Tipping Guide

Thinking about a guided duck hunt in the DFW area. Have never been on a guided hunt, so am not up to speed on etiquette with regards to tipping. What is a common tip amount for a successful hunt in the $125-$150 range? Having bartended and waited tables in college years, I am a pretty good tipper (20-25%) when service is good, but am unclear if ~$30 is adequate on a $150 guided hunt.

To me its more about how the guide treats you than if you kill birds. You can shoot every bird you see but your guide could be an a$$. If your guide works hard, gives you an enjoyable hunt, and you kill birds $30-$50 depending how great it is

Yeah for paid guided hunts I've done anything from $20-40. Sometimes I'll also buy them a meal or give them shells. Personally I don't think you tip based on the number of birds in the bag but more the effort you felt they gave. You can have a guide that does not really do much and have a great hunt or you can have a very professional hard working guide and you just end up having a bad hunt. I'll tip the professional hard working guy even if the hunt was not a bang up hunt.

I agree with this, having spent a little time on both sides of the blind. Bad days hunting happen, unprofessionalism and poor service are not tied to any of those factors.

$50 sounds decent enough

20% minimum

but $50 is better

If I'm satisfied with the service:
If the guide is the owner I don't tip but either buy lunch,gas or give shells.
Otherwise I tip $20 per hunter.
However if the guide is shooting I don't tip and I don't go hunting with the outfit again.

I understand that you want to kill birds but why is it not acceptable for the guide to kill his limit with you? I've talked to others with the same view on the topic but would like to hear yours?

What's so bad about a guide shooting his limit as well?

Tip depending on these things

• Where they prompt at returning calls, email or PMs.
• Did they answer all your questions above satisfaction
• Where they in time (10 minutes early is on time)
• Did they treat you like a hunting buddy and not a client
• Did they re-set decoys if birds weren't quite finishing?
• Where they kind and courteous
• Where they upfront with the entire operation

If I booked a hunt Im thinking I would book with Cody or Jeff. Just because it seems like a good time even if you dont kill birds. Thats if Cody stops sinking his boat. Haha

And from what I have heard/red they would earn the tip

Nothing wrong with the guide shooting as well as long as he's not killing singles before you get a chance to shoot. If it's a big flock and he shoots or say you have already killed your redheads or pintails or whatever then who cares?

Here is Cody in the blind with a client.

Client: Bla bla bla bla, bla bla bla bla, blablalal bl bla.

Cody: Nice.

Client: Bla bla bla bla, bla bla bla bla, blablalal bl bla.

Cody: Sweet.

Client: Bla bla bla bla, bla bla bla bla, blablalal bl bla.

Cody: Awesome.

well put.

And from what I have heard/red they would earn the tip

You forgot really, no doubt, no way, you ain't lyin, shoot em, kill em, smoke em, that was to easy

What's wrong?
For one he's there to guide not hunt.Tell me any other hunt where the guide hunts or shoots with you!
I don't mind him finishing cripples in the water but shooting with me and other customers in the blind instead of watching where the ducks are falling and working the dog is totally unacceptable for me.
If a guide wants to hunt he can hunt on his off days or in the afternoon.That's the biggest sign of a professional instead of somebody who's trying to make couple bucks on the side while enjoying himself.
However some others might like a guy who shoots not only his limit but help filling the customer's too.
I've been duck hunting 40 years and I've seen it all.

I've been both a guide as well as a paid hunter and can see each side of the tip/don't tip debate. From my perspective as a guide, a tip is always appreciated but not expected. Those who don't tip are always welcomed back and nothing more is thought of it. I would much rather have a non-tipping, repeat customer, hunt with me several times a year versus a big tipping customer that hunts once and never comes back. However, I can sure see it from the paying hunter's viewpoint. If a guide wants $200 instead of $150, then that should be made clear up front as the advertised price. The hunter then doesn't have to feel like he slighted the guide if he didn't tip and the guide got the amount of money he was looking for.

I'm not saying that it has to be a team effort or that he should kill more than his limit, and the situation may call for something different (a single or double coming in) but if a flock of lets say 10 comes in and lets also say there's only 2 hunters and the guide, I don't have a problem with the guide shooting as well. He should give the clients first shot but once the birds are shot into why cant he pick out a bird. Just because he's hunting doesn't mean he cant be "watching where the ducks are falling and working the dog". When I go with my buddies and we all jump up and shoot, knocking a few birds down, Im still able to help the dog mark and work her.
just a personal preference I guess, thanks for sharing!

If you don't want the guide shooting, then I hope you don't expect 18 birds at the end of the day if its just you and a buddy. I've been the guide that has shot with large flocks after the first shots are fired. I've had customers ask me not to, and I've had even more say they want a pile for the pics, in which I do what I can to help out. It's all based on the customer IMO. I think most guides would tell you they hunt enough that they don't have to shoot, and definitely don't mean any offense by it.

I hunted with Jeff a couple years ago, if he hadn't shot I would have gone home duckless My Fat a** couldn't sit up fast enough in the layout. So him shooting didn't bother me one bit.

I would find it odd if a guide didn't shoot... I like layed back hunts where the guide feels like a pal not "the help"... IMO if the guide isn't shooting, cussing and telling as many BS stories as me he isn't doing his job.

I shoot when big groups come in. I always shoot last. If someone doesn't want me to shoot that's great too. Its always up to the hunter. I tell everybody this is your hunt and I want to do my best to cater to them. I have had a lot of guys ask me to shoot. I have had a few ask me to just shoot cripples. I did have a nice old man ask me not to shoot one time. We had about 200 birds come in the first 5 minutes of the hunt. I would tell him to get em and he would sit up and just look in awe. after no shots on 200 birds I then asked him if he would like me to shoot at the next group to get the ball rolling. He said he would because he could not concentrate and did not want to miss with me watching with all those birds. We killed some birds. He was a cool old man. We shot a band and he told to take it if I would mount the bird. I got side tracked but just thought I would share. Speaking of tips he tipped me that band. The best tip I ever got because every time I look at that bird I remember that cool, strange, and awesome hunt.

