a long time. What a relaxing build-up to the night’s big event. After dinner, we settled in to watch the awards being handed out to young and old.

The backdrop for the awards ceremony was a very impressive wall of mounted trophies, including the 202 2/8 (net score) first harvest for 10 year old girl, yes 10, Mariah Gary shot on the Six Gun Ranch. Her father told TexasHuntFish.com that Mariah had been asleep in the stand and he had to wake her up to take the shot, to which she replied, “Is it the big one?”

Both her parents and younger sister were very proud of her and some of the older men were asking if they could switch their smaller bucks out for hers. Many of them also said that they’ve never harvested a buck that big and have been hunting for 20 plus years. Mariah just smiled and looked at her dad. She was one of many winners that night.

Cami Carrosco won the first harvest essay contest, which Dr. McBride pointed out that there is not an age limit on the contest. Whether you are 10 or 100, you can win. Cami’s buck scored 133 2/8 (net score) and was shot on the Nelms Ranch.

She said it was an unforgettable experience and one that she will always treasure. Whether it’s hunting with your dad or an official Huntmaster, passing on the hunting heritage for present and future generations is essential to the goals of the Youth Hunting Program put together by the Texas Wildlife Association and the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.

The awards ceremony also honored many Texas Landowners for their pursuit in passing on the hunting heritage. Among them were the Six Gun Ranch, Nelms Ranch, Apache Springs Ranch, Kerr WMA, West Kerr Ranch, and many others. They were honored for participating in land and wildlife management, conservation efforts, as well as for supporting the Youth Hunting Program. A couple of landowners brought a very large display of native Texas plants with information cards showing their effects on different animal species like Quail, Deer, and Turkey. I asked them how long it took to gather up all these plants and they very proudly stated it took them all of 20 minutes or so. Check out the pictures.

We had a great time and hope that next year’s banquet will be filled with more TexasHuntFish.com members and their families. Our thanks go to David Brimager, Dr. Dan McBride, and everyone at the TBGA, TWA and TPWD for allowing us to support your conservation and education efforts. See you next year.

Hunt Hard. Fish Smart. Explore Texas.

~Debra Heater

Find out more about these organizations by visiting their websites:

Texas Wildlife Association

Texas Big Game Awards

Texas Youth Hunting Program

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Conservation. Hunting. The Ducks. That’s what it’s all about.

The festivities for the 2007 DU State Convention began on Friday at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Austin. I was welcomed by several large trucks with DU stickers on the back windows and I was pretty confident I was in the right place. One truck even had “DU” as the license plate, which is pretty intense. Don’t you have to pay for special plates? 🙂 The owners of these vehicles were the Area Chairs, District Chairmen, National Delegates, and highly involved members who DU wanted to take the time to encourage and recognize for their time and services.

My point is that every single member there was very involved and very proud to be a part of the Ducks Unlimited family. I learned that these men and women were some of the most avid and “hard core” hunters. They don’t play around in the field. They are the hunters who sit in the cold, wet conditions in the (very) early morning because they want to.

And THAT, my friends, is why it’s so important that they keep everyone updated on their efforts and achievements. DU is a national non-profit organization that dedicates time and money to the conservation of wetlands and waterfowl habitat in North America. The best way to keep everyone around is to make sure they are always having fun, right?! Which is probably why DU Texas has 177 chapters and has so many dedicated members, volunteers, and staff.

A brief synopsis of the weekend:

Friday night we went to the Texas Disposal Systems Game Ranch and Pavilion in Creedmore, TX (south of Austin) where we mingled and ate with the other members and saw all the exotic wildlife from Africa out on the ranch…AND all along the walls of the pavilion, but those were mostly just the heads of the animals. There was a full bar, frog legs and quail for dinner, and a full band entertaining us with country music.

Saturday was a series of meetings and an awards luncheon, honoring the top chapters in Texas and their achievements. Whenever people had “down time” during the day, they could head over to the hospitality room across from the big ballroom and grab a drink “for here” or “to go.” The entire weekend I felt like everyone genuinely loved the people they partnered with in this organization and they had so much fun joking around with eachother. John, Bud, and I were able to get a couple of interviews that day and those videos will be added to the journal later.

