I figured it was now or never to get Willie back out to see if he still had what it takes to duck hunt. Hopefully he would remember what this game was about after almost four years off. He wasn't exactly a seasoned duck hunting dog when we moved to New Mexico, but maybe all of his training will come back, I thought this morning. I had worked with him a little throughout the year but was unsure what specifically to concentrate on since I hadn't identified his weaknesses yet. Since this was going to be a short hunt I thought this would be a good hunt to get him back out, especially since Riley was along and could help me work with him. She digs that kind of stuff.
We got to Finley at 3:50. Eric and I hurried to put out our decoys. This is a popular spot. Willie went with us to the water's edge. He was excited and hyper. Initially, he acted as though he had not had any type of obedience training.While we were throwing decoys into the water, Willie jumped in the water and swam around for a bit. As he swam back to shore, he brought decoys back with him. The cords were wrapped around his legs. "Not a good start," I thought to myself. After a little swimming and a few corrections, he settled down a little. We went back to the truck for a little nap before the hunt. Riley and Justus were already asleep by the time Willie and I got back.
6:45 rolled around and we headed back out to the blind. As I went out to the flapper to get my lantern, birds flew overhead wanting into the decoys. A year ago, I might have been surprised at something like this or even gotten somewhat excited. Now, this type of close encounter has become the norm. Since it had been a couple of years since Willie had been around 12 gauge shotguns firing off their payload, I had Riley sit with him about 30 yards from where we were hunting. The plan was to work him in slowly as we shot at birds. It took quite a while to get some birds to shoot at. Ducks would come by for a look at our spread, but kept going. On top of a big yellow dog moving around, we were competing with a raft of about 2000-3000 ducks in the water just downriver from us. We finally got seven geese that Eric called close enough for a shot. Eric and I emptied our guns. To our amazement, NOTHING fell. Not even a feather. Eric and I managed to miss a substantial group of big birds that apparently had a death wish. Poor Justus didn't even get a shot off. His hands were so cold that he couldn't cycle the safety off.
I moved Willie and Riley closer to us. Now he was about 15 yards away. Eric and I worked some more birds in for a shot. Three mallards to be exact. A bunch more shots were fired, and nothing fell. Another single bird flew over and more shots with no dead bird. At this point, Willie was beginning to get out of control. He was getting hard for Riley to handle. His whining and nonstop moving, I feared, would soon be heard by any ducks that we were trying to fool. I sat him down right next to me. He sat there for about 15 minutes before I had enough of him trying to climb into my lap. How the heck could I hunt with a 90 lb lab in my lap? Riley looked cold, so I asked her if she wanted to go back to the truck and take Willie. With very little hesitation, she accepted the offer. By 8:30, Riley was back at the truck with the dog.
Justus and I sat for another 1/2 hour before we had to leave. No other birds came close enough for a shot so we went home empty handed. I did learn, however, that Willie has lost the vast majority of the training I had worked so hard to instill in him when he was a puppy. He plays a great game of fetch at the house and still loves the smell of ducks, but he is no longer a duck hunting dog. I was very disappointed in him today. More than that, I was (and am) disappointed in myself. I am disappointed in not maintaining his training while we lived in New Mexico, Idaho and out first year in Washington. At six years old, I'm not sure that I could bring Willie back to his prime. I honestly don't think I can even bring him back close to what he was. I can't fault him. I suppose his state today is 100% my fault. He is still a great dog, just not a great dog for duck hunting.
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