Gundog Nation
A show to bring together gundog enthusiasts, trainers, and handlers with discussion focused on all breeds and styles of gundogs.
Gundog Nation
Hannah Hall and Abbie Binzer - Building a Life Around Gundogs and Hunting
#029 Two Kentucky women are redefining what it means to be hunters in today's world, proving that you don't need to grow up in a hunting family to become passionate about the sport and working with gundogs.
Hannah Hall and Abbie Binzer share their remarkable journeys into hunting, which both began later in life. Hannah, who started in 2021 with a turkey hunt that left her "100% addicted," has since restructured her entire life around hunting opportunities – leaving her corporate HR career for the flexibility of restaurant work that allows her to chase waterfowl across the country at a moment's notice. Abbie balances a full-time career at Toyota with her growing passion for training and hunting with her chocolate Labrador retrievers, proudly earning hunt test titles despite starting as a complete novice.
The conversation explores the unique challenges women face entering the traditionally male-dominated hunting world, the incredible community they've found through social media groups like "Women of Waterfowl," and how hunting with dogs has transformed their perspective on the sport. Both women spoke candidly about their experiences hunting everything from whitetail deer to sandhill cranes, their triumphs and failures in the field, and the special bond that develops when working alongside a well-trained retriever.
Perhaps most compelling is how these women view hunting as more than recreation – it's become their lifestyle and potentially their livelihood. Hannah shares her entrepreneurial plans for waterfowl taxidermy and a fishing guide service, while both discuss how watching their dogs work sometimes brings more satisfaction than the harvest itself. Their enthusiasm for mentoring other women looking to enter the sport offers hope for a more inclusive hunting community.
Whether you're an experienced hunter or someone curious about getting started, their fresh perspective and genuine passion might just inspire you to grab a shotgun, train a retriever, and discover the rewards of hunting for yourself. Listen in and experience hunting through the eyes of a new generation of women changing what it means to be a hunter.
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Hello and welcome to Gun Dog Nation. This is Kenneth DeWitt, coming to you from Texas, and I want you to know that Gun Dog Nation is much more than a podcast. It's a movement to unite those who love to watch a well-trained dog do what it was bred to do. We are also here to encourage youth to get involved in the sport of gundogs, whether it's hunting sport or competition. I want to build a community of people united to preserve our heritage of gundogs, whether it's hunting, sport or competition. I want to build a community of people united to preserve our heritage of gundog ownership and to be better gundog owners. Stay tuned to each episode to learn more about training, dog health, wellness and nutrition from expert trainers, breeders and veterinarians. Be sure to go on our website, wwwgundognationnet, and join our email list. You will receive newsletters from trainers and vets and breeders. That will also help you being a better gundog owner. And be sure to listen to some of our supporters Mo Pitney, who is a very good country musician and bluegrass musician. He has a bluegrass project called Pitney Myers and he's getting ready to come out with a new album on Curb Records, so stay tuned. Also, the music provided on our show is from Sean Brock. Originally from Harlan, kentucky, just across the mountain from me. He did all the music that you hear on our introduction and our outro for the show. He played all the instruments except for Scott Vest on the banjo and Jerry Douglas on the dobro. Check them out. Thank you for listening. Hello, this is Kenneth Witt with Gun Dog Nation. Many people quickly become frustrated and confused when training the retriever. Cornerstone Gundog Academy's online courses eliminate all the guesswork by giving you a proven training system that will help you train a dog that anyone would be proud to have in their blind. Learn where to start, what to do next and what to do when problems arise. Visit cornerstonegundogacademycom to learn how you can train your retriever. I have used this method myself. I have been through it a couple times with different dogs. I refer back to it lots of times when I'm trying to get dogs freshened back up for hunt test season. I highly recommend them. I have actually been a subscribed member of cornerstone gundog academy since 2016 and I would suggest anyone use it. I highly highly recommend it. They have an app that you can get to on your phone. You can do it from your phone, your laptop. You can't get any more convenient than that. I've used it, it's proven and tried, and I know literally hundreds of people that have done the same thing that I've talked to Visit cornerstonegundogacademycom and learn how to train your own retriever. All right, welcome to Gun Dog Nation. This is Kenneth Witt, coming to you from Texas.
