"DEAD LEAF"

Down

The Pudelpointer people call K-Lee's color "dead leaf".  It's not really liver, and certainly not golden.  It's not red enough to be called red and not brown enough to be called brown.  "Dead leaf" is a good fit.

It took personal "reprogramming"  to learn to look for certain things when hunting with K-Lee.  Solid patches of her color amongst the trees, and  flashes of movement became  two "triggers" for my eye. Even with those clues, I sometimes lose track of her.  Suffering from hearing loss from exposure to loud noises doesn't help either.

Sometimes I need to "ping" her beeper.  Sort of like "The Hunt For Red October"--"Give me a ping Vasili. ... One ping only."  It's usually then that I realize she did the "ninja thing" and had sneaked up on me from behind.  I think she enjoys doing that.

It's right there boss!

October 20 has come and gone.  Per doctor's orders, we held off hunting until then, and have since been slowly building her stamina.  The other day, we jumped two ducks, pointed three snipe and two woodcock.  Needless to say, it was good to have "Team K-Lee" back in the field.

Tomorrow, we head for the Great North Woods for a few days.  We'll close our camp and visit with friends.  Of course, the daylight hours will be spent searching for grouse and woodcock.

Since being taken off the "sick list", we brought home a couple pheasant , but I've taken to not shooting at an upland bird that wasn't pointed--especially since she has discovered that if she runs through the tall grass, she can put up a running bird!  Being cooped up in a cage for 8 weeks and under house arrest for another 8 weeks has left us both re-learning many things.  That said, while she was in her last weeks of recuperation, we had a chance to practice our yard work.

Hunting with K-Lee these past several days I've been grateful for that.  She walked at heel (off lead) as we sneaked on ducks,  She lies down and takes a break when I do.  Her "nose" is better than ever and things are improving overall..  I'm glad that we spent time doing those things when we were under "house arrest".  Now let's see what the Great North Woods will bring.  Perhaps just a little snow will make "dead leaf" be easier to see!

So uh, What's new?