# A brain the size of a pea?



## nemitz (Oct 18, 2005)

My eleven year old son was calling me and my hunting partner Wiley Coyote today. He says that we are always after waterfowl but we never get any and we may as well stamp Acme on all of our equipment. Here is the problem, we started hunting birds 3 years ago and most of the info about how to hunt properley we have learned from the internet (mainly this site).
Some times things work out for us and its our shooting that affects our take of birds but more often than not the birds will flare or not look at us at all. 
We seem to do better after it snows and we lay on the ground in white coveralls so I don't think it is our decoys. We live in Saskatchewan with very little hunting pressure at least from some of the stories I read on this forum and there is a pile of Canadas, Snows and Mallards in our area.
What are some of the things that you guys do to get them landing feet down. Any help would be appreciated so that I can tell my smart azz kid that I can outwit something with a brain the size of a pea.
P.S. He and the other kids in our families (hunting partners) come with us as well so I cant even lie and tell him we had a good day.


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## Leo Porcello (Jul 10, 2003)

If you live where you live and are having a hard time :lol:

Anyway just oke: ya.

Give more info:

Decoys used, blinds, camo, decoy placement, calls... Maybe take some pictures of your spread. If your hunting fields up there that the birds are using then you must be doing something drastically wrong.


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## TANATA (Oct 31, 2003)

Buy some blinds would be the first step. $200 is cheap when you're not shooting birds.


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## Dave Owens (Nov 11, 2002)

First thing is would the birds be in the field if you were not? Next set up your spread but move a way several hundred yards and see if they buy it or not. If they buy it then it is not decoys or the placement. Our best hunts are where we hind in rock piles or natural cover. When the wind blows the grass and weeds everything moves making finding you much harder for the birds.


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## jgat (Oct 27, 2006)

Do you have any friends or co-workers up there who you would consider knowledgeable goose hunters? Maybe try to hook up for a hunt or two with some people who have been at the game for a while and can give you some tips. The most important thing is to just get out in the field and try new things, and learn from your mistakes until you start to get birds to work you consistantly. Do you have a dog that moves around on the ground? Are you very well concealed? I think the biggest two principles of goose hunting, or any hunting really are concealment and location. After that, there are a lot of things that are important, but most of them are meaningless unless you have your first two bases covered. Good luck up there and just have fun!


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## mnbirdhunter (Sep 15, 2005)

Just make sure you are exactly where the birds want to be. Also one of the most important things is concealment. Take the extra time and make yourself invisible in the field and you should be able to pull the birds in without too much of a problem.


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## dfisher (Oct 12, 2007)

_*It sounds as if the birds are seeing you. I know when they see me in their feeding area, they don't like it one bit! :lol:

I would invest in a blind of some sort. It's hard to hide from the suckers when lying on the ground. They can see like you wouldn't believe and just about any movement is spotted. Add the inpatience of youth to the mix and chances are good that they will spot something amiss. There are youth model layout blinds available too.

I'd also read a lot of the articles on here. They are very good and obviously written by experienced hunters. Read, read, read, and like someone else said, talk to everyone you can. Most of all, stay after'em. The birds are the best teachers and the final judges' of your set-up. Stick with it long enough and pretty soon things will start to come together.
Good luck and good hunting,
Dan *_


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## nutmeg honkers (Dec 21, 2003)

I would agree with the other posts, if they seem to be in close and flaring, its almost surely concealment. I agree with going to the blinds, but if $ is a problem, you should be able to work on keeing everyone still for no cost. And look for set ups where you can get into better cover like field edges or ditches, etc.

If you're watching them fly by all day long a mile away, its your location and its time to work on the scouting. As far as decoys, IMO I would think its pretty hard to truly flare geese up there with decoy placement. If your decoy placement is wrong, they might not land exactly where you want, but you can work on that. If they're consistently working your spread and circling but don't quite close the deal time after time, you might need some decoy upgrades, but make sure the other issues are squared away before you think about running out and buying new decoys.

Most important - stick with it. These forums are great for nw guys starting out and experienced hunters getting better, but I can't picture anyone becoming good at this game without paying their dues in the field.

And finally, as far as that old "brain the size of a pea/walnut" argument - that may be true, but that little brain spends every waking moment focused on staying alive. Those geese aren't burning up brain power contemplating life.


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## dfisher (Oct 12, 2007)

_*nutmeg honkers...great reply.
good hunting,
Dan*_


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## Ima870man (Oct 29, 2003)

I guess the best way is to have Leo and I come up there, and we will show you how to do it first hand. 8) Do not ever be scared to ask questions. Seek and you shall receive! Lots of good advice and answers else where too. Look and listen more is the best advice I can tell you. Oh, and keep it simple.

Thanks

Ima870man :beer:


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## woodpecker (Mar 2, 2005)

xxxxxxxxxx


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## SDwaterfowler (Mar 2, 2006)

I just got back from a week long trip up there. Some beautiful country you have and the people are so nice. The one thing that made hunting tuff up there is your fields. All of your fields are next to impossible to hide in. People here in the states have no clue until they have hunted up there and seen the fields you have. It seems the birds really love those pea fields and also like those grain stubble fields with only 2" high stubble. Almost every hunt we did up there we resorted to our Power Hunter blinds. I absolutely hate these blinds but they serve their purpose when you need to get a really low profile. We also dug our blinds down into the ground 4-6 inches. This really helps reduce the profile and the shadows. Not knowing you or your setup, but being familiar with the land up there and the birds, I can almost guarantee they are busting your hide. Next time you go out, dig in! Even if you don't use a blind, dig in and then cover yourself in stubble or lay some burlap over you and cover it with stubble from the field. Report back to us and let us know how it goes.


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## nemitz (Oct 18, 2005)

Wow thats an overwhelming pile of responses.

First of all. We are using 48 shells in good shape but by no means new as well as 1 dz. Final approach full bodies 2 with motion stakes however more than half of them are sentries. We set them up in a U or J pattern with the bottom of the U or J into the wind.

As far as blinds are concerned we have an Eliminator express as well as a stealth by Goosechair. We still haven't figured out where exactly to put the blinds and our kids are behind us under farmland gold burlap. We don't have any calls yet however we do have a flag that we do not have a bloody clue on how to use.

We are wondering if we could borrow a Democrat to practice on during the off season as our Liberals never come to this area of Canada.  
We Have no dogs that move around in the field just the kids and they are pretty good considering their ages.

Thanks guys for all of the info you have provided this far and I look forward to some more responses.


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## maple lake duck slayer (Sep 25, 2003)

If you are not on the "X", getting a call would really help. Even if you are in a field that a pile of birds has been using, it is nice to add in a few clucks and moans for confidence.

I usually only flag when birds are more than 200-300 yards out to get their attention. Also when they are making the "loop" on the outside of your spread. But every day can be different.


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## woodpecker (Mar 2, 2005)

xxxxxxxxxxx


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## huntingdude16 (Jul 17, 2007)

> You can "Borrow" them all!!!!!!


 :eyeroll: uke:


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## USAlx50 (Nov 30, 2004)

woodpecker said:


> nemitz said:
> 
> 
> > We are wondering if we could borrow a Democrat to practice on during the off season as our Liberals never come to this area of Canada.
> ...


 :withstupid: :beer:


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

PM me.


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## goosebusters (Jan 12, 2006)

huntingdude16 said:


> > You can "Borrow" them all!!!!!!
> 
> 
> :eyeroll: uke:


Do you disagree with that statement? Because a democratic hunter is like a gay republican you're only hurting yourself.


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