{"id":3658,"date":"2024-09-17T06:27:57","date_gmt":"2024-09-17T11:27:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/?p=3658"},"modified":"2024-09-17T06:59:22","modified_gmt":"2024-09-17T11:59:22","slug":"waterfowl-scouting-dog-guy-wdnr-warden-ben-mott-offers-tips-for-you-to-be-successful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/waterfowl-scouting-dog-guy-wdnr-warden-ben-mott-offers-tips-for-you-to-be-successful\/","title":{"rendered":"Waterfowl Scouting: \u2018Dog guy\u2019 WDNR Warden Ben Mott offers tips for you to be successful!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Warden<\/a>
Warden Ben Mott<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Photos and column by WDNR Conservation Warden Ben Mott<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, the spring has come and gone. Nest boxes have been checked and, hopefully, successful. Now, we are in it \u2013 summertime.<\/p>\n

Beaches, boats, fishing, and maybe a little trap shooting have been taking up our time. In the dog days of summer what else is there to do?<\/p>\n

I can think of two things \u2013 dogs and scouting.<\/p>\n

What would a dog-guy do if he didn\u2019t at least throw out a subtle reminder there isn\u2019t much time left before the season starts to get your dog (AND YOU<\/em>) in shape and ready with those retrieving skills.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s an important reminder:<\/p>\n

These skill drills are for both you and your dogs! Know your dog\u2019s limits, take it slow, watch the weather (know the signs of heat exhaustion), and work consistently. Water work is a great way to keep cool and to get some work in for the upcoming season<\/p>\n

\"Dog<\/a>
Warden Ben Mott\u2019s Toller, Pike, on a duck hunt in a flooded corn field.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now on to the task at hand: Scouting<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is hard to successfully hunt waterfowl if you don\u2019t know where they are. What better thing to do when it\u2019s too hot to do anything else than to go for a drive, boat ride, or canoe paddle to check out some waterfowl territory.<\/p>\n

Where to start? Go old and remember: PERMISSION!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Go to old spots \u2013 start there and expand out. Check aerial photos and county GIS sites for landowner information. Remember: permission, permission, permission<\/strong> \u2013 a name and a hard copy or electronic phone book is a must.<\/p>\n

The birds are getting big enough they are starting to fly. You\u2019ll need to get up early and find roost sites now, so you know where to come back to as the season gets closer.<\/p>\n

Knowing where birds roost will allow you to follow the flock even as their field or food sources change.<\/p>\n

\"Dog<\/a>
Warden Ben Mott, son Jake and Grizzly watch the scene for movement!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So much water makes scouting for new spots even more important<\/strong><\/p>\n

Water, water everywhere \u2013 we have so much water in most of the state at this point in the year that scouting is going to be more important than ever. There are so many places for ducks to go that our typical spots may not be their \u201cgo to\u201d locations anymore.<\/p>\n

What does that mean for us?<\/p>\n

We need to put a little more work into finding the new places the ducks want to be. \u00a0It may mean changing up tactics, getting permission on properties we never thought we would need to hunt. It means getting out and putting on the miles before the season starts.<\/p>\n

Watch those birds \u2013 did they go down in a creek on the back of the cornfield, or did they go into a newly created pond in the middle of the field due to high water? Sometimes you just have to walk through a 40-acre corn field to find out! Wait, did those wood ducks just drop into the middle of the woods over there? There hasn\u2019t been water in there ever \u2013 until this year? I guess there is only one way to find out \u2013 get permission and go for a hike!<\/p>\n

Stay safe as you prep<\/strong><\/p>\n

As always ,when you are out and about don\u2019t forget boat safety, PFD\u2019s, lights and everything else for safe navigation. Pre-season scouting trips are also a great way to make sure your equipment is ready to go. Nothing puts a damper on opening morning more than the boat not starting while there are four other boats waiting for you to launch!<\/p>\n

There are so many things to see as the world wakes up each day, so get out there and enjoy a sunrise, a cup of coffee, and watch a few ducks or geese flying around. The work now could make your opening day!<\/p>\n

If you have information regarding natural resource violations, you may confidentially report by calling or texting:<\/em> VIOLATION HOTLINE: 1-800-TIP-WDNR or 1-800-847-9367.<\/strong> The hotline is in operation<\/em> 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.<\/strong> Trained staff relay information to conservation wardens.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photos and column by WDNR Conservation Warden Ben Mott Well, the spring has come and gone. Nest boxes have been checked and, hopefully, successful. Now, we are in it \u2013 summertime. Beaches, boats, fishing, and maybe a little trap shooting have been taking up our time. In the dog days of summer what else is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3661,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3658","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-words-from-the-wardens"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3658"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3658\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3662,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3658\/revisions\/3662"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atomiccoffee.com\/WWA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}