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Articles by Dave Carty
Here’s Why the Dutch Oven Is Still the Single Greatest Tool in Outdoor Cooking Original
A number of years ago, on a raft trip down the Dolores River in extreme southwestern Colorado, I experienced several significant events: four days of freezing drizzle, sheer terror, and Dutch oven cooking. Of the three, the Dutch oven meals were by far the most agreeable, and the culinary marvels whipped up by Bill Haas and Mike McDonnell, our guides and trip chefs, more than compensated for the daily bouts with hypothermia and raft-eating suck holes.
English Springer Spaniel: Breed Profile
When I got my second bird dog many years ago, it was not one of my beloved English pointers, Brittanys, or setters; it was an English springer spaniel. I was living in Colorado in those days, and my hunting was a mish mash of whatever I could scrape together: a lot of waterfowling with as many snipe and pheasants as I could find in the woefully crowded public hunting areas, as well as bobwhite quail on my infrequent trips back home to Iowa.
THE SUN CHRONICLE 2023 GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY ALL-STARS: Shamrocks, Lancers are runaway successes
Talent, perseverance and consistency personified the Bishop Feehan High girls cross country team, and the Shamrock harriers put those skills on display meet after meet this fall, showcasing their abilities on their road to a Catholic Central League title and a fifth-place finish at the MIAA Divsion 1 Championship. Fittingly, the Shamrocks, along with the Lancers of Norton High, boast three runners apiece on The Sun Chronicle 2023 Girls Cross Country All-Star Team.
THE SUN CHRONICLE 2023 GIRLS OUTDOOR TRACK ALL-STARS: Mansfield juggernaut made sure that youth was served
How talented was the Mansfield High girls’ track and field roster this spring? Simply ask around the Hockomock League or the MIAA’s Division 2 member squads, and they’d tell you. Pretty darn talented. It’s no surprise than that the Hornets lead The Sun Chronicle 2023 Girls Outdoor Track All-Star Team with five selections with a sampling of athletes across a variety of events. Mansfield’s five Sun Chronicle All-Stars have one primary thing in common — they all have eligibility remaining.
Meet Dutch Composer Johan Wagenaar
Meet Dutch Composer Johan Wagenaar By Dave Carty This month, I’m going to explore the life and music of Dutch composer Johan Wagenaar. Born in 1862 in Utrecht, Wagenaar’s parents were of different social strata: his father was an aristocrat, while his mother was of more humble origins. For this reason, Wagenaar’s parents never married and Wagenaar received his mother’s name as his family name.
Customizable Google Sheets Snowman Quiz For Teachers | Schooled in Tech
If you’re like me, you get excited when you hear the word spreadsheet. However, if your’e like the other 98% of the population, you don’t exactly have the same reaction. All too often, spreadsheets are dull and boring. They have a lot of important data and calculations, but you wouldn’t call working with them fun. This activity is designed to put at least a little bit of fun into introducing Google Sheets. It’s geared toward elementary school students.
The Golden Age- Franz Waxman
The Golden Age- Franz Waxman Written by Dave Carty I’d like to introduce you to one of the great composers of Hollywood’s “Golden Age”: Franz Waxman. If you aren’t familiar with his name, he wrote scores for some of the most famous movies of the 1930’s, 40’s, and 50’s. Nevertheless, I feel that his music is often overlooked in favor of more prolific composers like Max Steiner, Alfred Newman, and Miklós Rózsa.
Moments of Discovery: Britten’s Peter Grimes
Moments of Discovery: Britten’s Peter Grimes By Dave Carty Few things in life provide such a unique and wonderful experience as discovering a piece of music that leaves you stunned and that you instantly fall in love with. Even more rewarding is when that discovery leads you onto a path of further discovery of more glorious music and art. For me one of the most crucial works of discovery was the Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten.
Change Scrolling Direction on Chromebook Touchpads & More Tips | Schooled in Tech
Ah, the touchpad. The best thing to come to laptops since the eraser mouse :). Touchpads have been around for years and have changed over time. Most notably, some touchpads no longer have dedicated left and right (mouse) buttons. However, you can still click, right-click, drag, and drop with ease using the Chromebook touchpad. You can even customize settings you make the touchpad work “your way.“ For many users, including students, the Chromebook is the first device they have used with a touchpad.
