Bluestem Kennels

Breeding Season Update

According to my calculations and based on physical changes, I suspect that BB should come into heat within the next month or so.  We are also keeping an eye on Velma over at Aaron’s house.  I am going to hold off on taking any additional deposits/reservations at this time, but will keep you posted if things change.

Fire’s Trial

Fire chased a deer into the neighbor’s property the morning of the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.  There was no yelp, crying, blood, or change in behavior immediately.  About 6 PM in the evening, she had her tail between her legs and was snuggling up to me funny as I was watching the news on the living room couch.  I started checking her over and there was a huge tear about 4 inches long and two inches wide on the right side of her abdomen.  It was a skin tear only, luckily no muscles or arteries were punctured.  I immediately loaded her up for the 24 hour emergency vet clinic across town.  An hour later they had her stitched up with drain tubes in each end of the tear.

Fire at the emergency vet

We treated it with oral antibiotics and I cleaned the wound area with hydrogen peroxide 2-4 times per day.  A week after the procedure, the drain tubes were removed, then the stitches were removed on Monday.  As you can see based on the condition of the cone in the photo below, she became used to it quickly and learned to use it as a weapon.  We were rammed in the calves multiple times per day with it and she almost pushed me down the stairs with it a couple of times.

Fire getting ready to have her cone removed.

After it happened, we thought it would be the end of Fire’s hunting season for sure.  We will evaluate the situation when we get to Valentine, but since the cover on the dunes is not thick like it is down here, I think she’ll be fine to join us looking for grouse around Christmas.  Charles saw good numbers while he was hunting deer in November.  If we don’t get any at Christmas, it will be our first hunting season ever without bagging any sharptailed grouse.  Let’s hope that it doesn’t happen!

Fire taking it easy after having her stitches removed.

Thanksgiving Pheasants

Charles, his friend Matt, and our son Conrad managed to get out for some pheasants the weekend after Thanksgiving.  I stayed home to get stuff done around the house and work on the AWPGA magazine.  Matt and Charles each brought home two roosters from public land in southeastern Nebraska.

10 year-old Conrad and the Thanksgiving roosters.

AWPGA Membership

It is that time of year for members to renew their membership and we’d love new members who hunt with griffs!  Charles and I are on the field committee, which is working promote more hunting and hunt testing within the breed.  Then once you are a member, you can also consider attending the National Specialty and related events in Des Moines, Iowa on September 3-7, 2015.  The membership application is now available online: http://awpga.com/membership

Pupdates

Matt and Josie up in South Dakota have been chasing roosters too, and have also been practicing having her swim in the Missouri River.  Josie is from our 2014 “H” Litter between Sam and Mae.

Josie along the Missouri

Josie on the lookout

Josie out in the frost

I think I should hit up the North Dakota Department of Tourism for sponsorship with as many great photos I’m getting out of there.  Just kidding.  It is a great place to send pups home to, plus we love to hunt up there ourselves!

Josie’s brother, Duncan, is at it again with Ernie and his gang.

Ernie and Duncan with another mess of roosters.

Ernie also put together another fun video of pheasant hunting for us all to be jealous of:

In other news of North Dakota, Susan, TracHer and the gang are still knocking them down.  TracHer is from our “C” Litter in 2012 from Sam and Mae.

Another cool pic, TracHer is up with Tom on the top step.

TracHer retrieving a rooster in the snow.

Zoey down in Oklahoma has been helping Jimmy with the harvest down there.  She is from our 2013 “E” Litter between Sam and Sue.

Zoey up on the tractor.

I’m not quite sure why my pictures are so small this week, they made some changes to WordPress that I’m still working out.  Charles is down in Texas for the rest of the week for work, so I’m going to try and get out on my own tomorrow to do some hunting.  I’d like to jump a pond that we have access to along the Missouri River, then make my way down south a bit to chase some pheasants.

I have done nothing for Christmas yet (and a part of me wishes I could boycott it altogether).  Tradition is a force to be reckoned with, and I’m looking forward to seeing my family back home in a couple of weeks.  And then of course, there’s that last shot at grouse for the year…

I’ll check back in before the holiday and let you know how my hunt went.