Milo Meets the Marsh (pic heavy)

[greenheadgunner]

Disclaimer: I have too much time on my hands today. So, since I haven't posted much this season...here ya go.



Some of you have met my pup Milo. I guess he's an adolescent now, at 8 months, but he's still all puppy. Last fall I took him away from his brothers and sisters and introduced him to the sport of waterfowling. Got him from Bob (theJester357) in Dallas. Thought I'd share a few photos and thoughts for you guys with duck dogs.

It was a fantastic duck season...I've certainly shot more birds in seasons past, but it wasn't until this year that I had the pleasure to hunt over my own bird dog. Some of you might call me crazy, but I'd rather watch Milo retrieve a bird or two than shoot a limit without him.

That dog does wonders. He can even make a skunked hunt fun.

So, without further adieu, here's a quick look at how Milo has progressed since we bought him at 8 weeks old. And I must say it's nice to hunt with a Dad who's got a knack for photography. Makes us look better than we really are!


First day home, welcome little buddy!




Not everyone was happy to meet him. In fact, Izzy the cat "rototillered" Milo the first time they met...that is, 20 slaps to the face in under a second. Most impressive thing that cat has ever done.




He never slept alone.




Oh man, he was a real retriever right off the bat!








Never takes his eye off the ball.




I went on a few early season goose hunts and left him home.










But when I returned he got to smell dead geese. Fun stuff!



Soon it was time to test him out in the field...Sauvie pheasant hunt. He wouldn't stay off my heels as we walked through the tall grass. This lead to grass seeds in his eye lids, which made for a quick trip to the vet. Despite the irritation, he still wouldn't get in the car before I tossed him a stick or two.





Next, it was time for his first trip to the marsh.

Unforgettable. Mudhen, opening day, afternoon hunt. He actually swam down a wounded widgeon. I was thrilled. Course, he did chew on corn stalks to stay busy while we waited for birds.




Second hunt, got to retrieve a few more birds. Some I had to wade out and point to.



And I forgot to tell him to watch out for decoy cords.




Other than that, he did pretty well.

Then, we had a few hunts with quite a few birds that hit the water. This is when he began to associate the gun shot with the retrieve. And he brought in his first band.





A mini hunt here and there.








One day we shot 28 green in the snow. In Kansas this day may have registered as an F2 tornado of ducks. That was fun, although Milo was shown "how it's done" by a very experienced Phoenix.










We finished out with several hunts in "good" locations with less than good results. But, hey, Milo learned to sit on logs and trees for periods of time. He has room to improve in his field retrieves, but his water retrieves are pretty flawless. That dog lives to swim.

And he doesn't chew on corn in the blind as much now. Instead his eyes are glued to the sky and its exciting to watch him follow a flock of birds flying above.


























So, yeah, I had a good season. But even better, I got a new best friend and I'll never go back to the dogless days of before.

Shoot, Milo even got to be in this year's Christmas photo! And, yes, as you can see, the cat has still not taken kindly to him.




Until next time...

[thefishslayer]

good lookin pup

[OR_Bo_Huntr]

That is FANTASTIC MAN! Put that in a scrapbook/photo album!

[stlhdr1]

That's one of the better posts I've seen in a while....

Great read and pics!

Keith

[OpeningDay]

great looking pup, keep up the good work!

[cityfisher]

Fantastic post...love hunting with my dog and am always bummed when I can't or didn't take him for whatever reason.

Nice job!

[H2Ofuzz]

Congratulations on a very good looking pup. He already sounds better than a lot of dogs i have hunted with.

[Klamath_King]

That pic of him sleeping with the decoys should be on a card or something.

[Moe]

Great spread! Making me miss all of my old duck dogs.

Thanks for that!

[Chesapeake]

You're in the lead for the "post of the year" award in my mind.

Great looking dog.

[Hunt'nFish]

Now that is just FREAKING AWESOME Seth!
Great photo essay there! And Milo looks simply fantastic.
Yep, a dog changes everything for a hunter.

Oh...and congrats on getting banded.
Hunt'nFish

[Threemuch]

Good stuff! I am a season ahead of you with my dog, and I know exactly the fun you are having. I too would rather kill a couple birds with my dog than a limit without.

Hunting with your own dog is an absolute blast. The only topper I can think of is hunting with your own child.

Thanks for sharing!

[Bow Kill]

Great post!!
I need to find out how to post pictures like that.

[Adjhunt]

AWESOME!

You had some awesome SI hunts! Looks like you hunted just about everywhere I did!

Congrats on the great season, and awesome little pup!!

Thanks so much for taking the time to share!

[Crooked Hook]

Bravo my man on an excellent post. Great display of pictures and I was right there with you on your story. You'll have many more great memories with the pup I'm sure.

