ADDING A CANINE TO YOUR OCTOBER 8 HUNT CAN BE AS EXCITING AS IT IS REWARD ING 0 BY JIM LEE

he idea ofa has changed slightly BADGERSTATE"BIRD" in Wisconsin in recent years. There are many ways to harvest a fall turkey but bust- I] For example, a mountain might have ing up a flock, waiting briefly,then calling in hopes of been viewed by most Badger State sportsmen asjust a intercepting a straggler as the unit tries to regroup is dog a few seasons back. But now, thanks to considered one ofthe most reliablemethods. sportsmen such as Oneida's Jon Freis and his moun- Any hunter who has ever raced through thick brush tain cur, Keena, that dismissing characterization has and fallen timber in an attempt to get close enough to , changed. a flock of running turkeys to scatter them into the air Part Walkerhound, part Labrador and part will readily appreciate a turkey dog. tri-color rough collie, 4-year-old Keena doesn't look Yet,until the 2007fallseason,hunting turkeyswith a like your typical hunting companion. Yet, while his dog was illegalin Wisconsin - a situation Freistoiled pup's heritage might be a bit confusing, Freisexplained for years to change. His efforts came to fruition a year that this polyglot parentage is exactly what he needed ago when the state Legislature approved a three-year in a . test. Turkey hunting with dogs was allowed in nine "She comes from a breed of Southern dogs used to counties, with the season opening delayeduntil Oct. 1. herd cattle and even hunt black bear or boar;' Fries said. FIRST SEASON But Freis, 56, didn't obtain Keena for any of those Freisopenedthe 2007fallseasonin MonroeCounty. purposes. Freis wanted Keena for a specific task un- He was accompanied by Jeremy Berna, of Pulaski, available to Wisconsin hunters until the fall of 2007 along with Marlin Watkins of Summitville, Ohio, and - to hunt fallturkeys. Gary Evans of Salem, Ohio. And this is a pursuit at which the strange-looking Anticipating the challenge, Freis contacted land- dog excels. owners months in advance to obtain hunting permis- "They saythe recipe for a good turkey dog is a bit of sion. Lab,then add a little and ;' Freis said. "Gaining landowner permission was a lengthy pro- "Youwant the hound for its nose and the ability to cess, especiallywhen you're not from the area;' Freis track, the Lab for its natural interest in birds and the acknowledged. terrier for its . So that when the turkeys flush, the Watkins, a veteran of fall turkey hunting in several

dog will bark and let you know when the birds have states,broughthis ownhuntingpartner ~ Kee-Kee,a flushedand where, becauseyou want to sit down where so-called '~ppalachian turkey dog;' sporting a heritage the flock split up:' that includes Plot hound and .

