fall turkey tactics

[strutnrut]

One thing for sure I have had the pleasure of hunting with Buster he is truely an amazing dog.  He stay put better than most hunters. 

[harmonden]

no dogs allowed in illinois.......................i do the blowhorn after they roost trick.................and than call'em in..in the morn'in..................if i cant find a flock i'll sit around and lost call a bunch.........maybe get a straggler.......or two................

[SOONER]

hello all:
i do hunt with a byrne dog and she has lots of white on her. in the old days john built a blind to hunt out of. i really think he did this to keep himself busy instead of calling to soon. john has killed more winter long beards than anyone alive today. anyway he and the dog got in the blind. then he saw his dog laying there cold as can be and ask his wife to fashion a bag for the dog. that is how the bag came about. i trained keekee to bag but she is such a big hound that now i just lay her on the ground on her bag and cover her with a camo cloth. i tie her leash to my leg just to make sure she does not jumb in front of a loaded gun after someone shoots. i have seen her lay there with birds 10 feet in front of her and not move. these dogs are my favorite because of their nose. i have seen them air wind birds at 250 yards and many times they break turkeys at 1/4 mile. big diffence with the hound breed into them. sooner

[BigTomsCalls]

Sooner could you post or email me a picture of you dog's?

[TurkeyComander]

hello all:
i do hunt with a byrne dog and she has lots of white on her. in the old days john built a blind to hunt out of. i really think he did this to keep himself busy instead of calling to soon.

That's a common mistake alot of fall hunters make...."nOt calling soon enough" after a flush.

Nothing like having yer dog make a flush so far away that you can barely hear him barking....then taking a compass reading or a reading on the sun and heading that direction only to meet your dog and leash him up and let him show you where they were.
Then sitting down and calling in a long beard with'n minutes....the next one might take hours but it pays to quickly call in the close turkeys.

[SOONER]

bigtomscalls
i'm not smart enough to post pictures but here is a link to a web page jon freis made for me on his american wild turkey hunting dog site. http://trkyhntr.home.att.net/morgan.html
the brown and white dog is morgan my shorthair. she is not a real turkey dog but i have most likely killed 100 plus turkeys with her in the last 8 years. she is proof that any dog can be a fall turkey dog if you work with them. the diffence between her and keekee is strictly nose. morgan hunts harder than keekee but will find and break turkeys far less times. she will range 100 to 200 yards where keekee will go as far as her nose takes her. i run a garmon gps on her for this reason. i can actually see a break on the gps even if the wind is howling and i cannot hear her bark. then with the gps you can follow it to the break point. the boys at turkey trot have coined the name computer break for these occasions.

[SS Custom Calls]

Very good info Marlin. Thanks for sharing it..

Al

[Bulldogmikey]

Very good info Marlin. Thanks for sharing it..

Al

Yes Thanks Marlin, That is a good story worth sharing.

Mike

[Porter]

Marlin that is amazing.  I work in the technology field and why not utilize the advancement for the better?  Heck I can't read a compass worth a hoot, but at least my GPS keeps me safe and sound.

I have a dumb question, but how much training does it take to get a dog ready? I was born and raised around coon hunters, so I know the amount of time we spent.  Back then, we lost several dogs that we thought were ready and were not...  GPS back then would have saved a lot of headaches!

[Morgan]

I have worked with Snuffy nearly everyday since I got him April a year ago....you can practice little things while watching TV...like sitting and staying...it has been a lot of fun training him...we got a few kills with him last year..he was 8 months old...I hope to get him polished more this year....it's a new world hunting fall and hunting with a dog....

Mr. Marlin....I sure like the name of that dog....

[Dcoleinpa]

hey morgan does snuffy get to wear his own tie???

[BigTomsCalls]

Thanks Marlin that was a very interesting read. I have a mutt that I picked up from my Daughter in TN. She loves to chase turkey's, She is a good dog but she doesn't always listen when she is called so I don't hunt with her. We have been working on the obedience thing all summer so I'm eager to try her this fall. I really get excited watching her break up the flocks around the house. When she bust up a flock she gets so excited with her yepping and yapping that it's hard to believe she's the same mild mannered house dog she is!!

Here's a picture of mr dog Princess with a couple of fall hen's that I took last year. As you can see she is very interested in the birds!!

[Bulldogmikey]

Nice Birds, Big Tom. Love that dog also!
Mike

[thundrchikin]

Big Tom great lookin picture.I'm currently training a 9 month old Brittany for turkeys.She shows alot of promise.This will be our first fall hunting together.I am very much excited for opening day!One suggestion I may mention about the problem with your dog  not coming to you is you may want to try a e-collar.Everyone has different opinions about their use but IMO they are a invaluable tool for dog training if used PROPERLY. They are just like a check cord only with more range.Good luck with your hunting and your dog.

[AWTHDA]

My first post, so Hello Everyone! BigTom, if Princess is a real sensitive dog and you want an alternative to a shock collar, boil some chicken liver, chop it up into little pieces, put some in a baggie in your pocket, put her on a long check cord (to pull her in if she doesn't come), praise her and give her a piece each time she comes. Do that enough times until she comes without the cord on. Always let her know you have chicken liver (or whatever treats) in your pocket, and she'll really pay attention to you calling her.
I enjoy reading forums like Osage, where hunters share good tips on fall turkey dog hunting in particular, but the main reason I signed up is to ask Big Tom to post more pictures of Princess? She looks just like the 'poster dog' for the AWTHDA - my dog Keena (except for the long tail). You can see Keena here: http://trkyhntr.home.att.net/keena.html
Princess looks a little thinner, but Keena inherited her Daddy's stockiness, instead of her Mom's slimness. How old is Princess, and what state are you in? Jon