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Hunting News Latest Hunting News Last-minute Layout Duck Hunt | Last-minute Layout Duck Hunt |
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| Written by Craig Nyhus | |
| Monday, 19 November 2007 | |
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 David Carroum and his golden retriever, Emma, scan the sky for approaching ducks. Photo by David J. Sams “The lease I usually hunt is in Oklahoma,” he said. “I wasn’t going there this weekend, but I just couldn’t take not going out at all.” Carroum, prefers working Emma, his golden retriever, to shooting birds, called some friends and learned they would be hunting a small Ellis County “secret” pond from layout blinds. He asked if they had an extra blind, saying, “Mine is in Oklahoma.” The friends complied. .
Saturday morning, Carroum and Emma got an early start. “I set my sport watch because the big alarm would wake up my wife,” he said. “It went off – I got ready and Emma and I got in the truck at 4:30. After getting on the road, I looked at the clock on the truck – it said 3:35. I hadn’t set the watch back.”  Photo by David J. Sams The three hunters met, drove to the two-acre secret pond, and set the decoys. The layout blinds were placed in the calf-high grass and were nearly invisible. But come shooting time, the birds were landing in the middle of the pond just beyond shotgun range, although a few gadwall ventured a little too close. Emma swam in circles while one wounded bird was diving repeatedly, but after a short workout, brought the gadwall to Carroum’s hand. “Let’s adjust the spread some,” one of the hunters said. After the adjustment, the birds came to the decoys in the stiff south breeze. A group of teal came out of nowhere and two drakes were dropped. Two widgeon followed and Carroum took one while one of the friends took the other. Several more small groups of teal, widgeon and gadwall worked nicely into the spread. One friend reached his five-bird limit by 8:30, and the second limit came at 9:00 when the other friend, while getting a cellphone hunting report from a friend, shot a drake widgeon passing overhead. The friends were grateful for Emma’s perfect retrieves, and for Carroum’s lack of desire to shoot.
 Emma follows Carroums’s commands and shows her retrieving skills. Photo by David J. Sams  Photo by David J. Sams
 Photo by David J. Sams  Photo by David J. Sams |
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| Last Updated ( Tuesday, 20 November 2007 ) |
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