I know I need to pack in a ton of water for Zeke, but someone's post on another gun dog forum got me to thinking.

This particular post was saying early dove season is just to hot for a lab and to leave them at home until the end of September.

What are your thoughts. Have you kept your dog from retrieves/hunting because you thought he or the weather was too hot?

Yes. We had a lease in Sante Fe the last 3 yrs. It wasnt a 'sit and wait for them to fly by' place. It was a huge milo field that, suprisingly, didnt hold too many dove. It looked/sounded alot better than it was. Anyway, usually the milo was still pretty high (knee to waist) around the first season, so we'd have to walk them up. The dog couldnt see the shots anyway. I left my dog at home last year for it.

If it was a sitting hunt, it'd prob be fine.

Yea, mine are sitting hunts in a plowed filed next to 30 acres of sunflower. I set my MOJO's up in the plowed field. As they fly in to or out of the sunflowers, they see my MOJO's and stop to check em out. Last year (which was a good year for dove here) I was in and out in 30 minutes with a limit in the AM. Evenings were a bit slower, but still produced birds.

is there a pond for the dog to lie in and cool off?

No, the only water for a half mile will be the water I haul in for him.

also just as important... Im assuming you will be camped out on a fence line under some shade trees? If you have some shade you should be fine. also bring in some water for him to drink and you should be good to go.

LOL. No shade, other than the tall johnson grass growing in the bar ditch along the fence line.

If no shade, that's iffy. We always take our dog out at the beginning of the season, with lots of water. I'm always under a tree as well.

Maybe I should try and fabricate some kind of camo umbrella to stick in the ground and get him to sit under it.

I bring Heis, I just make sure that he stays hydrated and stays in the shade. I normally hunt in the mornings and try to get out of there before it gets really hot. I wouldn't recomend sending him on 20 plus retrieves, ie don't let him retrieve everybodys birds for them, but if your careful and pay attention to their body language you should be fine. Bring plenty and I mean plenty of water. A little offseason training doesn't hurt either. It's getting close to that time to start getting serious.

Why hunt if you can't bring your dog?

And use good judgement and you should be fine . My gal is blk and getting some age on her so I really have to watch it. I hunt her pretty much everyday . Shade and plenty of water for both of us

Thats the one thing that makes me feel confident. He runs with my wife every night for an hour or so. She usually starts at around 7 when its still warm.

And no, she doesnt force him, he is off leash. We live on quite a bit of land and she has a trail here she runs, like a cross country trail. He won't quit unless she does.

So he gets a ton of excercise every day.

I run my girl every night till she is panting hard... about 30 to 40 retrieves... I have a comand "get some water" and she will drink... when she is winded we end the session but I think it is gonna help in the early dove season.

My dog's always gone with me.

I always take a 5 gallon water container i got at academy with me. It has a spout that makes it easy pour into your dogs bowl. I also use it to wash my hands after cleaning birds. Between my dog drinking water and me rubbing water in her coat she seems to do fine.

No it is not too hot, as long as you are ready to accommodate for your dog. Now for some, that might not be worth it.

If it is a morning hunt, and you expect to get your limit fast (say 30 minutes after legal), you have nothing to worry about. Around 8:30/9:00, it starts to heat up, you need to find some shade for your dog, or pack up and go home. For some that is not worth it.

Afternoon hunts, if you start at 3:00, you need to have shade for your dog. For some that is not worth handicapping yourself by limiting options. Or get there late afternoon/evening when temperatures drop to appropriate level, to some that is not worth it.

And you always need to have plenty of water for the dog, and to some that is not worth it.

You want to go have lunch/breakfast after your hunt? Too hot to leave dog in truck while you eat. To some that is not worth it.

So it is really just up to your situation, and what accomidations/sacrifices you are willing to make to have your dog by your side. There have been times I left my dog at home, reasons listed above, just not worth it sometimes....

It also helps to have a yeller dog, them black dogs don't do well in sun.

But they make up for it in drive, competence and trainability

Actually, in reality, the black dogs make up for it in the winter, when soaking up the heat with that black coat is a good thing. Of course yeller is still better.

Just not worth it so some

Dog:
Water-enough and then some
Preparation-preseason training
Shade-as much as available
Temp-Heat is killer, the ground is hotter than where your nose is
Humidity-It will cutem down fast, cant get the O2 from the air
Energy-use it sparingly and deliberatly

You:
Obseravaion-know when they(dog) are spent, a few extra birds just isnt worth it

If it is going to be over 90 degrees I usually leave mine home unless a very quick morning hunt.

I watched one have a heat stroke/ seizure one time, it almost killed me. Even though they are in great shape they just can not shed the heat fast enough for really hot weather.

Maybe I should try a yeller one next...LOL

It's not as tough for my thin single coat dog as it is for y'all's retrievers. One thing I do, is I usually take a wet towel that I keep in a large ziplock bag and wipe the whole dog down once over now and then. Especially the belly, groin, and pads of the feet.

I also don't let her run around much before shooting time or during the hunt when not necessary. And on really hot day, if I see the bird and there is no good reason I can't just walk over and get the bird myself, I will tell the dog to stay put and save her for the difficult retrieves.

Best thing: get your dog down to his "playing" weight. I believe those extra pounds hurt the lab more than anything. A thin, in-shape lab reduces his chances of over heating.

I've also heard to bring rubbing alcohol along in your truck. If your lab over heats, pour rubbing alcohol in a container and put your dog's paws in it one at a time. Rubbing alcohol will cool them down faster than water.

I was watching Phesants forever today and they featured a vet talking about how fast a dog can get hit with heat stroke. According to the vet there is no safe temperature, but it is up to you to know your dog. He stressed not letting your dog over do it, or leave them home.

The humidity level is very different in the morning compared to 7pm when your wife is running with the dog. Plus at 7pm, the temp is now going down.

You know your dog better then us, but it sure would be tough to get over, if she over heated.

Bottomline is you need to be able to cool your dog off, so she doesn't heat stroke on you. Otherwise, you need to leave her home.