#361 | Bird Dog Puppy Progress: Grouse Woods and Prairie Sharptails

Bird dog puppy progress can be easier to recognize looking back than it is in the moment. In this solo episode, Nick Larson catches up on the grouse season and recaps a South Dakota sharptail hunt with Hazel and Rose.

Back in the woods, six-month-old Hazel gets her first woodcock and begins showing more caution around grouse. Nick talks through the cover he explored, the birds he found and the check-ins that are helping him build confidence in her. A final walk produces the kind of puppy work that makes a day, even without a shot.

On the prairie, fog and heat shape the hunting, Rose brings the experience of a six-year-old dog, and Nick encounters his first rattlesnake. Hazel keeps following scent across much more ground than Nick expects. Twice, he stops believing her before the birds get up.

The episode also introduces Across the Uplands, a film series following a Upland Gun Company 20-gauge Venus and a Final Rise vest as they travel from hunter to hunter. The South Dakota film launches Friday, October 16, alongside this podcast episode.

In this episode

Hazel's first woodcock and more deliberate work around ruffed grouse
Aspen cover, understory and a patchy midseason bird report
Range, bells and learning to stay connected in the woods
Rose's experience on exposed prairie birds
A first rattlesnake encounter and the unfamiliarity of new country
Puppy bumps, long sharptail tracks and learning when to trust the dog
Across the Uplands films, partners and giveaways

Across the Uplands campaign and updates: https://finalrise.com/pages/across-the-uplands

Questions from the episode

How is Hazel progressing as a young bird dog?

Hazel is beginning to slow down, point and advance more cautiously around birds. Nick contrasts her recent grouse-woods work with the birds she bumped in South Dakota. Her first woodcock and several promising grouse contacts stand out, while range, consistency and staying connected remain part of her development. This is one puppy's progress report, rather than a fixed training schedule.

Why does Nick use a bell with a GPS collar?

Nick likes the bell because its cadence gives him a sense of how his dog is moving through cover. With Hazel, he can hear her coming back, pausing to locate him and moving again after he calls. He describes those small exchanges as useful while they learn to keep track of each other in the grouse woods.

What did the South Dakota sharptail tracks teach Nick?

The long tracks challenged Nick's confidence in Hazel. During one sequence, he followed her for about 400 yards before stopping, and she continued downhill before two sharptails flushed. The experience left him wondering why he had quit following. He also acknowledges uncertainty about exactly what scent she was working throughout these sequences.

What is Across the Uplands?

Across the Uplands is a film series following a Upland Gun Company 20-gauge Venus and a Final Rise vest as they travel between hunters. The recording describes current-season hunts filmed and released shortly afterward, including this South Dakota trip. Nick also mentions partner giveaways. Find campaign updates at https://finalrise.com/pages/across-the-uplands.

This episode is brought to you by Upland Gun Company, Final Rise, and Irish Setter Boots.

Upland Gun Company: https://uplandguncompany.com/

Final Rise Shirt of the Month: https://finalrise.com/pages/upland-shirt-subscription

Irish Setter Pheasants Forever Edition: https://irishsetterboots.com/pheasantsforever

Support the show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/birdshot

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