Saturday night was a blast as we saw awards given to the ones who exceeded expectations, whether financially or with their time…but all that was just the beginning of the night. Next was the live auction, raffle, and silent auction. I must say, those ladies who sell the raffle tickets are professional saleswomen…relentless. It is rare to find someone in the room who hasn’t bought a few tickets. During the live auction they carry around the item up for bid so people can get a better look…at the item, of course. George Williams became a victim of this (see picture below).

All in all, it was a great weekend and I would encourage all of you to go to www.ducks.org to find out more about what you can do for the Ducks.

Special thanks to:
John White (TX/NM Regional Director) – for letting me help with the gift bags and for making sure our team was all set up before we even arrived for the weekend.

Bill and Donna Pyle (District Chairman) – for taking me under their wings that weekend and making sure I got everything I needed, including good conversation.

Benjamin Jones (Area Chair) – for letting John Schwarzlose, Bud Force, and I interview him and sit at his table at the Saturday night Auction and Banquet.

Crispin Morin III – for taking our banner around Texas with him and his DU team, letting people know that TexasHuntFish.com supports Ducks Unlimited.

The Gokey family – Rob and Kyle, thank you for sitting down with us and sharing their experiences as a father and son team. Amy (and their daughter, Paige) thank you for letting us set up a table in the vendor room.
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HB5029 was passed by the Michigan House of Representatives on Tuesday, November 4th by a vote of 64-44 with two members not voting. It made its way over to the Senate, and on Wednesday, November 5th, Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema assigned HB5029 to Senator Shirley Johnson’s Appropriations Committee. During the Sportsmen’s Rally on November 4th, Senator Shirley Johnson introduced the resolution making the mourning dove the “Michigan Bird of Peace”.
This is the resolution that Senators Johnson, Jacobs, Brater, Clark Coleman, Clarke, Jelinek, Leland, Scott and Toy introduced:

Senate Resolution No. 192.

A resolution recognizing the mourning dove, Zenaida macroura, as the Michigan Bird of Peace.

Whereas, The mourning dove is an American bird known for its sad, cooing call. Its grayish-brown feathers and long tapering tail are widely recognized in Michigan, as is its soft and mournful sound. The mourning dove, or Zenaida macroura, as it is known in the scientific realm, is a peaceful songbird; and

Whereas, The day of the mourning dove begins early in the morning when it begins to look for food and water. The doves then rest during part of the afternoon, seek more food and water, and before nightfall, return to their nests built loosely of twigs in a tree or bush or on the ground. Many scientists believe that a male and female mourning dove mate with each other for life. Bird watchers will note that mourning doves are often found in pairs and, as parents, the doves are both responsible for feeding the young, called squabs, which are born blind and almost featherless; and

Whereas, The dove has traditionally symbolized peace. It is often depicted with an olive branch in its beak. Mourning doves do not eat olive branches, but do, however, feed on weed seeds and insects. It is a peaceful bird which will swiftly fly from conflict on strong wings that make a whistling sound as they move through the air. The mourning dove plays a quiet but vital role in the fragile and beautiful ecosystem that is the Michigan water wonderland; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate, That the mourning dove, Zenaida macroura, be known throughout the state as the Michigan Bird of Peace.

Pending the order that, under rule 3.204, the resolution be referred to the Committee on Government Operations, Senator Hammerstrom moved that the rule be suspended.

The motion prevailed, a majority of the members serving voting therefor.

The question being on the adoption of the resolution, Senator Hammerstrom moved that the resolution be referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs.

The motion prevailed.

I would encourage you to have all those interested in seeing HB5029 become law contact their senators and the members of this committee and also Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema and tell the Senators that you want this bill passed out of committee and passed by the Senate and given to Governor Granholm to sign into law.

Remember, the best way to communicate with the legislators is by scheduling and attending a “Face to Face meeting” with your legislator. These meetings can be done in Lansing, but many of the legislators will meet with you in their home districts. The next best way is to write a personal letter and mail it. A less efffective way is to fax that letter. The least effective way is e-mail.