Speaker 1:Today I have some special guests that I'm excited to get on here. Even given their young age, these young ladies have a lot of experience hunting, and I think they kind of make me look bad. I they're calling, I'm talking to them from Central Kentucky and, as most people know, I'm a Kentuckian too, and so it's kind of neat to have them on there. They have another friend they hunt with, who's also my friend's daughter, and she's in London. She could be with us tonight, but we might get her on later. I have all of you on, but, hannah, since I know you the longest's, let's start with you and introduce yourself sure thing.
Speaker 2:My name is Hannah Hall. I grew up here in central Kentucky, actually got into hunting later on in life, so I'm just here to share my experience and how that's going nice and then Abby.
Speaker 1:How long have you been hunting, or Abby? Introduce yourself first, I'm sorry um, I'm Abby Binzer.
Speaker 3:I'm live in central Kentucky now. Um used to grew up in the city in Louisville, um, but now in central Kentucky now. Um used to grew up in the city in Louisville, um, but now in central Kentucky, and I also started later in life. Um, my parents didn't grow up hunting or anything like that, so a couple of years now you know, don't feel bad.
Speaker 1:Like you know I'm, I'm I'm crazy about hunting, but my dad didn't hunt either. He was a musician and my mom obviously didn't hunt. And my brothers don't hunt. They're was a musician and my mom obviously didn't hunt and my brothers don't hunt, they're musicians. So I'm the only one but I'm obsessed. So you know, all three of us are living proof that you don't have to grow up in a hunting family to love it right.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 1:And you girls seem like you're addicted. I mean, at first I followed Hannah and I met probably two years ago, roughly.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think so, I believe so In.
Speaker 1:London, Kentucky. You were living there at the time I was. I realized you were hunting pretty heavy. That's how we got to talking. But tell me, what all kinds of hunting do you ladies do?
Speaker 2:Well, I'll start with. I began hunting in 2021. I got taken out turkey hunting. Well, I'll start with. I began hunting in 2021. I got taken out turkey hunting and after I shot my first turkey I was 100% addicted. So then I followed into bow hunting whitetail here in Kentucky and then started chasing ducks and geese and after that it's just been. Every season has been full of hunting. I mean I've changed my whole entire lifestyle to do it.
Speaker 1:You drank the Kool-Aid, didn't you't you.
Speaker 2:I mean, you went whole hog for sure that's.
Speaker 1:I love it so, and that's the thing too, like on the podcast, and we're going to talk about dogs. Of course, this is a dog podcast, but you know I want people. How do you, ladies?
Speaker 2:I'm 26. I'll be 27 coming up.
Speaker 1:I'm 24 okay, that's what I mean, that's what we want to do. We want to get other young people. We got to keep our sport alive right, we got to keep our heritage going, and it's not going to happen if young people do not get involved in hunting and do not get involved with gundogs. And that's one of the reasons I wanted to get a hold of y'all, because I follow you on social media and it's it's insane how much y'all hunt and I get jealous. I mean, you girls are like nailing it. I went duck hunted, I spent a whole day in Stuttgart never fired my gun, you know, and then I saw y'all down there killing it, you know. But um, so 2021 we're four years in absolutely no, okay, abby, what about you?
Speaker 1:when did you get started and what got you into it?
Speaker 3:um. So I've always like had an interest um, I guess, in it, but it never like. Where I lived, grew up, it wasn't very big um, and then I went to school at eku down in richmond, so it was a little bit bigger um, and my cross-country coach from high school he actually did hunt but didn't really talk about it or anything and I was friends with him on Facebook and so I just reached out and was like hey, I'm interested in um deer hunting. Like is there any way you could help me out? Um. So he was kind of my mentor for deer um. So I hunted with him two or three seasons. He sat with me um, which was so helpful.
Speaker 3:I learned so much um and he could have just been like blew me off, I guess um and did his own thing, but he sat there, he helped me. He like taught me everything um. In my first season I shot at a buck unfortunately missed um, but it just kind of lit a fire that I wanted to continue um. So I've deer hunted longer than anything else um haven't gotten a buck yet. So working on that um and then started duck hunting or waterfowl two or three years ago. I guess my fiancee was into it at the time, and then, um, started turkey hunting too, but haven't gone to turkey, so fingers crossed.
Speaker 1:While we're on that subject, your fiancee is getting ready to be your husband, correct?
Speaker 3:yes, yes, next Saturday, the 26th, congratulations.
Speaker 2:Thank you. What's that? She knows. I love her so much because she's the only wedding I would go to during turkey season. If there were anyone else in the world, I just absolutely wouldn't go, but I just have to be there for a special day.
