Hutch The Hunter

If you follow along with my social media, then you already know where this one is going. Hutch has had some minor ear issues and whatnot this summer but nothing serious. Some bigger issues popped up over Thanksgiving but nothing really alarming and then he got super sick, super fast. It wasn’t a hard decision to make but that didn’t make things any easier for our family. We got Hutch a couple years after we got married and he’s been around for all the rest of our major life events (the births of all 3 girls). We were lucky to get 10.5 years with him and I think he deserves to have some memorable moments shared. I know after I hit send on publishing this I’ll have realized that I forgot something but we are going to do our best.

I had never grown up with waterfowl dogs. I’d hunted with a couple really good ones though and it was intimidating to take on training my own. But we were going to go for it and do our best. I certainly had a lot more time in those early days because we worked on something everyday. There isn’t a chance I could pull that off now. Lot's of special trips to work on things, work in the water, and work in cover. I remember how exciting many of those major milestones were. Introduction to birds, gunfire, live birds, and just the overall day to do stuff. It was a lot of fun.

His birthday was in July so he missed the first fall season but he got to sniff plenty of dead birds post hunt that first year. He got to make his first actual retrieve on an early goose hunt. It was a water hunt and that goose was a gift. It was the only bird I shot that day but it was so rewarding to see the process through. Next up was a youth hunt with Trevor and he was learning quickly. There were always lots of slow times hunting public land and I had no problem letting him kind of explore around while we waiting for birds to come in. It was fun to watch him pick up on all the little things. Excitement about camo, cased shotguns, and early mornings at home. To knowing when to calm down and get ready for shooting time and that duck and goose calls meant action might be close. I have no regrets about basically giving up deer hunting most of the season during those early years and on into his prime.

I can remember a lot about just watching him evolve into a duck dog and gain experience on every hunt. I can remember the last hunt of his 3rd season on the late split. The last duck we killed was a magnum drake common merganser. I remember shooting the bird and Hutch just being so automatic on the retrieve. No one had to think about it, it was just natural and it was a beautiful thing. That bird is on my wall and unfortunately is the only duck he retrieved that I got mounted. I always thought I had more time or there would be super special bird that I would just know. That was the only bird that I just knew on. He was fortunate to hunt a bunch of different habitats and places so the species of birds he brought back was pretty diverse. Of the things around locally, the sea ducks and a widgeon are about the only things he was missing. Here is the list.

Mallard - Wood Duck - Blue Wing Teal - Green Wing Teal - Gadwall - Pintail - Northern Shoveler - Black Duck - Canada Goose - Canvasback - Bluebill - Redhead - Ring Necked Duck - Bufflehead - Goldeneye - Red Breasted Merganser - Common Merganser - Hooded Merganser - Coot

There are a few retrieves that stick out to me. Like the time he brought back 2 geese at once (on the water). Or the couple times he followed a bird that was struggling to fly away on a field hunt. They would eventually drop out and he would make a long retrieve back. Then there was the one time he went completely underwater to retrieve a puddle duck that was diving on him. He was always good at that, the puddle ducks could only diver for a short time. He would pop his head up and tread water waiting for them to surface again. Unless conditions were really bad, he would always get them. His last retrieve was like that, a wood duck that sailed and was swimming fast with some 25mph winds. It was rough and I took him out in the boat to get the bird since it was 150 yards away. He launched from the boat like he always did but it was so rough and windy that he couldn’t get that bird. Boat control was ridiculous and we were way out in the middle. I sensed this could get weird so we put him back in and had to shoot the duck again. Despite being an old dog that had just gone through a major effort he hopped back to the front of the boat and got the ok to get back in there and pick the bird up.

One of the most memorable waterfowl weekends of my career was in a field on the east side of the state. For 2 days we smashed them in this field, geese and mallards. Day 2 was even better and it was in the snow. It was a weekend to remember and he just rocked it bringing back big goose after big goose in between the waves of mallards. There were so many good hunts and so many slow hunts mixed in. But they were all good ones, if he got to go then he was happy. It was fun to watch the whole progression of his career. He loved to roam around a little bit on the slow hunts as a young dog. But the last few years if he was in the brush behind me and I stopped hearing something move. I’d go to call him but when I turned around he was always in a good spot just watching, waiting for the next bit of activity. I never had to do much on hunts with him, he just knew what to do after those early years.

His last hunt was with both girls and we all knew going into it that we weren’t going to kill any birds. It was more about the experience and that they could all move around and enjoy the night. Although he didn’t get any swims that night for ducks there was something about the boat ride back in that I will never forget. Calm water, getting dark, freighter coming in, both girls smiling, and a happy dog on the front of the boat. Hutch got to hunt with Mabel and June a few times and lots of family and friends over the years. He brought back my only banded waterfowl and a couple bands for others. I’d like to think that anyone who went on a hunt with him genuinely appreciated his effort and attitude.

He liked lounging around the house, digging holes, and his beach trips to Lake Michigan too. He was a great house dog and the only time I saw him get aggressive with anything was one morning when he was flushing mice into a canal on duck hunt and eating them in one chomp. Although there must have been some aggression when he got porcupined up north while scouting one year. Luckily it wasn’t a lot of quills and they weren’t very deep or big. He could bark and look big and tough once in awhile but if you ever came to visit the house then you know how excited Hutch was to see you.

He was a great dog and won’t ever be forgotten. I’d like to think he had it pretty good compared to most dogs, it was a good run!