_______________________________

The best defense is a
united offense.

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As a kid there were two skills I mainly learned from my father, how to work and how to hunt. My father was in the army, I remember him talking once about the $800 he got a month and where it was to be used. Needless to say we didn’t have a lot but by hunting and raising a garden we ate pretty good.
Venison, quail, pheasant those are meats you might find in a swank restaurant but we also had plenty of squirrel, rabbit, dove and an occasional ground hog…hell I even ate a raccoon once. To me this was normal, to me the best meat you could buy from the grocery store were hamburgers and hotdogs because when we did buy a steak from the store it was a cheap cut, tough as shoe leather and laced with fat and gristle, which, by the way, my dad made us eat. You know…”Finish everything on your plate boy, there are starving people in India that don’t have as much as you.”
Hunting was different then, we’d jump in the truck drive out into the country, stop at a house and ask if we could hunt their property. Sometimes it was yes, sometimes it was no, but it was simple…straight forward. My dad would make friends that way and when he did our freezer was stocked for the year.
Deer hunting………………The first deer hunting experience I had was on Fort Hood. There’s a rod and gun club there and during the season they set up a lottery for soldiers/hunters. The soldiers arrive about 4:30 am for the morning hunts, 2:30 pm for the afternoon hunts, wait to see if they were drawn, the lucky ones are taken to a stand in a big army truck everyone else goes home. My dad took me one afternoon, we were drawn and I remember well the bumpy ride out to the area we were to hunt. We laid down behind a downed tree and waited for a deer to come out so my dad could shoot it. I wasn’t hunting, I was there to observe, I was six years old. It started getting cold and as it did my teeth started chattering, I couldn’t help it. My dad became really perturbed and pushed my down under a heavy green army canvass we were laying on and told me to be quiet.
The next several hours were miserable to me, etched in to my mind, I reckon for the rest of my life. We didn’t get a deer that day but as we stood in the dark waiting for the big army truck to pick us up we looked at the stars and talked, my dad wasn’t angry anymore and I heard for the first time a deer snort, “the warning there’s danger present”, he said. The ride back was just as bumpy, a truck loaded with cold soldiers in camo and a couple of dead deer.
And that was deer hunting to me for the next ten years, laying on the ground scanning a brush line, looking out across a field from the loft of a barn, aiming my rifle out of the second floor of an old dilapidated farm house, no matter where it was it always seemed to be cold.
Then things changed, my dad retired from the army, went to a community college on the GI Bill and started an AC business and for once we had a little money. He had a lease we could hunt and we built blinds with soft seats, sliding windows and even propane heaters. Part of it was because we had money but I think the other part was because my dad was getting older and just wanted to be comfortable.
The last year my dad hunted was the year I stopped hunting and didn’t hunt again for about ten years. It was the year after I graduated highschool, I bought into the lease and could hunt when I wanted for the first time. My dad bought the back end of a refrigerated truck and set it up as a meat processing areas complete with a bandsaw to cut steaks. The thing that made me stop hunting was that my father shot more than the legal limit that year. I won’t say how many more, it still embarrasses me. I became really perturbed, I wanted to push him down under a heavy green army canvass and tell him how disappointed I was in him. After that, what he had taught me about hunting meant next to nothing to me.
Time ticks on and after about ten years I started hunting again, rediscovering some of what I had lost. I rifle hunted a couple of times in Bandera with reps. from a wine company trying to smooze me. Took a couple of deer and pretty much stopped again unsatified with the same ol’ same ol’. A few more years went by and I was talked into trying bow hunting by a friend of mine. I’d played around with compound bows as a teenager and was really quite good though I’d never hunted with one, but this was traditional, the classic stick and string. So my de-evolution began, I had to relearn everything, not moving for an hour at a time, covering my scent , learning the subtle signs that tell you where to set up, making myself invisible in my surroundings.
I’ve been hunting a ranch by Lake Buchanan for almost a year now. Dozens of times I sat there and watched the day turn into night, sometimes sitting through the night to watch the sun come up again. In those times I’ve only taken four shots with my bow and with those four shots I’ve taken three hogs and a deer. All clean, ethical. All easy to track.
Last night I walked down one of the ranch roads, found a place where game traversed and sat back a little ways in the brush, a cool wind in my face, a lane in front to take a shot if presented. My bow sat three feet away leaning against a wild persimmon. As I sat there a hawk swooped between me and my bow, oblivious to my presence, the tip of it’s wing inches from my face. It flew out through my shooting lane and landed in a tree across the road from me. It perched there for a minute and then started back towards the opening. At the last moment it saw me, spread it’s wings stopping in mid air, changed directions and was gone.
I watched a group of deer feed ten yards in front of me, three does and a couple of yearlings. Two of the does were mature, one was huge. I could have taken her but I was waiting for a buck I’d seen in the area earlier this year. I watched them for about thirty minutes as they grazed and made their way off. Later I had three bucks come out, three I had seen with the buck I wanted. One was a four and a half year old eight point. Classic Hill Country rack, not real high, not real woody but symmetric. Another eight, not as big and a younger six. But the one I wanted wasn’t with them, probably split off by now in anticipation of the rut. As they moved into the brush the two smaller bucks started to tussle a bit then they were gone. The light faded and I walked back to camp in the dark, through the woods not bothering to turn on my light. Best hunt of the year, what hunting is to me.
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Your dog would die for you. You would not do the same for him