Speaker 1:I'd probably be that way too, yeah it takes something special. So how did you two meet?
Speaker 3:We met like we knew each other, I guess on social media. You went to high school with some girls that I knew and then it was like right before Thanksgiving this year or I guess 2024. Right, wasn't it? After Thanksgiving Might have been after.
Speaker 3:I don't remember right around that time, um, and I put in a like Facebook, women of waterfowl Facebook group. Like hey, anyone in Kentucky you want to go hunt together? Um, and I think you reached out. Yes, macy reached out, one of her friends reached out, and then a girl, um, who lives closer to louisville, she reached out. So we made a plan, got together, met, break nearly at a boat, or not at a boat ramp, but like at public land, and it kind of went from there so now, abby, did you start that page or you just found that page?
Speaker 1:um, I found it just like searching around okay, so if other people, other lady hunters who might be interested in hunting, how would what would they do? What do you recommend?
Speaker 2:if you want to answer, I would recommend. So I basically got started in the girls hunting groups, which is what taught me a lot about waterfowl hunting. Um, I just got on the different women's groups and all these different girls posts like now, kind of hosting girls hunts is very popular. So people will make posts and say, hey, we have this many slots, whatever's included, and then you just kind of reach out and see what else in the group and decide if you can go or not okay, and are there other social media platforms that y'all attract hunters on?
Speaker 3:instagram and facebook for sure, I think facebook's probably mostly, since there's you can have facebook groups with how many ever?
Speaker 1:people, right, I mean there's tens of thousands of girls you can hunt anywhere in the country no, so as far as the ones I've seen you y'all post, how many is in the gang like you do y'all have like your own gang of girls that hunt?
Speaker 2:I would say there's definitely like a. I've gotten closer with a lot of girls. I could probably name like 10 or 15 girls that I would take on a hunt, but relatively in in a good group, if you need a smaller group like 10 or 15 girls, that I would take on a hunt Wow, but relatively in a good group.
Speaker 1:If you need a smaller group like eight or nine, what's the largest group of ladies that y'all have had on a hunt together?
Speaker 2:The largest group I've hunted with this past season was 18.
Speaker 1:Wow.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:No way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it was pretty insane.
Speaker 1:I'd say, where was that at?
Speaker 2:That was in Stuttgart, arkansas. We actually split up, so one group went goose hunting while the other ones went duck hunting, and then they swapped the next day, so everyone got a chance.
Speaker 1:Okay, that's incredible, and I think maybe Macy had already gotten into that group. But I was trying to introduce Hannah, you and her, because I knew you both and at that time I thought you were still in London and she lived there. So well, that's incredible. You know, unfortunately, my two daughters one is an animal ever wouldn't want. She honestly would not kill a bug. That's my redhead. You've seen her on social media.
Speaker 1:Yes, my older daughter went deer hunting when she was real little, but she's, she's not against it, she just she's got two kids so she didn't have time. My, my son's one, my oldest son, justin, shot a deer when he was young. Done with it, yeah, careless, he just doesn't like it. Gage my youngest son the ones that UK, he, he hunts, but he doesn't have a lot of time, but anyway, I love it. I wish all my kids honey, but hey, I wish my brothers honey, you know, but just the way it is. So well, I'm going to talk to both of y'all about a lot of things, but, abby, I can't take it any longer. Let's get into this. So you have Labrador Retrievers.
Speaker 3:Yes, I've got two Chocolate Labs. Don't hate me for having chocolate, because I get a lot of chocolate slander, um, but yeah, I've got two ones, two and a half um, he's my male nitro. And then I've got she turned 18 months yesterday, I think, did you train those yourself so it's a long story.
Speaker 3:Um, my male, nitro, my fiance, at the time when we kind of like we knew each other but we just started dating, he was like I kind of want a dog, um, and I was like actually I might have one that you might be interested in. Um, and it's a breeder that was out in oldham county at the time and we got like our family labs from her and stuff. But all of her breedings were um junior hunt or above. She would send her uh, females away to get titled, actually down in Texas um, send them away for a little bit and then bring them back um, and so we got our family labs from her, but he hunted at the time and he wanted to kind of train one things like that, and so it was kind of a perfect fit um, and so he got him when we first started dating. So I guess he's our dog, but technically his dog it's soon to be your dog.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I kind of took, not took over, but did most of the training as far as I could get. I had no idea what I was doing. I was watching YouTube videos, things like that. Didn't know anybody really like around here that had like training or did training like that I guess. So I sort of did his training and then sent him away. It didn't work out. He shut down because he's very soft um, so brought him back.