[RODACTION]

Good stuff right there

The picture of you with your hand on Milo's neck is great, all the pics are great....thanks for sharing.

[sprigkiller09]

Great post!!! Love all the pics and it looks like there was some great times this year!! Congrats and thanks for sharing

[jnicholson]

That's absolutely the best post I have ever had the pleasure of reading in ifish!

Thanks for taking me through your first year with Milo! I have a great love for labs and watching your chocolate bust his first feathers brings me back to my first year with Bucky in the field!

Congratulations on your new hunting buddy and family member!

You mentioned some things that ring true with me and my buddy.

And the pictures tell it all!!!!!!

Please keep us updated on Milo!


John and Bucky

[Teeb]

The two backlit frames are really cool!

[BrotherWolf]

Nice Looking Pup!

[Lamplighter]

Great portfolio and story...
and congratulations to whoever it was that took those pics.

[Tony270WSM]

Great looking pup!

[steelheadslayer]

Awesome post.......................

I gotta totally agree that hunting with your own dog makes every day great, not just those that fill limits.

[beardbuster]

i liked it!

[sharpshott]

I cant wait till Im in the situation to get a pup! My dog is 14 now and is a little too seasoned to make it out anymore, still has the drive but the joints woint keep up for that long....nothing better that relationship with a dog in the field

[TheJester357]

Seth,

A great post with fantastic pics! Boy does he look like his momma! I'm so glad he went to someone who has taken the time to teach him the skills of hunting. Give me a call next year, I'd love to hunt him and Ruby together! Thanks for the update,

Bob

[nunyet]

Great post...I don't even like to hunt without my dogs.

nunyet

[Nw dukn]

Now that is some awesome pics..

[Quaka Wacka]

Very Nice.

[arkansasbasser]

Best post I've seen in a long time.

[duckboy]

Very Nice to read the Milo Chronicles, I'm looking forward to more stories about this pup in the future.. .

Good Stuff!

[bassin'87]

looks like a fun season congrats! Those sillouetted pictures in the fog are awesome

[wapiteaser]

Totally awesome. It is like adding a kid to your family and it will be your best friend for life. Congrats on your season, your pup, and nice family.

[merrile]

what a dog! Congrats on your new buddy! The things we will do to get those dogs into some birds!

[Birdnut]

Great post and awesome pics. That was a joy to read. Here's to you your pup and many more seasons for the both of you to enjoy together.

[Gunner]

Congrats on a great first season with your new pup, I wish you many, many more to come.
I can tell from your post that Milo has found a great home and family,
and how proud you are of him. He is going to be a stud one day, that I can tell.
Cant wait to see your post's next year and thanks for a great post.
Gunner

[splitshot]

I love it!

[steelfreak]

Very cool post. Thanks for sharing that with us. Great looking dog too.

[redfish89]

Great post!! Thanks for sharing.

[motoxaaron03]

Originally Posted by arkansasbasser

Best post I've seen in a long time.

I couldn't agree more.

That was so cool to see the transition and progress that Milo made.

Very cool.

[Capt. MoMo's]

Great post!

[ommedia]

That takes me back 12 years......

[SImudBogger]

Cool post!

I think i was in front of you last month in the non rez line. My buddy and i were debating on taking johnson 6, we didn't have a boat or dog and took hunt 9 instead. It think you and your dad took johnson.

Getting a dog is part of my 5 year plan for waterfowl hunting

[nevermiss]

Marvelous post! Great story, good family (including Milo, of course) and how cool to see him take on size and education. Reminds me a lot of Leroy, our chocolate we had for 13 fantastic years. That bird came down, you wouldn't see "L" till he came back with it. Your dog seems to have all those characteristics, maybe even more! Loved this posting, and as was said, I may not have seen a better one. Too cool!

[fishinpoor]

And now the circle is complete,it's not truly waterfowl hunting without a dog,more importantly your dog,fantastic photo essay

[Art Vandeley]

Awesome Post! Thanks for sharing.

Mitch

[greenheadgunner]

Hey thank you all for the kind words...glad you can relate and enjoy.

[duck_crazy101]

Originally Posted by Klamath_King

That pic of him sleeping with the decoys should be on a card or something.

sweet pics it is great watching your pup grow up like that my dog is about to turn 2 i loved watching him retreave birds when he was a pup be sure to save those pics

[Eric Strand]

Seth,

Thanks a bunch for sharing your pics! Great looking season and from the pics it looks like Milo has turned into quite the duck dog, I would have to agree with Casey the fog pics are my favorite as well.

[HawkeyeBilt]

Beautiful dog..... Great post!

[salmonslammaer]

Just the greatest i've ever seen...it's just awesome man.
Great pics and just an awesome dog.