-Quote from my good friend CB

I swore I’d never have another dog. Forget the bird dog, German Shorthaired Pointer thing. Just no dog. Not after Nikko. And that was almost twenty years ago. Even though every year the girls always asked for a puppy, I just couldn’t bring myself to it.

Nikko was my best friend.

We’d hunt quail all over the rapidly disappearing brush in Hidalgo County back in the early 1990’s when I was in college. We’d bum around in my little black Suzuki Samuri without a top, just Nikko and I looking for likely fields to shoot, sometimes overgrown ones over by Sugar Road in Pharr, or maybe way out Conway north of Mission, busting covey after covey.

My freezer was always full.

Once we went hunting north of the University on Hoen Road, a tumbleweed-grass field that just looked ripe for codorniz. We hunted and hunted that grey, cold afternoon, but no covey. Suddenly Nikko came on point, but just as quickly began jumping back and forth barking his still puppish yap….

That’s when I heard it.

The telltale dry buzzing of a big old rattlesnake.

My hair stood on end as I bolted forward just in time to see Nikko standing on rock solid point, the big old cascabel reared back ready to strike, head the size of a damn steam iron. I screamed at the top of my lungs “NIKKO!”. He jumped backward, trance broken, and I unleashed both barrels of my old side by side over his head, and into the snakes, which disintegrated into a fine mist of red.

Neither one of us wanted to hunt any more that day.

But there were many more days to come, and when I finally lost him (a whole ‘nother story), I swore I’d never have another dog.

Besides it’s kind of like having a family member that never grows up, and my own independence just wasn’t ready for the commitment of the whole thing.

Well, I don’t know what possessed me to do it, but about a month ago another little German Shorthaired pup found his way into our lives. We named him Assault, a play on words actually (Get it? Assault? A-Salt-y dog….)

When we went to pick him up in Edinburg, he rode home uncrated in the back of the Volvo. To show his newfound love for me, he immediately planted several Assault-bombs in my jacket behind the back seat.

Right now he’s asleep in the crate after a rather frustrating puppy morning out. Assault seemed more intent on pointing at cats and chasing the check cord than on whoa and dead. Happier rolling and sniffing the grass, chewing on palm fronds to sooth his cutting teeth than on heeling and fetching.

Sometimes they just have to be pups.

For the most part though he just wants to please, and training is coming along well. He points at the wing, responds reasonably well to commands and even came along duck hunting with us several days ago. The girls kept him tight leashed, but he perked up at the gunshots, and swam and splashed in the cold Laguna Madre waters, waiting for his master to knock down a couple of redheads.

There is joy mixed with sadness in my heart. Joy at the innocence of a new puppy, sadness over how short the time we get to enjoy them is. And I guess that’s true of all things. Besides, I watch my girls and this critter and wonder why I waited so long to let another gun dog into our collective lives. There is a bond that cannot be duplicated, and they deserve that too.

