By far the most abundant game birds we have here in the Northwest are the sporty Valley Quail. Sometimes it is a challenge to find the right terrain to hunt them with big running Pointing Dogs. But when we do, it is absolutely my favorite way to enjoy my dogs. When the stars a line, these birds hold tight, they present frequent opportunities for young dogs to point and they are a challenge to shoot. I remember shooting a lot of limits of Quail over flushing dogs as a kid. Things have changed for sure but I still feel that youth when I am in the field chasing these crafty game birds with the To ..read more

I have a love, hate relationship with Pheasant hunting. They are fun to shoot but hunting them with pointing dogs, in thick cover, late in the season especially, creates plenty of challenges that make me question how I spend my valuable time. But it was certainly fun to relive some of the experiences I had as a youngster, Pheasant hunting all those years that led up to my career as a Bird Dog Trainer. I also appreciate the variety of hunting we have done this season in our approach to developing well rounded Bird Dogs that can do it all... It was just me and the dogs on this day and I shot my ..read more

Hooking up with my buddy Garrett Visser for a late season bird hunt in Idaho was just what the doctor ordered. Early winter and heavy snow fall was starting to create many challenges for us up here in Washington. Garrett found us a honey hole out of the Snow. What started out as a Chukar hunting adventure turned into a mixed bag. I can't remember the last time I shot or had my dogs point Chukar, Huns and Quail in the same hunt. It was a memorable hunt for sure and I can't wait to get back to hunt with Garrett and Lotto. Denny and Deuce both had a great day. These young dogs are really starting ..read more

As I began waiting for some snow to help slow the Chukars down, we began to do a little Pheasant and Quail hunting which led us to a Thanksgiving trip to Arizona. Killing two birds with one stone, we headed to Pheonix by way of Utah to visit some family for Thanksgiving. But what was on my mind was the Quail hunting that had been on my mind for nearly 20 years and the bucket list of upland game birds that I have been wanting to get started on. Huge Thanks to my buddy Tyler Bell. Without him I would have been lost for sure with no idea where to start. After a week of exploring the desert with n ..read more

Got in a little Pheasant hunting and a quick warm up on Valley Quail before heading to Arizona to pursue Scaled Quail and Gambles Quail. Pheasant hunting and Quail hunting are always a reminder of when this adventure began and where the obsession started. The first time I heard a Pheasant cackle as it lifted out of a wheat field and the first quail I actually shot. These memories are vague but as a child I know they had a profound influence of the passion for Upland Bird Hunting and Bird Dogs that still burns in me today. -Ryan Fortier ..read more

Getting in as much Chukar hunting as we could before the snow hit and we headed to Arizona. As the birds got wiser it sure did not get any easier. This is the part of the season where you really begin to see what kind of toughness and resolve you have in your young bird dogs. This young Pointer we call "Cash" is actually the first English Pointer I have ever owned. He came to me by way of Sergio Velez of Boss Kennels up in Canada. Cash has been pushed and he has lived up the hype. There is nothing fancy about Cash. His tail will not stop bleeding, he is still learning how to deal with running ..read more

Montana was absolutely the best way for me to kick off this season and the perfect beginning for what's to come. But I have been itching to get back in the Chukar hills with good bird dogs for a very long time. At 43 years old I am in the best shape of my life. My kids are in High School and Collage and my best years are still ahead of me. These Red legged Devil birds make bird hunting the ultimate challenge and that is what I crave. To be good at it you need to have a youthful, competitive, adventurous, surviving spirit, and it helps if you have great bird dogs, a healthy heart and a good par ..read more

As I was reluctant to leave my friends behind along with such an amazing place. I embraced one last long day of bird hunting in Montana before I officially headed home to get back to work and gear up for the upcoming Chukar hunting season. I was heading east when I remembered one last piece of BLM that Brad had told me about north of the hwy that I had not yet hunted. Once again it didn't look like much and I didn't know what to expect. The little Red Setter was due for one last good hunt. She had showed a lot of immaturity in the beginning but so much potential. She also was the only dog on t ..read more

I turned out Denny and Deuce on this fine morning with a lot of optimism. I had seen vast improvement in both of them the last time out. I was starting to feel like at any moment, for either one of these dogs, it was going to happen. I could see that their sense of the wind and what the birds were doing was growing with each wild flush. Their confidence was growing and their brace was getting bigger. It wasn't long before both of them were stopping to flush on their own and you could see the wheels turning in their little bird dog minds. Just like that with my trip winding down and running out ..read more

Exploring new areas of BLM and BMA for wild game birds in Montana with our new Setter puppies, brings a smile to my face and brightness to the future of Long Hollow Bird Dogs. Deuce, Sunny and Lottie all posses the breed qualities that we look for in American Field English Setters. Rangy, Athletic, High Tailed, Intelligent, Retrieving, Birdy, Bold, Good Noses, Good Temperament, Social, Good Stamina, Stylish, Good Looking, Trainable, Natural Pointers and Backers and Tough Wild Bird Dogs. They will be the foundation of our first two litters as we begin again to develop a program that helps produ ..read more