24 I WISCONSIN OUTDOOR JOURNAL 12008 HUNTING ANNUAL

"This ,dog comes from a line that has some tagged four turkeys. They been bred for 40 years specifically for flushed other flocks but were unable hunting turkeys;' Watkins said. to successfully work the birds. Freis had invited Watkins and Evans "A dog doesn't guarantee you're on the hunt, hoping to benefit from going to get a fall turkey;' Freis said. their dog handling and fall turkey hunt- "But having one along sure can be ing experience. Watkins is also known helpful:' as an excellent turkey caller. The expertise paid off opening day as TRAINING A TURI{EY DOG Berna probably became the first hunter Watkins has been turkey hunting in recent Wisconsin history to legally with dogs for 18 years. He initially take a fall turkey while hunting with converted his German shorthaired dogs. Dogs like Jon Freis' mixed breed named pointer to break turkeys but ultimate- "We scattered the birds about 7:15 Keena are bred specifically to have all of ly obtained a proven breed of "turkey a.m.;' Freis recalled. "Marlin and Gary the favorable attributes for turkey hunting. dog" from John Byrne, a veteran Vir- did a lot of the calling. They used a lot ginia hunter. of yelps and kee- kees:' NO GUARANTEE "I've always hunted with dogs;' Berna killed the first bird about 8:30 The best scatter is a dispersal that Watkins said. "Ducks with labs. a.m. Then, after he picked his bird up, sends birds in all or at least opposite Pheasants, grouse and quail with set- the hunters kept calling. directions. A hunter who sits in the ters and pointers. It's in my blood. "About 15 minutes later I shot a sec- middle ofthe flushing zone might find "When I learned you could use a ond bird;' Freis said. several turkeys coming to his calls. dog to break fall turkeys it was just a "The dog is helpful in scatter- natural move for me to get involved:' FIRST-HANDEXPERIENCE ing turkeys;' Freis said. "Then it's all Watkins said upland game hunters Berna and Freis weren't done, though. about the calling. You need to get the will be tempted - as he was - to uti- Berna had purchased an extra over- right cadence to talk like a hen or talk lize their bird dogs on fall turkey. the-counter tag and I joined the four- like a gobbler. Youneed to know what "Using a retriever or pointing some as an observer the second day of to say and when:' dog to flush turkeys is fine;' he said. their hunt. The five of us spread out near the "Many people do this in other states I arrivedjust asa flockofabout a doz- bottom of the ridge in two groups, where fall turkey hunting with dogs en turkeys was spotted coming out of a about 50 yards apart. is legal:' plot of standing corn. By the time we Watkins and Evans kept up a near- But keep in mind, Watkins cau- readied the dogs, the birds had moved constant patter of yelps, cutts, ,purrs tions, that traditional bird dogs were into an adjacent field of alfalfa,and by and cuts, halting only briefly to listen bred for tasks that did not include the time weapproached within viewing for possible responses from approach- turkey hunt~ng. Retrieving breeds can range the birds had disappeared. ing turkeys. be trained to sit quietly while a turkey Watkins and Freis unleashed their Unlike spring turkey hunting, when hunter calls but remaining motionless dogs, and the disparate pair raced into pursuers listen for the unmistakable, can be difficult for a pointing dog. the field. The dogs immediately picked penetrating blast of a gobbler, fall Both Watkins and Freis recom- up turkey scent, followed the unseen hunters attune themselves to subtler mend dedicated fall turkey hunters trail into the woods and quickly began sounds. Lonely clucks and spare, soft obtain a dog bred to accommodate barking ...then returned to the field. yelps are often the only indication a that purpose specifically. "They've scattered the flock;' Wat- bird is approaching. Many hunters use an open, woods- kins said. "The dogswilllead us back to Yet, within 10 minutes of initiat- colored, small suitcase or "bag" to wherethe turkeys' flushed.Thebirdswill ing calling, we had responses from hold their dog while calling. It cam- attempt to regroup.Let'sseeifwecan get turkeys in three directions. The birds 0uflages the dog and keeps it quiet into position to take advantageof it:' moved toward our location tentative- as turkeys approach. Others might The flock had taken offfrom the top ly and unseen. cover the dog with camouflage fabric of a timbered ridge, a fact that worried Eventually a pair of jakes silently or place the dog in a position where it Watkins. appeared within shotgun range of is partially hidden. The key is training "This is the worst terrain in which to Berna and he quickly had a tag on his the dog to sit still. scatter a flock of turkeys and hope to second turkey of the season. "Kee-kee was 8 weeks old when I call them in;' he explained. "When the Continued calling nearly succeed- brought her home;' Watkins said. "I birds take offfrom a ridge top and sail ed in bringing a bird to Evans' gun trained her to lay in a bag by holding over a ravine or valley,they can seeeach but the turkey turned back just as it her and petting her each evening in a other in the air and often adjust their was about to step within range. bag on the couch. flights so they land close together:' In four days of hunting, the four- "I worked her with turkey wings

26 I WISCONSIN OUTDOOR JOURNAL 12008 HUNTING ANNUAL and let her chase any bird we saw from a mouth call to a paddle call. get in October. It is the most oppor- - geese, crows, pheasants and, of "The trumpet seems to be at its tune time to expect a response and course, turkeys, when the poults were best when leaves are off the trees;' he to develop vocal interaction between big enough to flywell:' added. "In winter, I'll take a trumpet turkey and hunter. As a Kee-kee had to be over all calls:' A dog makes that first step - find- shown turkeys to break them. Watkins likes to start out loud and ing and flushing turkeys - easier and "The second year she still did not go soft as the birds near. more likely to occur. Yet, just as in hunt as well as I liked and we had to "However, on windy days I've killed spring, the arrival of a turkey within get within smelling distance of birds many turkeys calling loud right to the shotgun or bow range is never as- for her to go and break turkeys. This gun;' he said. sured. Variables abound that might year (the third year) she hunts on her "When birds have been harassed by influence the situation. own and finds birds we would not man or predators, they call less and However, when pursuit is success- know were in the area:' softer. They generally call softer if you ful, there is no more satisfying turkey break them late in the day and they hunt or prouder pair than hunter and FALLCALLS call softer or not at all if you break his turkey dog. Calling isn't any different than after a them in very heavy cover:' Unfortunately, there are no short- traditional human-induced scatter. Gobblers demand less calling. Even cuts in the training of a turkey dog. Watkins utilizes a variety of devic- one cluck and a couple gobbler yelps "My advice to a hunter is not to es, including a paddle box call, mouth every 15 minutes can be too much. attempt training a dog unless you yelper, slate and a trumpet call similar 'Tve had gobblers gobble 200 to 300 are committed to it;' Watkins said. to a wingbone yelper. times in the course of three hours, but "Training a dog is a lot of work. "I run through them and see what for the most part, less is better;' Wat- "Contrary to this, if someone is I get the best response on;' he said. kins said. dedicated and puts in the work, it is "What I have found is that you can the most enjoyable turkey hunting call for 30 minutes with one call and HELPERANDCOMPANION they can expect:' WOJ the very first note out of a different Calling to dispersed turkeys after a call gets a response:' fall flock is broken up is as close to Jim Lee is wars Central Region This is especially true when going spring turkey hunting as a hunter can field editor.

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2008 HUNTING ANNUAL I WISCONSIN OUTDOOR JOURNAL 127 -~-~