So for now, my little pup sleeps. Sometimes they just have to have puppy days.
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Current year Texas hunting and fishing licenses (except year-to-date fishing licenses) expire Aug. 31, and new licenses for 2010-2011 will go on sale Sunday, Aug. 15.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department issues about 2.1 million hunting and fishing licenses annually through the agency’s 28 field offices, more than 65 state parks and at over 1,500 retailers across Texas. For a $5 administrative transaction fee, licenses may also be purchased online through the TPWD Web site or by phone (800-895-4248). Call center hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday — Friday. The online transaction system is available 24/7. A license confirmation number is issued at the time of purchase for online and phone orders, and the physical license is mailed separately. Confirmation numbers will verify that a license has been purchased, which is sufficient for dove hunting, but will not allow hunters to take fish or wildlife that require a tag.

Dove Hunting Requirements
In addition to a hunting license, all wing shooters will need to purchase a game bird stamp. To hunt doves or teal in September, a Migratory Game Bird Stamp ($7) is required. Duck hunters also need to purchase a Federal Duck Stamp and receive HIP (Harvest Information Program) certification. HIP certification involves a brief survey of previous year’s hunting success and is conducted at the time licenses are purchased. Certification will be printed on the license. Lifetime license holders must also be HIP-certified and purchase the Federal Duck Stamp to hunt migratory birds. All other state stamp endorsements are included with a lifetime license.

There are other mandatory endorsements to consider at the time of purchase, too. An Upland Game Bird Stamp ($7) is required to hunt all non-migratory game birds, including turkey, quail, pheasant, chachalaca and lesser prairie chicken.

Of course, anyone who purchases the Super Combo license package, the best bang for the buck at $68, automatically gets these needed stamps. Sportsmen ages 65 and older qualify for a discounted Senior Super Combo for $32.

Lifetime License Drawing
Hunters and anglers can also take care of their licensing requirements for life with the purchase of an $1,800 Lifetime Super Combo, or you can enter for a chance at winning a lifetime license through a special drawing. Entries for the Lifetime License Drawing cost $5 each and may be purchased wherever licenses are sold. There is no limit on the number of entries that may be purchased. Winners will be drawn on Dec. 30, 2010 and June 30, 2011. If you enter by Dec. 27, 2010, you will be eligible for both drawings.

Mandatory Hunter Education Certification
Hunter Education Certification is also required of any hunter born on or after Sept. 2, 1971 and who is at least 17 years old. For hunters who are unable to work in a hunter education course before hunting season for whatever reason, TPWD does offer a deferral option that allows people 17 years of age or older a one-time only extension to complete the state’s hunter education requirements. The individual must first purchase a hunting license and then may purchase the deferral option #166.

Hunters using the deferral must be accompanied by someone 17 years old or older also licensed to hunt in Texas. The accompanying individual must have completed hunter education or be exempt from the requirements (born before Sept. 2, 1971). The extension is good for one license year, by which time the person with the deferred option needs to complete a hunter education course.

This option is not available to those who have ever received a conviction or deferred adjudication for lack of hunter education certification. They still must take the course before going afield.

Big Time Texas Hunts
Also available through license agents and online are chances for TPWD’s Big Time Texas Hunts. The Big Time Texas Hunts program offers the opportunity to win one or more premium guided hunts with food and lodging provided, as well as taxidermy in some cases. The crown jewel of the program is the Texas Grand Slam hunt package, which includes four separate hunts for Texas’ most prized big game animals — the desert bighorn sheep, white-tailed deer, mule deer and pronghorn antelope. There are several quality whitetail hunt packages available, as well as opportunities to pursue alligator, exotic big game, waterfowl and upland game birds.

Entries for the Big Time Texas Hunt drawings are $10 each and are available wherever hunting licenses are sold. They may also be purchased online at a discounted price of $9 each. There is no limit to the number of entries an individual may purchase, All proceeds from Big Time Texas Hunts benefit conservation, wildlife management and public hunting.

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