Daniel Smith - Nothing Less Than Magic
“Let me show you some real cool sheep,” Daniel Smith says. He rifles through a stack of slides, pushes one of them across the light table, then hands me the loupe. Sure enough, it is a shot of a half-dozen magnificent bighorns bathed in late-afternoon light, each turning into the sun, apparently unaware of the cameraman — Smith — who is taking their picture. Very cool sheep. “I shot these in Jasper,” he says, beaming.
Slow Chromebook? Let’s Fix It Fast! | Schooled in Tech
Chromebooks are typically fantastic devices. They turn on quickly, aren’t bloated with software, and most of the time, are fast. However, with use over time, you may see a slow down in performance. Here are 4 free things you can do to get that speed back. Use them in combination. Speed Up Chromebook by Rebooting We’ll cover the simplest solution first. Rebooting has been a troubleshooting technique for Chromebooks and numerous devices for years and the truth is, it often works.
Learning to Read the Wind
Let your pointing dog work out the scent. A seasoned pointing dog needs to identify scent from every direction. (Emily Tucker photo) May 08, 2021 By Dave Carty One of my pet peeves is jumping through too many hoops to work a dog into the prevailing wind regardless of perfectly rational reasons for doing otherwise. The following is a hypothetical example gleaned from decades of having endured this particular compulsion among acquaintances and friends, on more than a few occasions.
Embracing the Hardships of Birdless Days
When birds are scarce, the other reasons we hunt become manifest. Your bird dog is born to hunt and lives for it — even if the birds are scarce. (John Hafner photo) By Dave Carty We’d been to this place forty, maybe fifty times before. Over the course of a decade and a half of hunting together, Chuck and I had hunted this same ridgeline so many times we knew where every brood would likely be, because we’d found them in the same places year after year. But on this day, there were no birds.
We're So Outta Here
The wide variety of migrations from, through, and even to Montana each winter. By Dave Carty
Even Well-Conditioned Gun Dogs Need Rest
The standard is to rest your bird dog at least a day between hunts. Some handlers even say two days of rest is better. The standard is to rest your bird dog at least a day between hunts. Some handlers even say two days of rest is better. By Dave Carty It was a mistake that could have killed my best dog. It was the ’90s, and my friend Chris and I had driven from my home in Montana to southern Iowa—a time when the state still had fair populations of bobwhite quail.
21 Chromebook Keyboard Shortcuts You Need To Know | Schooled in Tech
Keyboard shortcuts can be a huge time saver! Here are the top Chromebook keyboard shortcuts that will make using your Chromebook easier. Many of these will work for Chrome on Windows too. Once you are familiar with them, you’ll start using them every day. I’ve updated this post as part of my series on why Chromebooks are Perfect for teachers, administrators, and other staff. Copy & Paste on a Chromebook Let’s cover three staples first, which work on almost all devices.
The Completion Factor
Dave Carty The last 10 percent of training is the most important part. Train commands in different locations so your dog understands that the task is to be performed everywhere — not just in one spot. During one of the hundreds of conversations I’ve had with a long-time friend of mine named Jack, he talked about a common problem he’s seen in the house-building trade he has devoted his life to.
Proving Why Good Dogs Come in Small Packages
Dave Carty It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of fight in the dog. Let’s cut to the chase. I prefer owning small dogs—whatever the breed—more than large dogs. My take is this: Small dogs can do just about anything a large dog can do, and it costs less to feed them. Mind you, I’m talking about pointing breeds here, not the retrieving breeds, where size may well be an advantage.
Why You Should Be Training with Penned Birds
You've heard it before: it takes birds to make a bird dog. Sure, you can train - at least to a functional level - virtually any hunting dog without using live birds, and thousands of amateur trainers do so ever year. But why would you? It's not efficient and it's certainly not easy. So let's talk about training dogs the efficient way. Wild birds are not inherently better for your dog than pen-raised birds.