Speaker 3:We spent a couple months, I guess, just playing fun bumpers, uh, trying to get his drive back up, and we took him out hunting a few times and he what he loved it um, but he just didn't want to train. So that was kind of, I guess, hard um. And then the breeder did a repeat breeding and that's where we got my female um. So I did, I guess, basic obedience with her and then she's away at training. She was went there last year for a few months um. He got her up to started. I ran her and started tests, got her started title um. We hunted with her this year and then she went back in march. So she'll be there until july now y'all you.
Speaker 1:You ran her in ukc. The hrc same thing, I guess yes did you run akc with her? No, just ukc well let me ask you this, because I've just I've run started in akc junior both this year and I'm getting ready to do my last one next, not this weekend, but next. I'll finish up on hrc, but, uh, do you get nervous when you're handling your dog?
Speaker 3:absolutely. Yes, it is terrifying. Um and nitro I. It was this time last year. Um, I found central kentucky uh hunting retriever association on facebook and um saw that they were, I guess, doing a like training day. So I signed up, became a member.
Speaker 3:Um showed up to this, like the location that they said did not know anybody at all, um, and it was terrifying. But everyone was so nice, so helpful. Um and he, like nitro, I guess, really didn't have that formal training so and I was like he'll pick up a bird, he picks up bumpers, um, it'll be fine. Well, I brought him up to the line. Someone shot for me. He went out to the bird, looked at the bird, looked at me, would not pick the bird up, um, and I was so upset but they were all like it's okay, like we'll help you work through it, um, things like that. And they like ever since then they've been so helpful.
Speaker 3:I meet up with people to train things like that and I was determined to get his started title. I was like I'll do whatever it takes. So I had actually signed up for a started test the week after the training day and everyone's like probably should scratch, like don't like risk it, things like that. I'm like, I am determined. Probably not the best idea, I should have taken it slower. But his first test I was shaking, I was so scared we didn't pass, which oh well, whatever. But we passed Sunday and then it just took us a little while.
Speaker 1:You failed the first day and passed the second.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah.
Speaker 1:That's impressive, you know, because when you fail like that, it gets even worse. Nervous.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I failed this past weekend. Yeah, and my dog did awesome. I in akc you can't send your dog until they say either dog or the number and hrc. They don't do that. Yeah, I kind of got flustered and yeah, so anyway, and I've been done. You know I've got a little bit of experience, but so anyway. So, hannah, you and I had a conversation before we started about dogs and you want one. But you're being responsible. Tell us about that.
Speaker 2:I am. So I knew I wanted. Whenever I got into duck hunting I always knew that I wanted a dog, but when I hunted with Abby and Margo this past season it just made me want one even more. I mean it's a whole nother level of hunting. You're hunting with your best friend. I mean she's riding with you to trips, she's snuggled up in the bed with you at night and then, you know, at duck camp there's like five to 10 dogs running around. Everyone has one. It's just a whole other level to things. Honestly. But just like Ken says, it's like having a baby and I know that it's a lifestyle I'm just not 100% prepared for and I just want to be fully ready and committed to the dog before I get into something like that.
Speaker 1:I'll tell you something, hannah, that's very smart. I've even periods of my life been so busy that I've gotten a dog and really couldn't get the attention I wanted, and it wasn't fair to the dog, you know. But that so busy that I've gotten a dog and really couldn't get the attention I wanted, and it wasn't fair to the dog, you know. But that's, that's smart. You know, both of you ladies have both hunted with dogs and you've also done hunting that doesn't require dogs or don't even allow dogs, like deer hunting. Right, right, so I will see what you think.
Speaker 1:So I've deer hunted for many, many years, before you girls were ever born, and for having hunted did everything. But to me, once I really got into bird hunting and waterfowl upland, both there's just nothing like hunting with dogs. I mean I almost don't even care if I shoot deer anymore. You know, and I never thought I'd say that, but could you feel I mean, can you do you all get it? I know you're young and you still got want to kill a big deer and and or more deer. Uh, but what do you think about that?
