YOUTH PHEASANT

[JD48]

anybody go ?

[Sharpdogs]

It was a good time.  Big thanks to all the volunteers.  

[Recurve hntr]

Congratulations to all the kids! Love seeing all these kids outdoors. Miss going with my daughter on the youth days.  

[buckfever1974]

[MPSR]

Awesome day! Not a person in site. Never seen so many birds. 15 flushes. Son missed 5 and got 2. Managed to pick up a woodcock as well. Not 1 Rooster. Great Job to the state. Our dogs a machine, without him it would have been tough. Birds were holding in the thickest cover.

[Jerzguy2]

Anyone hunt Clinton yesterday? Any report?

[Jim_]

Love the photos ... old and new. Brings back great memories. 

[Sharpdogs]

3 hours ago, Jerzguy2 said:

Anyone hunt Clinton yesterday? Any report?

Yes, that photo was from Clinton.  We were there in the morning.

[Pathman]

Helped out with registration  and other duties as assigned at Clinton yesterday! 😁

I believe we had 7 dog handlers with 34 youngsters split among them, hunting 7 different fields on their first pheasant hunting experience. 
I don’t have an exact count of birds taken but of the 7 groups there were a couple that had all youngsters take a bird, but that is not usually typical.
Many didn’t connect unfortunately, but all got multiple chances at birds. 
F&W provided the birds of course, along with the specific ammo the youngsters requested. 
The dog handlers did an excellent job handling their dogs, stocking birds (some with help from parents or volunteer mentors) and ensuring the youths were practicing safe gun handling, and sharing their knowledge with the first time hunters. 
One handler even hung around and offered to take additional kids out after the fields were stocked again at 1:00. 
The local C/O was also in attendance and gave a talk to the youngsters, as well as doing a mock inspection with each group of hunters to familiarize them with how a C/O operates in the field and what they can expect if ever given a field check. 
 

Snacks were provided by the Federation, which kids and parents appeared to appreciate, and they were also given a talk by one of the F&W council members. 
 

All in all I didn’t hear of any real issues, the birds were flying pretty well, the field cover was cut a bit lower so the kids wouldn’t have too hard a time, and it appeared fun was had by all. 

It’s a really great program, and if anyone has the desire to help with next years youth pheasant hunt, mentors were the only area where we we a bit short handed. 
Mentors typically hold the ammo, as only one shell is loaded at a time for each shooter, they help stock birds, and generally provide additional eyes and ears for the dog handler. 
 

Contact F&W to sign up for next seasons volunteering opportunities, it is a very satisfying effort when you see the kids having their first real experience in the field, you won’t regret it! 

[Cousin Brown]

Who ran the Golden Retriever?

[Pathman]

2 hours ago, Cousin Brown said:

Who ran the Golden Retriever?

If you’re asking me, I don’t know every particular dog each handler had, most stayed in their kennels until the handler got to their respective field. 
 

 

[Boykin Runner]

I was a dog handler for over 10 years in Assunpink and last year I just didnt feel comfortable with kids shooting over the dogs . I would run all 3 Boykins for the kids and had great success and a lot of fun ,the kids loved my dogs .

Now with my oldest loosing his hearing and my female gone blind , it leave me with 1 healthy pup.

I feel bad not helping the past 2 years but wanted to get out and deer hunt again, that is something i didnt do in the past 15 years. 

Thanks to all the volunteers !

[trader979]

This was the first year my wife and  I volunteered as dog handlers. We were at Colliers Mills.  We had 5 kids and 20 pheasants we were able to stock so everyone had multiple attempts at birds. At the end of the hunt, the kids all ended up with two birds. Everyone practiced gun safety and had a great time; parents and grandparents included.

I would also like to thank Boykin Runner for all the years volunteering his time.  He was the take a kid hunting guide for my kids as assunpink a number of years ago. 

Edited November 2, 2021 by trader979

[Rusty]

3 minutes ago, trader979 said:

This was the first year my wife and  I volunteered as dog handlers. We were at Colliers Mills.  We had 5 kids and 20 pheasants we were able to stock so everyone had multiple attempts at birds. At the end of the hunt, the kids all ended up with two birds. Everyone practiced gun safety and had a great time; parents and grandparents included.

I would also like to thank Boykin Runner for all the years volunteering his time.  He was the take a kid hunting guide for my kids as assunpink a number of years ago. 

[Jim_]

Big thanks and kudos to all involved ... handlers, mentors, NJ DFW, parents, and the kids! I really love to read this stuff.

I'm starting to have grandchildren now ... I look forward to the future.