Don't Believe These Gun Dog Myths
Photo Credit: Dale Spartas I’m embarrassed to admit that from time to time I grow weary of the expensive South American shooting expeditions, bales of cash and adulation I receive, gratis, for my humble role as the pointing dog columnist in this fine magazine. Perhaps, I was musing this morning, I need a few poison pen letters to swing the balance a bit in the other direction, the receipt of which my editor here at GUN DOG immensely enjoys. [Editor’s note: Not!] So here I go, again.
Conditioning Tips from a Sled-Dog Champion
Dave Carty A World Champion sled-dog racer and veterinarian discusses how vital, and fun, conditioning is for your bird dog. In the sporting-dog world, there are athletes…and then there are athletes. At the top of the list among dogs whose names deserve to be offset in italics are sled dogs, which may run hundreds of miles over the course of a single race. At full speed. While pulling a sled with a full-grown man standing on it. But they don’t do that on grit and willpower alone.
Understanding E-Collar Stimulation Levels
No one I know misses the very early days of electronic collars, when even the top-of-the-line models had just two levels: fry and weld.
Building Prey Drive in Gun Dogs
Dave Carty Your dog's gotta have it. You can enhance it. There are a couple requirements that I think are absolutely critical in a good bird dog, and they may not be what you think they are. A great nose is nice, but I’ve yet to figure out a surefire way to determine that. A beautiful gait is a wonderful thing to watch, but it doesn’t necessarily translate into more birds. Instead, my two requirements are intelligence and prey drive. Today, I’m going to talk about the latter.
The Post-Hunt Tailgate Checkup for Gun Dogs
Dave Carty Do this quick exam at the end of each hunt. Bird dogs have a tough life. They plow through freezing waves to retrieve ducks, burrow through briars to roust out pheasants and rip themselves open on barbed wire. All of which they’re willing to do. But it’s up to you to see after their well-being, and an easy way to catch small problems before they develop into large ones is with a tailgate checkup.
Should You Shoot Non-Pointed Birds?
It’s not like training a pointing dog isn’t hard enough already. First, there’s the question of finding good training grounds. Then, finding penned birds. Then, finding the time. And finally, there’s the question of how the dog should behave on an actual hunt and, most importantly, how we should respond to that behavior. Case in point: Shooting non-pointed birds. The easy answer to that is, well, easy—don’t.
Housebreaking: It's Not as Hard as It Seems
Dave Carty Ah, yes. You've bought a new puppy. Your little bundle of joy delights you every waking moment except one: when he does you-know-what on the floor of the living room. The solution to you-know-what is called housebreaking. Housebreaking isn't difficult. But to be fair, it's not a slam dunk, either. Some dogs—not many, but some—are trained in just a few weeks. Most require several months or more, and some may take longer than a year.
The Noble English Pointer
Dave Carty Photo Credit: Bill Buckley Loyal and hard-charging, English pointers are more than running machines. Little Skylark was having control problems. This was first, and emphatically, pointed out to me by one of my hunting buddies shortly after we flushed a brood of blue grouse. Skylark had stopped, located the birds, and jumped right into the middle of them. My buddy watched her do it. I’d spent the two previous summers putting Skylark through her paces.
How to Shoot Safely With Your Gun Dog
Dave Carty - March 31, 2014 Anyone who hunts over dogs long enough has a story about a tragedy narrowly averted. It's true that accidents happen to everybody. But it's also true that accidents involving guns and dogs are much easier to avoid than to deal with after the fact. Here are some tips that will improve your safety around any gun dog and make you a better dog trainer to boot. The first is to be aware of where your dog is at all times.
Hunting Older Dogs
Dave Carty - October 12, 2016 There's one thing you can count on about young dogs; sooner or later they turn into old dogs. But does old age mean your dog's hunting days are over? Not at all. As with people, if the body and heart are willing, there's no reason in the world he can't be hunted. But before you take him into the field in his 11th, 12th, or 13th seasons, you owe it to him to physically prepare him. If it's at all possible, continue to exercise him.
Why You Should Love the Hungarian Partridge
Dave Carty - May 24, 2014 I'd spent months combing the coulees and thick, grassy draws but was having little luck finding the Huns my spaniel and I were searching for. I had a lot riding on these birds, pulling up stakes in Colorado and moving to Montana largely on the basis of the state's bird hunting, Huns in particular.