Speaker 3:um, I like after hunting, especially with margo, my own dog um she went out to she hunted with us here. Um I her first true hunt was a speckled belly hunt opening weekend in arkansas. Um, and then after that I'm like, honestly, I don't even care if I shoot a bird or shoot anything, I just want to run my dog and watch her go pick up birds.
Speaker 1:So yeah, I'm the same way and I never thought I wouldn't want to say that, oh, I don't even care if I shoot anything. I'm getting to that point that I just yeah, it's, it's, it's just. And Hannah said it best. I mean you're a team, it's, it's, it's just, and, and hannah said it best. I mean you're a team, it's your teammate, it's your best friend, it's. And the bond that you get hunting with a dog, you know is, is beyond just a, a regular pet owner relationship, you know yeah so let's, let's get into this.
Speaker 1:So y'all deer hunt, both of you, right right and hannah, I think we talked a little bit. You bow hunt too.
Speaker 2:I do.
Speaker 1:Abby, do you bow hunt?
Speaker 3:No, I have a bow, but I'm not strong enough to pull it back, so we're working on it. Just practice. Yeah, practice things like that.
Speaker 1:Hannah, have you got to shoot one with a bow yet?
Speaker 2:I haven't the only buck that I've shot. It was actually in Arkansas. I was gun hunting. It was like one of the best hunts as far as like seasons, or I should say you and I hunted that morning. I can't remember what we hunted. We duck or goose hunted? I think we duck hunted.
Speaker 2:We duck hunted and then on our way up to the northern part of the state I stopped and hunted with some friends. We killed some ducks down there and then I shot my deer that night. But I have not shot a buck with my bow yet. I would say I'm a deer hunter but not a deer killer. I don't have as much patience as soon as duck season starts rolling in. I don't know, I just get my mind on the ducks.
Speaker 1:Yeah Well, you know, as I got older I don't have any more. You know I got. I don't sit all day in a stand anymore, you know Right. And that's actually it's kind of, why have you have y'all either one upland hunted yet?
Speaker 3:I have. I've done like upland training with the dog, but haven't upland hunted yet.
Speaker 2:So my first upland hunt was up in wisconsin in park falls, actually in the grouse capital of the world, and I really enjoyed that was my first time ever hunting over dogs, so I enjoyed watching the dogs work when you're getting ready to go on your next hunting trip, make sure you pack the most efficient and reliable ammunition on the market.
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Speaker 2:Well, I will say the best time of year to go is in October, but we went the first week in November so we were hunting in snow up to our shins. So a lot of the birds were kind of burrowed down in the ground and it was like we were hunting over a lot of really young dogs, mostly setters, and they were way out in front of us so they were busting birds that we didn't get to shoot most of the time. But again, they were just young dogs but I enjoyed watching them.
Speaker 1:Did y'all get to shoot any?
Speaker 2:We did. We did get a few and I got to try grouse for the first time and absolutely love upland birds. They taste delicious.
Speaker 1:They do, especially grouse and quail. They're white meat.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:So, Abby, you said you were doing upland training. Was that the hunting club, the training club?
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah, they were putting on a spring upland test this past year and I was like I'll just see what Margo does. So we had two training days, but I didn't run her in the test, we just did training for fun.
Speaker 1:You know I want to try upland test too, because I do. Two of my labs are hardcore pheasant hunters. They've been. My buddy, who's a guide, runs my dogs for me for about seven weeks on pheasant. Then I go up and hunt and then bring them back. But anyway, there's just no upland test in Texas. You cannot. There's I don't think there's one in the whole state and I checked the hunt secretary and the entry express you know websites which has all the tests on them.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Can't find anything and I see a few. You know Midwest and I guess Kentucky has some.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I think. I'm not sure if Western Kentucky does, but I know, like Central Kentucky, HRA has one that they put on in the spring.
Speaker 2:Have either of y'all pheasant hunted.
Speaker 1:Yet I not pheasant hunted, but I would love to. And I tell you, uh, I've only this is only my fourth year going back and I, I'm it hit me hard, I love it, I'm absolutely obsessed. I go to south dakota and hunt wild birds and, uh, I talk about on every podcast. I'm sure people are sick of hearing about it, but I absolutely love it. And the guy that I, the guy, my first episode on here, episode number one, is with the guy that I go to, scott Knee Neighbor, and I'm sure there's lots of good people, but I highly recommend him and there's probably lots of others too.
