I have been quail hunting several times with a personal guide and trained hunting dogs. It is one of the most outdoor experiences I have ever had. It’s quite fascinating actually with the fields, woods, smells, birds, shotguns and dogs. What more could a guy want?

During these trips I love to study the bird dogs. See what drives them and how they hunt. Let’s face it, every salesperson is a hunter and there is probably not a greater correlation to a salesperson than a trained hunting dog.

When you get to the hunting club, the guide has several dogs already loaded up in the crates in the back of the truck. The guide can’t let them lose (first lesson) until they get to the field they are going to hunt. When the guide stops the truck and everyone gets out, he checks all the hunters and their shotguns and gives instructions of things to do and not do, (second lesson.) After the instructions he usually takes out two or three dogs at a time and puts the shock collars on the dogs (not the hunters-ha.) This is so he can control the dogs and keep them close (third lesson), so they don’t go off on their own.

When he opens the cages, most of the dogs will leap out to the ground and start sniffing (fourth lesson) so hyper they can hardly wait to get going. It usually happens, that one of the dogs will lumber out of his crate in no hurry at all. This is the dog you don’t want to follow (fifth lesson.) When the guide is ready, he says “hunt” and the dogs go bananas, sniffing, snorting, barking and even taking a poop (sixth lesson.) The dog you want to follow is the one that just took a big dump. Why? He is so excited and ready he can’t wait to go and when he poops, he is telling you – “ok, boss, I’m ready.”

The lazy dog will just walk around sniffing the air, while the real hunting dog will go as fast as he can with his tail hanging down and his nose to the ground. Thorns and briers don’t even faze him he is so excited. When he finds a bird or a covey (group of quail) he gets about 20 feet away and stands as rigid as a stone with his tail either sticking straight out or straight up (seventh lesson.) He knows not to move until the guide gets ready to flush out the birds. As a hunter it is important to know when to shoot and when not to shoot (eighth lesson.) The guide will ask the hunters, “you ready?” and he takes a long skinny stick and flushes the birds (runs it across the ground where the birds are) and holey moley, the bids fly off all directions. After the hunters miss most of them (ha) the process starts all over again. That’s quail hunting at its finest.

For the salesperson, you have to want it, you have to be ready, and you have to know when to move and when to shoot. If you have a salesperson that hears about a lead and has to go take a poop first. Ha. He/she will probably be your best salesperson. KT