Boarding Dogs: 6 Things to Watch Out For
Dave Carty When leaving a pup behind, look for simple and clean facilities. Photo credit © CHIP LAUGHTON | WINDIGOIMAGES.COM Boarding your dog is always a bit stressful, but you can lower your stress level by finding the right kennel. Here are six things to watch out for when choosing a kennel that's just right for boarding your dog. Will My Dog Miss Me? That's what most people wonder when they drop their dog off at a boarding kennel.
Sticking Points in Gun Dog Training
Dave Carty Moving forward sometimes depends on moving back. Photo Credit: Chip Laughton Raise your hand if you’ve ever had this happen: You’ve been training your dog the whoa command. You’ve gone through the introductory steps, introduced him to the command, reinforced it without stimulation, then reinforced it with stimulation, and you’re now convinced your dog is a genius. He’s got it! In just three days! Secure your necktie, gentle reader. You’re about to experience a sticking point.
Grooming Tips for Gun Dogs
Dave Carty A few common tools will keep your pup clean and comfortable in the field. If your dog is anything like the dogs I own, he gets dirty fast. After a day in the field, he’ll be covered with burrs, mud, and in a worst-case scenario, fleas or ticks. Luckily, there are several tools that will quickly take care of those problems, tools that all good dog owners should keep within arm’s reach. The first is a stiff wire brush.
How Important Is a Gun Dog's Nose?
Sounds like an easy answer, right? Of course a dog’s nose is important. But is it more important than all the other things that go into the making of a crackerjack bird dog? Let’s take a look. I can still remember a few things about my first bird dog, a Brittany my father bought me when I was 12 (this would be shortly after the Civil War, in case you were wondering).
Protect Your Pointer from Foot Problems - Gun Dog
I knew what would happen, and I hunted her anyway. This would be a good dozen years ago, when my setter Rabbit was in her prime. I’d driven to Oregon for a week of chukar hunting, and if I was hurting after three days of marching up rocky, cheat-grass covered hills, my poor dog was worse. When I turned her loose that morning to air out, she tip-toed to the edge of the parking lot behind the motel I was staying in, squatted, and then tip-toed back to the door of the room.
Protect Your Pointer from Foot Problems
Dave Carty Photo Credit: Dean Pearson Healthy feet keep a dog running I knew what would happen, and I hunted her anyway. This would be a good dozen years ago, when my setter Rabbit was in her prime. I’d driven to Oregon for a week of chukar hunting, and if I was hurting after three days of marching up rocky, cheat-grass covered hills, my poor dog was worse.
Should You Snake Break Your Gun Dog? - Gun Dog
Dave Carty Photo Credit: Fotollia It's painful, but so is the alternative. Half of the U.S., if not more, is home to poisonous snakes, typically rattlesnakes. If you’re hunting in rattlesnake country, your dog is in danger of being bitten. Many rattlesnake bites aren’t fatal, but a significant number are, and in either case, a snake-bit dog will almost certainly undergo considerable pain and extremely expensive veterinary bills.
Should You Snake Break Your Gun Dog?
Dave Carty Photo Credit: Fotollia It's painful, but so is the alternative. Half of the U.S., if not more, is home to poisonous snakes, typically rattlesnakes. If you’re hunting in rattlesnake country, your dog is in danger of being bitten. Many rattlesnake bites aren’t fatal, but a significant number are, and in either case, a snake-bit dog will almost certainly undergo considerable pain and extremely expensive veterinary bills.
Training Pointing Dogs to Hunt in the Pocket - Gun Dog
Dave Carty Photo Credit: Charles Laughton In the flushing-dog world, you hear a lot of talk about the perfect “windshield wiper pattern,” a dog that hunts before the hunter in the same arc as a windshield wiper. There’s a reason for that: flushing dogs of necessity must hunt close, and a windshield wiper pattern is, all other things being equal, an effective way to cover ground at close range. It’s also pretty much mandatory to win spaniel trials.