Speaker 1:I'm not trying to knock anybody else, but it's he knows what he's doing. He's born and raised there and he's done it since he was in his teens and he's 40-something and he uses labs. You know a lot of people use setters or whatever pointers, but those guys use nothing but labs. But yeah, if you ever want to, well, I'll tell you how to get up with him. We get off here if you're interested. Or, like I said, you all may know somebody yourself, but Absolutely I definitely suggest it.
Speaker 2:Opportunity to pheasant hunt, but they were all pen raised birds and I don't know. I just would much rather hunt wild birds if I had the choice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I did. I did pen raise this week at a place in near in Bernie, texas. You know it's a, it's an Orvis ranch. You know it's a pay deal pin. You know pin raise bird. But I will say this is good practice because they still fly pretty quick and stuff. But you're right, it's, it's, it's not the same. And what I like about you can walk, you don't have to be quiet, you don't have to worry about how you smell and you can work with your dogs and you'll walk quite a ways. But anyway, that's what I've gotten into. So do you girls have day jobs?
Speaker 3:I do. Yeah, I work for Toyota Motor Manufacturing here in Kentucky.
Speaker 1:Yes, I got a lot of friends work there.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I've been there two years.
Speaker 1:One of the finest guitar players I know he plays a lot of blues and slide guitar from my hometown is Scott Dixon. You don't know Scott.
Speaker 3:Dixon no, there's so many people. I think there's like 10,000 people at the plant. Yeah, it's huge, but yeah, it keeps me busy.
Speaker 1:And I said it's a good place to work right.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah, my group is so good with allowing me me because I work like a desk job allowing me to take some PTO to go on hunting trips, things like that. My people, my group, hunt things like that. My one of my co-workers may used to make, I guess, turkey calls, so I bought one from him last year and one of my friends, Cameron, came up here to hunt turkey hunt, I think, yeah last year and she, within 10 minutes of us sitting down, she used it and she was able to kill her turkey.
Speaker 1:No way I need that, I think you know I don't know where you've hunted, but now I've killed all the turkey species but a Miriam and I was actually supposed to go this week and I just couldn't. I wasn't able to get away. But to me the Easterns are the hardest. Here in Texas we have Rios and you know I've shot an Osceola. I killed an Osceola last year in Florida, but I think Easterns are the hardest. Maybe it's just me, but that's what I think.
Speaker 2:That's what I've heard. That's all I've ever hunted. I'm interested to see what the other ones are like.
Speaker 1:I'm not trying to act like some turkey expert, but at least my experience has been. I've killed a lot more here, but they seem to be more aggressive coming in the Rios. The Osceola was a little tricky. It was tricky, it was. It was harder, but not as hard as the eastern, I don't think right anyway but I've not got to go this year working too much, it's, it's killing me. Um. So now, hannah, what do you do? What's your? What's your full-time, or are you a full-time hunter?
Speaker 2:so when I said that I'm addicted to hunting, I mean I changed my entire lifestyle.
Speaker 1:So explain that I meant to dig on that for you. Let's hear that.
Speaker 2:So I was in HR for five to six years and then when I moved to London, you know, there just wasn't a whole lot of HR opportunities. So I started working back in the restaurant industry, which I had done through college, and whenever I moved back home I just continued doing that. I've got a couple other things going on on the side, but I don't know, the restaurant industry just allows me to up and go whenever I want. I mean, some trips are so spontaneous you get a call and you drop everything and you're driving overnight to get across the country to go hunt somewhere. So you know, with HR I could only get one to two weeks out of the year and that just you know. The money compared to the lifestyle just wasn't worth it for me.
Speaker 1:I envy you really bad.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I need more freedom Because I get so many opportunities to hunt and I can't because I got to have a date. I work myself, but still Fair enough and that's the worst Cause I got you know I have a date, I work for myself, but still. Yeah, fair enough. And that's the worst when you work for yourself, you don't eat. You know you don't work, you don't eat. So, yeah, oh man. No, that's great, I love it. So you're, that's a real change in lifestyle, right?
Speaker 2:So you obviously have a college degree, right, I went through college, but I did not graduate college.
Speaker 1:Where'd you go?
Speaker 2:Actually I went to BCTC. It's like a community college in Lexington.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I lived right over beside my dorm, was over beside the BCT. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I was actually coaching girls lacrosse while I was in school and one of the board members. I had no idea what career path I wanted to do, but one of the board members got me into HR and after I got my foot in the door, experience just really got me a long way. So at that point I really didn't need a degree.
