Hard to believe it's March 1st already.  Interestingly, though, we are right on schedule.  It's a scary position for two reasons.  First, we have no idea how to act when there isn't a fire burning and second, we know there is something coming.

As for the plan, we are excited.  We'll add 300 huntable acres of crop versus last year.  We are also going to put in some more native grasses.  The grass will take a bit to mature but with what we saw from the grass and trees last year will be awesome to hunt.  The growth in our pheasant population demonstrates the importance of planting permanent habitat.

More on farming soon.

Somehow the season got past me without updating you all on the blog.  It just went so fast. It was unbelievable though.  I'll post some season stories in the coming days.  We had great people.  An awesome staff, and our Scattergun Retrievers were at their very best.

Thanks to all!

Just sent our first guests home. A great family from Pennsylvania.  Three generations getting together to enjoy Scattergun.  Awesome weather, pheasant hunting, and company.  

On the right hand side of this picture just above the trees, is a white spot.  Well it's not exactly a spot.  It's a 4' x 8' target, and it's just short of three quarters of a mile.  Can you hit it?  We'll give you the bast available tool, one of our two Barret, .50 caliber rifles. Good luck

Took a trip to Fort Pierre, today, to check out the State of South Dakota Auction.  Saw some neat stuff.  South Dakota taxpayers should be proud.  The state clearly uses their equipment.  Best thing is it's a good place to wear a cowboy hat.

Got in at 8pm last evening and melted a few ice cubes with my dad.  One of the many nice benefits of my job.  The ranch looks beautiful.  Mark and Justin really have things in shape.  Now as long as Mark doesn't mow it all down there will be no better pheasant hunting than right here this Fall.

Problem. Lightening hits a tree and starts a brush fire, during a very dry period. This is the kind of thing that can get way out of hand, and quickly.

Solution. Neighbors. One phone call and there they were. Men, boys, trucks, water tanks, chain saws you name it. The only thing missing? A bill. Why South Dakota? The people.

What do you do when you own thirty Labradors that you absolutely adore, and have 40 weeks per year when you aren't hunting?  Leave them in the kennel? No. Absolutely not.

If you want truly great pheasant hunting you need truly great dogs.  As most of you know we are not very particular about breed.  We'll use black, yellow, or chocolate.   We own 30 of the finest Labradors anywhere.  One of the things we have learned being lifetime Lab people is that Labs love people.  In fact, that eagerness to please is one of key reasons our Scattergun Retrievers make our place most memorable.  But what do you do the rest of the year? 

Answer, Foster Parents.  Our Foster Dog program is unique in the industry.  When we aren't hunting our Labs live with families all over the country.  If you play golf at Medina Country Club you might see one riding shotgun with the course superintendent.  You could see one trotting the campus at Northern State University.  There is even a Scattergun Retriever running around a certain country music legend's home place in Alabama.

We know first hand that the more time our dogs spend with these great dog people the happier they are.  And the happier they are the better they hunt.  We don't want robots.  We want dogs that are hunting with a smile on their face.  Those who have experienced both know the difference.

We will never allow someone else's dogs to run our hunt.  We will never allow our dogs to sit in the kennel for ten months a year.  So thanks to all of our Foster Parents.  We couldn't do it without you.

We're back. It's been a nice off season with a wet Spring, a late hatch and time spent with family and friends. The dogs are home, and guests will be here within the week. Off we go.

Winter is about over.  I think we had about 2 days of it.  Now it's on to execution of our 2012 farm plan.  Things are different for us.  We plant habitat.  Make no mistake, sometimes it's difficult to ignore those corn prices but we know pheasant hunting requires pheasant habitat.

Our investment in trees and grasses in paying great dividends.  Those walks in the tree groves between food plots are amazing now.  Along with more grass, we'll be planting more food plots, changing some planting direction, and trying some new things. 

We must look ridiculous to a normal farmer.  Remember, though, our goals are different.  We are building a pheasant population, we plant so that your wing shooting experience is the very best possible.  We also want you to hunt South Dakota the way we did as kids.