Anyone going to be targeting doves on the opener? I have yet to hunt them. Think it would be a great time for the dog. Anyone going out in the Quinte area?
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Anyone going to be targeting doves on the opener? I have yet to hunt them. Think it would be a great time for the dog. Anyone going out in the Quinte area?
Just curious, what lead you to make this posting under Upland game as opposed to Waterfowl? If you have a good reason maybe you could share it with the Canadian Wildlife Service, there position on using non-toxic shot to harvest these birds here in Ontario, suggest they view them more as waterfowl than upland game birds. If you think this is strange, when these birds are hunt in British Columbia the same Canadian Wildlife Service takes the view they can be hunted with lead shot, which suggest they view them as upland game birds not waterfowl. So maybe if you had a good reason for what you did, you might be able to share it with them, either that or recommend them to a good therapist, there is something seemingly not quite right about them, in view of the duplicity, that they appear to be exhibiting.
You don't stop hunting because you grow old. You grow old because because you stop hunting.
- Gun Not
Hey Cass it took exactly one post to hijack your thread lolQuote:
Originally Posted by Cass
I have never hunted them, Looks like fun and apparently delicious
I assume most dove hunting is done on private land and I have no access. I'd love to hear how you do
I'd probably post about doves in the upland forum too, rather than the waterfowl. Technically they are regulated as "migratory" not "waterfowl". I'm not hunting them opener but might get out for a day or two if I head south. Good luck.
Woodcock are also migratory and a migratory bird license is needed but they can be hunted with lead shot. Many laws that deal with wildlife and the environment have no logical science behind them only politics.
Back on topic, I hear doves are actually quite tasty but in this heat make sure you get them chilled quickly. Good luck.
Are you crazy or something?... What a weird rant. Tell us what's on your mind elsewhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gun Nut
Well at least he posts his mental state clearly in his username
ha im likely going out to target them tonight with a friend. he was out this mornig though and didn't see anything... so im not sure what im going to do.
last year we got a few and they are a great tasting little bird and easy to clean. hard to shoot though. I got one my first shot, and than it took me a while to get any more.
good luck and stay safe!!
Maybe because others have and will in the future.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gun Nut
I got one last year, shot it along with a bunch of pigeons on a farm we had setup for geese as well.
The dove was dry but delicious.
I got lucky, no dog but a cut field and a dumb dove, an easy shot and a simple pickup for myself.
It's pretty obvious what is on my mind, when I'm out hunting upland game birds, and the dove is an upland game bird, i see no reason for being saddle with an obligation to use non-toxic shoot, when i'm carrying lead shot for other upland game birds, including the woodcock which is migratory game bird like the dove. The argument that there is to much lead in Ontario's environment, that we need to limit its use when it comes to shooting doves, makes about as much scene as having a screen hatch-cover on a submarine. This is the Canadian Wildlife Service, it should impose the same condition equally across the nation. It is not clear why British Columbia should be treated any different than Ontario, by a federal/national service. None the less they get to use lead shot on doves. What is good for one provinces should be good for all.Quote:
Originally Posted by cleveland
You don't stop hunting because you grow old. You grow old because you stop hunting.
-Gun Nut
once upon a time, the people who made the rules regulating hunting were either hunters or at the very least honestly consulted the hunting community.
for sure that's not the case now! and the more you look at some of our rules, the more you will ask yourself if we even missed that magic time in Ontario all together.
So rather than constantly complaining because that is very easy to do. Instead become part of the solution you so badly speak of, start a petition to the CWS, write some proposals and spend your time and energy in a much more constructive way? You seem to continually post somewhat negative comments which seem pointless and counterproductive to me. Why not get involved in making change? If you already are then my apologies:)Quote:
Originally Posted by Gun Nut
I don't believe you could efficiently "target" them in my area. I log a lot of miles at work in the area bordered by Hwy 29 to the 416 and the 401 to the 417. I only ever see them in ones twos and threes on the gravel shoulder or on the roadside hydro line, never seen a flock. In this area I believe they will only be an incidental harvest.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cass
This is how I feel. They're all city dwellers or pairs on hydro lines.Quote:
Originally Posted by swampsinger
Lol its funny they only become city dwellers once the season opens. They were pretty common around the farm the days leading up to the opener. Then on sat I loaded gun and dog and went for a 2 hour search and didn't see on. Not 1 flyer nothing. But on the way home they tauntedQuote:
Originally Posted by Cass
Me along hydro lines and sitting on the roof of my house. They know. They just know.
Lol its funny they only become city dwellers once the season opens. They were pretty common around the farm the days leading up to the opener. Then on sat I loaded gun and dog and went for a 2 hour search and didn't see one. Not 1 flyer nothing. But on the way home they tauntedQuote:
Originally Posted by Cass
Me along hydro lines and sitting on the roof of my house. They know. They just know.
The simple solution is to shoot non-toxic shot for everything. Problem solved.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gun Nut
S.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sinker
You sir....are an agitator....;)
I do this. Have for years now. In my mind I think it's really helped for me to eliminate switching between the different speeds of lead vs. high-speed steel shot.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sinker
I couldn't do it. I have it in my head that I cannot shoot steel as effectively as lead.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sinker
Hunt #1 all shot with non toxic:)
Attachment 30721
so get your self a box or two of steel number 6s and a pattern board and prove your self very capable.happy shooting ,,,,DutchQuote:
Originally Posted by Cass
Very nice.Quote:
Originally Posted by skeeter1
CASS - I have specifically targeted Dove on two hunts so far this year. I hunt them in cut wheat fields. They tend to bunch up in there. Most of the flying/shooting was early morning for me. I think it's a great way to get the dog in the zone and conditioned for the season. They taste fantastic. All I do is fry them in a little butter :)
They actually do "flock" just around sunset as they return to the roost. For the last two years I've done well with them by parking my butt along a flight path that they use every night, around sunset. They are mostly in 1s or 2s but you will get the occasional flock of 10-20 birds all coming in together. It often makes for 20-30 minutes of really intense shooting, then just as they die down the woodcocks come in.Quote:
Originally Posted by swampsinger
Doves aren't something you walk around actively hunting for. You find a flight path between their food source, water source and/or roost and just sit back and wait ... they will come to you. I've had a blast the last few years hunting them. Haven't made it out yet this year but expect to soon.