Speaker 1:And I didn't think taking the loans out was really worth it. You know, I I, even though I've got a law degree and all that stuff, I don't disagree with that. And I had a guy on last night who had a hundred over 160 hours from Mississippi state state, clark, kennington, famous dog trainer, and a guy for you, yeah, if he lives in kansas, but he's a mississippian and he's and he he probably makes a killing. I don't want to talk about his income but I just assume because I know what it costs to train a dog a monthly to board and train this, but you generally a thousand dollars a month and these guys have 30 dogs. That's $30,000 a month. You know what I mean. I mean, I don't know how many dogs he has and I'm not getting into his financial business, I'm just trying to say he's happy, he loves what he does and he had 160 hours with no degree in college and just quit. So this is what I want to do. So the reason I envy that is I was the opposite.
Speaker 1:I was so ocd I had to get graduated. I went straight through college, uk, four years. I was out. Straight through law school three years I was out, took the bar passed, you know, started working. I had no life and now, you know, I kind of wish maybe I was a little more free spirited. But that's all right, I'm trying it now. But no, I'm glad it's so nice to hear you all getting to do that, but so do you, do you still get people? I mean it's just, how frequent are people reaching out to you all on on your social media platforms saying, hey, girls, I want to do this, how can I get involved? That's never hunted before. How many people, what percentage of the percentage of people, who reach out to y'all on social media? How many of those, would you say are brand new, never hunted in their life, but want to learn?
Speaker 2:I would say a handful, I wouldn't say a large percentage. I know that. You know, growing up the way I did, I did a lot of outdoor stuff but I had an interest in hunting, just never had the opportunity and I know a lot of people from my hometown and kind of that local area have reached out about it. Um, and that's mostly just knowing each other from way back in the day really.
Speaker 1:Now am I correct, Hannah? Are you from Versailles?
Speaker 2:I am from Versailles.
Speaker 1:Okay, I love Versailles, I love that area you know I told Abby earlier, while you were fixing stuff, that I had a place on the Henry Franklin County line.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:For a long time. But I think I've got a cousin. My mom's first cousin lives in Brazil and he had a little cigarette store there for years and years. I think he sold it still there.
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, his name's David Coghlan, my mom's first cousin, but anyway. So when's your next hunting trip? You hunted today, didn't you, hannah, right?
Speaker 2:I did. It's funny. I worked until about 1130 last night, booked at home, and then turned around and left by 330 this morning. Then I turkey hunted and in between I had four work calls. I do social media and marketing on the side so I would get out of the woods, take my calls, get back in the woods. So I've been hunting hard the last week but there's just one bird that's just made it personal. I'm dying to harvest him. How big, well the thing is. He's very weary. I got him in about 80 yards. I could hear him spitting, drumming, and we were fighting two hens over him. Um, you know, I got a glimpse of him, but but he just never would leave those live hens.
Speaker 1:I don't know if it's coincidence, but I've seen a lot of turkey up around Henry County edge of Franklin. When I had that place too, a friend of mine up there who's from Leslie County where I'm from Bill Wells his son killed a few years ago a turkey with four beards. They were full of beards, it wasn't like straggly beards, it was four full beards and they were full, full bird. It wasn't like straggly beards, it was full, four full beards, huge, and I'd see twin bearded turkeys up there all the time but seemed like some of the biggest and most bearded turkeys I ever saw was in that area right, but in case I want to say, my bird last year was 10 and a half or 11 inches on the beard.
Speaker 2:I mean, I really do think he was a three or three and a half year old bird.
Speaker 1:Wow, do y'all hunt? I know there's not a lot of public land where you're from. Do y'all just lease places?
Speaker 2:I only hunt public. That's why I had to get up so early this morning. It's about two hours away from where I live.
Speaker 1:Is it real crowded on the public land?
Speaker 2:It depends on where you go. I hunt a lot of daniel boone, but ever since hunting public came through that area I think last year, I ran into people from all over the country I just won't even hunt daniel boone hardly anymore because it's just very overran. So I kind of stay out of the way of that region.
Speaker 1:You know it's been years ago I was actually in college, so it was a long time. I hunted the Redbird Wildlife Management Area in Leslie and Clay County. Okay, and deer hunted opening day and it sounded like Vietnam.
Speaker 3:You're in hill country, I mean, it's like I'll never hunt here again if I get out here alive.
