question

In my personal opinion the fish are still scattered all over the pool. The majority of the saugers and smaller eyes will be up near the genoa dam.

I think that condition of the pool has alot more to do with it than it being fall and colder. This year has been a strange one with the high water. Not to mention the ocassional days of high wind that really make a mess with the weeds and water clarity.

So to anwser your question a bulk of the “eater” sized fish will be in relative proximity to the dam. However I think you will find more larger fish further down stream. How far down stream??? you will have to let the fish tell you that.

It has been my contention for years that fish will make the move upstream if high water comes in the fall. And the bite on the pools I know well have backed this up with the low water in the past falls (poor bites) and with this falls high water the bite is excellent once again up near the dams. I also spoke with one of the guys from the DNR who participated in shocking fish and it was surprising the number of large eyes in close proximity to the dam this fall. Again – I believe that the high water is responsible. That said, fish stage on wing dams and other structure all year around. They are great feeding structures and surely are less pressured this time of year than the tailwater bite up by the dam. So if you are after trophies that haven’t viewed every jig on the planet in the past week then down river is the way to go. It is a challenge to learn the spots on every pool – but exploration is usually rewarded – perhaps down the road – perhaps immediately. Enjoy whatever bite you pursue,
Chuckles

how many of you guys have your hunting dogs as indoor dogs and how many leave them out side? and your thoughts to how that effects your hunting if it even does? do you only have them outside on the summer? This is one discussion my wife and I will have when we get the pup, as she turned my outside dog (husky/cattle dog) into a inside dog and now she hates it out side in the cold weather and barks to come in.

Thanks-
Broncs

Some say that indoor hunting dogs do a better job as they are more in-tune with it’s owner. Some say that it does not matter, I believe the later.
My pointer is an outside dog. He does all most everything I ask of him.
If you keep them outdoor build a nice doghouse, very well insulated and also maybe a heater as well for the really cold nights. Star’s kennel is probably better built than most homes. I check on the temp inside his house and never have seen it below 40. It does have a hound heater in it for the sub-zero days and nights. Also remember that dogs need more water in the winter as well, at least that’s what I read. I know my dog goes through way more n the winter than summer.
It really comes down to personal choice, at least that’s that I think.

My girl is a hunting dog only 3 months a year. The remaining 9 months, she is a pet. One of the reasons I have a dog is I enjoy their company and like petting them. Inside for my pooches – always.

Tim

Our first lab was kept outdoors 90% of the time in a fenced kennel run. In the winter we wrapped the kennel in poly and put in straw bales and loose straw, in addition to her house. We would only bring her inside when we returned home from work for 1-2 hours or when temps dropped below 0. She was a great hunter.

After about 7 years in this setup, she became a house dog. I imagine much of this had to do with her maturity not to rip the house apart while we were at work. There was no change in her desire or ability to hunt.

We just got a new choc. lab in July and she is full-time inside. We do not have the kennel run at our new home. This dog is this week experiencing her first snow and loves it. She could stay outside all day. She has shown great aptitude for hunting to date.

So I don’t think it matters. I do think that my first dog was happier outside during the day when she was younger, vs. being in a smaller kennel inside all day. I wish I had the ability to do that same setup for this dog. Neighborhood covenances do not allow for fences!

Eric

our dog is a inside dog and has been since day one, when he was a pup he was in a kennal during the day when nobody was home, now he just lay’s around the house till sombody comes home, he loves beeing out side, he loves the snow but he is never outside alone (he just stands by the door and stares in the window) BUT when it comes to hunting he is all business, i think he likes being a hunting dog more than a pet but he’s vary good at both. when i get another dog it will be inside too

I let me dog inside when I am home, but otherwise he resides in the garage. I do heat it in the winter to a balmy 45 degrees, and he has a door to go outside to his run kennel during the day. He loves it and so do I.

And I think he hunts well.

I know that Cops with k9s leave the dogs outside so they will develop a thicker winter coat that helps them to work longer (tracking Etc) when the temp is cold. Not sure if it works the same for Labs and other tipical hunting dogs as it does for Germanshepards.

Our current lab is an indoor dog. I do not believe that keeping her indoors has much affect on hunting.

Her predecessor would probably have been classified as an outdoor dog. Her schedule was to come inside the house at about 6 am and socialize while the kids and wife and I got ready to leave. My wife used to be the last one to leave and would put Mitzi into her outdoor kennel at about 9 am. At least one of the kids was home by 3 pm and would left the dog inside where she would remain until about 10:30 pm when we went to bed. On colder than minus 20 nights we would put her inside our garage in her kennel. She would develop a good winter coat and almost never got cold duck hunting. Mitzi simply knew and understood that she spent the night outdoors in her kennel run with her insulated house and heated water dish. She never barked at night, but if we neglected to bring her inside during “daytime” hours when we were home, then she would let us know that she wanted to come in and see us.

Our current dog has had a couple of instances of being chilled while duck hunting. As soon as I notice that Lucy is cold, I vigorously towel her down and she is fine.

JF