So, did the old man really shot that banded bird?
Were you waiting impatiently in the car at 5:55am while he was desperately loading up his cooler with some cold ones? Always crack your windows while having the old man in your car reeking like a drunken sailor from the night before.
Never a dull moment with the old man. Always stories. The problem is that you need 400 birds on your tank in order for him to shoot that one greenhead he is so desperately after. I still dont understand why he is not shooting heavyshot nr 7 1/2 to increase his chances at them birds within 9 yards.

I went to many hunts with that old man, he is a trip. He reminds me of ray sasser i hunted with before who only took doves within 10 yards.

If you hunt with a guide 3 straight days, what's the tipping protocol?

I shot the banded bird. As far as everything else, your dead on the money.

Tip depending on these things

• Where they prompt at returning calls, email or PMs.
• Did they answer all your questions above satisfaction
• Where they in time (10 minutes early is on time)
• Did they treat you like a hunting buddy and not a client
• Did they re-set decoys if birds weren't quite finishing?
• Where they kind and courteous
• Where they upfront with the entire operation

• A good tip is 20%

10% is more the avg in the hunting world 20% would be on high end.

I got that, no issues. Tip after every day? The first day? Last day?

personally, I'd do an all together tip at the end

this too!

What I really like when I am guiding and a client says "your not shooting are you"
And I land 50 -60 birds and his party kills 3 birds and I quote
" This was the worst hunt I have ever been on how much do I owe you"
I told him you don't owe me a thing but that is the last hunt I will ever take him on
I am not there to kill your birds but don't complain when you shoot 2 boxes of shells each and kill 2 birds total

It does not matter how many birds gets killed if the guide is helping me shoot my limit. It's not about the birds killed it's about the opportunity you gave your clients to limit out. In the above situation he should have thanked you, paid and walked away.Also I always set a time or ask the guide when the hunt will be over regardless of limits being killed or not. I can sit there all day hunting by myself but I know how hard it's for a guide working day in day out during hunting season.
As I said before if a guide starts shooting without my permission it's game over. I've been on both sides of the aisle and it took me a while to learn how to be a professional.

Well as a guide, former or present, I'm sure you've seen more times than not that most people/bad shooters don't realize they've shot a whole box or 2, but they see how few birds they had. Enter the guide. I had several people the past couple years on my dove hunts complain that they want their money back because they only shot 4 birds. My first response is asking how many boxes they went through. It never fails that I hear 2 or more boxes as a response.

For somebody like you that will say up front that it's all about the hunt and not just killing, takes a little stress off the guide and let's them know you're just there to enjoy it. But overall, people are expecting lots of birds and either don't know or don't care if a guide helps drop a few to increase that number

You tip after the last day OR when the guide ask to be paid for his work. Some like to get their clients to pay after everyday, some don't charge until their clients last hunt

IF a guide want to be paid day by day you tip 20% everyday IF you feel he deserves it. If y'all go sack an awesome stringer don't be afraid to tip more, if you go out and don't shoot much, tip less. If you tip a guide 20% off the first day he could best his tail a little harder.. Ur boils down to what you think is right or feel is right

I just returned from a Sandhill Crane hunt. We had 7 guns. Our cash tip at the conclusion of the hunt was 10%. The outfitter's website indicated that all hunters would be responsible for assisting in setting out the decoy spread and gathering cover for the layout blinds. The two guides were professional, prompt in answering all of my myriad questions in the weeks leading up the hunt, seemed to nearly blow their lungs out calling the birds in for nearly four hours, ran the dog or retrieved birds by hand, and adjusted the decoy spread midway through the hunt to keep the birds from busting early. Everyone contributed to gathering the decoys and layout blinds after the hunt. While I am consistent tipper of 20% in restaurants, 10% seemed equitable for services rendered. The first half of the hunt was slow with the birds not wanting to commit to the decoy spread and had us put about eight birds on the ground. The first large flock that appeared to be ready to commit with the opportunity to make the hunt a total success was busted by one in our group who jumped the gun and shot before the guides gave the ok to kill them. The guides were noticeably annoyed for fear that this might have deemed the hunt a failure but continued to work the birds. Ultimately, all seven of us got our limits. Without the guides shooting on these big birds, we probably would not have been as successful. I was grateful for this because our ultimate goal was to put some of these supposedly delicious birds on the dinner table. The birds were delicious; we had them chicken fried tonight for dinner.

Earlier in the year, my coworkers and I went out with a guide six weeks in a row on mourning dove hunts in Andrews County, Texas. The guide set out and picked up the decoys every time. He also marked birds in the brush and was helpful throughout. If you are not familiar with this part of the state, everything is the same color of brown as mourning dove. On these hunts, we tipped 15% and sometimes closer to 20%. The guide was professional, cracked jokes, and shot birds as most of us began approaching our limits. Even though I shot a limit all five times at the same water tank, I would have tipped the man regardless.

My bottom line is that these guides do a lot of work behind the scenes. They might drive hundreds of miles scouting locations in a week or meeting with prospective lessors. From my casual conversations, a not insignificant portion of the fees paid for a hunt can go to compensate the lessors for using their land. Add in the maintenance and acquisition of decoys and other equipment required for a first class hunt, and that eats up a good portion of this fee. I always feel good knowing that I could compensate a guide with some extra cash for all of the work that goes into providing a cityslicker like me with lasting outdoor memories.