Boarding Dogs: 6 Things to Watch Out For - Gun Dog
Dave Carty - July 06, 2017 When leaving a pup behind, look for simple and clean facilities. Photo credit © CHIP LAUGHTON | WINDIGOIMAGES.COM Boarding your dog is always a bit stressful, but you can lower your stress level by finding the right kennel. Here are six things to watch out for when choosing a kennel that's just right for boarding your dog. Will My Dog Miss Me? That's what most people wonder when they drop their dog off at a boarding kennel.
Boarding Dogs: 6 Things to Watch Out For - Gun Dog
Dave Carty - July 06, 2017 When leaving a pup behind, look for simple and clean facilities. Photo credit © CHIP LAUGHTON | WINDIGOIMAGES.COM Boarding your dog is always a bit stressful, but you can lower your stress level by finding the right kennel. Here are six things to watch out for when choosing a kennel that's just right for boarding your dog. Will My Dog Miss Me? That's what most people wonder when they drop their dog off at a boarding kennel.
The Puppy Conundrum: Picking the Best One - Gun Dog
Dave Carty - November 08, 2016 In the world of bird dogs, picking exactly the right puppy is a quixotic venture — an idea that is forever tempting but somehow, maddeningly, just out of reach. I've heard a lot of those ideas over the years: Turn a pup on his back and if he submits he'll be easy to train. (For the record, I can't remember the last pup I turned over who didn't fight me.) Or pick the dominant pup in the litter — he'll be bold in the field.
Housebreaking: It's Not as Hard as It Seems - Gun Dog
Dave Carty - October 24, 2016 Ah, yes. You've bought a new puppy. Your little bundle of joy delights you every waking moment except one: when he does you-know-what on the floor of the living room. The solution to you-know-what is called housebreaking. Housebreaking isn't difficult. But to be fair, it's not a slam dunk, either. Some dogs — not many, but some — are trained in just a few weeks. Most require several months or more, and some may take longer than a year.
How to Teach Your Dog the
Dave Carty Those of you who have been reading this column for a few years (I know it’s been tough, but somebody has to do it), know that I’m a fan of broke gun dogs—steady to wing, shot and fall--although I’m always careful to hedge my enthusiasm by stating that dogs that are steady only until the shot are, for most hunters, a perfectly acceptable alternative.
How to Teach Your Dog the "Whoa" Command
Dave Carty Those of you who have been reading this column for a few years (I know it’s been tough, but somebody has to do it), know that I’m a fan of broke gun dogs—steady to wing, shot and fall--although I’m always careful to hedge my enthusiasm by stating that dogs that are steady only until the shot are, for most hunters, a perfectly acceptable alternative.
The New Electronic Umpire: Balls, Strikes, and Outs Indicator
The original Ball-Strikes-Outs indicator arrived on the baseball/softball scene circa 1890. Not much has changed since then. Maybe it's time for an upgrade. After joining the Washington State Officials Association (woa.arbitersports.com) to act as a baseball umpire as an extra-curricular activity, I realized that officiating youth baseball was quite the challenge.
Gun Dog Confinement: How and Why
As I write this, I have two dogs skidding across the wood floor of my office, slamming into walls, and in general burning off the energy they’ve accumulated in what has turned out to be a very long and cold winter. They need to be confined. I’ve never been a believer in the idea some folks seem to have that our dogs need to run free in order to live fulfilling lives. Since hunting dogs are, by definition, highly active animals, an outdoor kennel of some sort is almost mandatory.
Gun Dog Confinement: How and Why - Gun Dog
Dave Carty Because gun dogs are highly active animals, outdoor kennels of some sort - like these by the Mason Company - are almost mandatory. As I write this, I have two dogs skidding across the wood floor of my office, slamming into walls, and in general burning off the energy they've accumulated in what has turned out to be a very long and cold winter. They need to be confined.
Gun Dog Confinement: How and Why - Gun Dog
Dave Carty Because gun dogs are highly active animals, outdoor kennels of some sort - like these by the Mason Company - are almost mandatory. As I write this, I have two dogs skidding across the wood floor of my office, slamming into walls, and in general burning off the energy they've accumulated in what has turned out to be a very long and cold winter. They need to be confined.
The Forced Retrieve
Force breaking isn’t always fun, but it works. Do you really need to force break your dog? I don’t have an easy answer to that question. What I do have, however, are situations. There was a time when I thought all pointing dogs should be force broken.
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