Badlands Upland Game Vest Review

The Wirehaired Pointing Griffon is a working hunter's dog and Broken Bow Kennels is a working kennel.  It sounds mighty stuffy, but the great thing is, our work is PLAY!  Special occasions involve trips to secret hunting fields and wish lists are filled with gear.  I'm no different.  This pack was a birthday gift and it has been on every upland outing since.


Badlands Upland Game Vest

The manufacturer's description covers the features, I've got the insight.  As an upland pack, it's a little small for pheasant.  Two birds about maxes it out.  For the hiking hunter looking for grouse, it's fantastic.  If you're walking the prairie looking for Sharpies or Huns, it makes a days worth of gear easy to bear.  And if you're short on common sense and have the Chukar addiction, it's worth every ounce!

The fit across the shoulders and back distribute weight well, without adding bulk.  This is very advantageous when trying to shoulder a gun while standing on a cliff face watching the Devil's own songbirds screaming away.  It holds close to the body without a lot of shifting and flop.

If you're shooting a 20 gauge or smaller, the side pouches are big enough for a full box each without popping the magnets, which are awesome, by the way.  They allow for a quick reload, but are surprisingly secure.  12s are just a little bulky.  I never used the dump pouch, but this could be a solution.

Space gets to be an issue if you start shedding layers.  As the weather cools off, finding a place for a jacket becomes tricky.  Especially with a pack full of birds!

As a whole, the pack is great!  It is my go to on any walking hunt.  It also meets most states requirement for square inches of orange.

That's it.  That's the quick and dirty.

Is It My Turn Yet?

While working with another pair of dogs, Shai was put up and told not to leave the truck. Well, she's nothing if not obedient, so she stayed with the truck. She just creeped as close to the fun end as she possibly could.

There are a few things about working with a great dog that truly make great memories.  Every time I see muddy paw prints on the hood, I'm reminded of those good times.

Had a great morning out with my hunting buddy. Even managed to bring a Ruffy home.

Playing Catch Up at Broken Bow Kennels

Being a hunting kennel means the time needed to keep up on a blog is eaten up by the good stuff!  It has been a busy, busy season with hunts and travel covering Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and Utah.  All the while scoping out the next valley to hunt or the perfect spot for a duck blind.  This is the quick and dirty of our season up until today.

Some very early season Chukars.  We even managed a double hit and double retrieve!!

 Just the opposite.  This lonely Drake was shot on a crystal clear, sub-zero morning.  Shai's beard and brows were frozen solid, but she still whimpered and whined after I put her away to retrieve the blind. 

 Gavin was so proud to be a part of this Dusky Grouse hunt.

 Caught a quick shot of Shai pointing a Meadow Lark.

 Glamour shot from our Salmon trip.

 In pouring rain is a tough way to sniff out the birds, but Shai managed a long-tail and a pair of huns.

Natural Ability

We've always known that Shai was a bright puppy.  She has been eager and a quick learner from the beginning.  Getting out and finding birds wasn't really a problem.  But I'm just me and there are others who know far more than I do.  So how does Shai stack up against the expectations of NAVHDA?  Well, let's just see...

First of all, a day of field testing includes and incredible amount of waiting.

But once things start, it's pretty exciting.  Shai didn't know what was going on.  She was just happy for another day in the field.  I, on the other hand, was a wreck!  And the pressure wasn't even on me.  She was the one that had to put in the work.  So we started with the field phase.  Five chukars were planted throughout a 200 acre field and the clock was set at 20 minutes.  Points must be definitive and produce a bird.  The dog is judged on use of nose, cooperation, quality of search, pointing, desire to work and gun shyness.  And off we go...

 Shai's first point was so fast I almost pushed her off it and told her to move on, but I let the dog work.  And work she did!  Here is point 1:

 Here is point 3:

 And point 4:



Next is the water phase.  I never worried about getting Shai in the water.  She can't get enough of it.  During this phase the dog is also evaluated for confirmation.  As expected, good teeth, medium length/medium harsh coat, straight back and beautiful yellow eyes!

 

Then the track.  Oh the track!  I worried most about the track.  I knew Shai loved to hunt, but for the track the dog is expected to "shift gears", put her nose to the ground and track a running pheasant, not just go back to hunting the field.  So I walked to the line, calmed the dog and...

...as soon as I gave her the command to track, she put her nose to the ground and didn't pick it up until she was trotting back with a pheasant!!

 

So, after this long day what do we have to show?  Well, Shai earned herself a Prize 1 and a perfect score of 112 points!!!  That is our amazing pup!

To the Point

With spring well on its way, we had one last chance to get out this season (March, at a local club) before things wrapped up.  And I finally remembered to bring the camera along to catch Shai pointing another rooster. 

GOOD GIRL!!!!

A Rocky Start

My entire youth was spent training dogs.  Everything from training Guide Dogs for the Blind to rescuing greyhound racers to teaching puppy obedience classes.  I was a dog person through and through.  My lovely wife, however, not so much.  Her family had a dog once.  And she hated it.  So, for the first ten years of our marriage I would ask, she would say no and I would keep waiting for the day when a dog was allowed back on the premises. 

The change of heart came when I introduced her to the Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, or Griff.  A shaggy bathroom rug that could spend hours a day in the field with me and ALSO be content to curl up at her feet in the evening without bouncing off every wall waiting for the next hunt.

After a long, hard search, we found our Shai at Windmill Kennels in Burley, Idaho.  We knew what we were looking for and what we found was a breeder dedicated to producing quality dogs.  And  we weren't disappointed.  Our pup was bright, enthusiastic and possessed a natural ability that, to this day, hasn't disappointed.

That was the beginning of Broken Bow Kennels.