Speaker 1:And I love the game reserve. I've spent years hunting and whatever and through there, but man, it's tough.
Speaker 2:You're getting into elk country. Up there it's beautiful, though.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I was county attorney when we first let elk into Kentucky. I was the county attorney for Lexington County and someone poached an elk, led elk into Kentucky. I was the county attorney for Lester County. Someone poached an elk. I was the first county attorney. I was the first prosecutor in Kentucky that ever prosecuted an elk poaching case. I got an award from the state. It was a big deal. This would have been probably 1999-2000. The elk they brought in probably 2000, 99, 2000. Um, the elk they brought in, they all had collars on stuff and they brought them in trains from Colorado maybe, but they were tame. I mean you could walk up and pet elk. It didn't last long, maybe a year, year and a half, but you all kinds of people in Lacey County but they'd have pictures and videos of them petting elk, bulls or cows. But it seems like they haven't flourished as well in the last three or four years. Is that still the case?
Speaker 2:Well, I know, down in London I had a friend who had a collared female on camera and then a young bull. So they're kind of moving over towards the London area From what I've heard. I have a friend that hears some bugling around their property, but I've never drawn a tag or anything.
Speaker 1:Well, last story, I'll shut up talking. But I was hunting tree stand on top of a ridge in Leslie County and it was a real quiet, beautiful morning and all of a sudden I heard it. Growing up in Leslie County I never heard an elk elk bugle, didn't you know what it sounded like? And it bugled loud right under me, behind me, scared. I've never been so scared my life. I wanted to jump out of the tree. I was scared to death and I looked down. It was an elk. You know I'd never heard that sound, can you imagine? You know I'd never heard it on tv or anything and I'll never forget that. But I've killed elk in Colorado and New Mexico but never got drawn in Kentucky.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 1:And I finally quit putting in.
Speaker 3:Yeah, do you all put in? I do.
Speaker 2:I think they changed the point system from what I understand, but I just put in when I bought my turkey tag.
Speaker 1:Now do you all do the quota deer hunts? There's some good ones in Kentucky like Fort Knox and stuff.
Speaker 2:I have Up here in central Kentucky. I was drawn. That was like the only other time I've gun hunted.
Speaker 1:Was it Taylorsville? Where'd you get drawn?
Speaker 2:Gosh, this was like three years ago. I can't even remember the WMA. It was on, but it was on public and there was quite a few people who got drawn for our little area.
Speaker 1:So, and both you girls are doing public land right.
Speaker 3:I think like luckily enough able to hunt some acreage up in like northern scott county um. It's only like 35 acres or so um, but my fiance's parents have some property up there, so there's huge deer um, but there it's. There's just so much pressure from the neighbors and we're so close together um that it makes it very tricky. But whenever I do get my buck first buck it'll make everything worth it yeah, yeah, it does.
Speaker 1:It took when I was young. It took me a long time.
Speaker 3:I remember that it was frustrating yeah, it's so frustrating yeah yeah, it's well.
Speaker 1:Especially you can shoot young bucks all day. But to get a good mature buck, they're smart and you gotta earn it. I'll tell people here in texas you know it's here, you know we turn on feeders and they come out. But it's when you kill a big buck at home it's you earn it, it's not yeah yeah, have you ever? Yes, I'm sorry, abby.
Speaker 3:Last year there was a huge buck on my camera. I only got him twice and it was both times. Once I was out in Arkansas and that was the day he got killed by the neighbor, and then the other time was when I was in Maryland for the Waterfowl Festival and it was upsetting but I was like See, there you're going duck hunting and you lose any deer yeah that's depressing it's a bird hunter for you yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, you see what your priorities are. That's okay. Have y'all ever? I know it's probably not any. I don't know if there's a lot of ladies in the sport. Do y'all ever coon hunt? Have you ever coon hunted?
Speaker 2:I haven't. No, I don't know anyone with coon dogs.
Speaker 3:Um, I think the one of the girls that we hunted with in november, yeah, she uh coon hunt and I think she might have coon dogs, right you know it's, that it's.
Speaker 1:I've never. I was never, even when I lived in kentucky. I was never a big coon hunter but I've went a few times and but I love to watch and I love to go. But you know, I've had two people from Kentucky, two world champions are from Kentucky, actually Eastern Kentucky on here. The current world champion is from my hometown in Hyden, casey Maggard, his dog and then a two-time world champion, the winningest dog out right now is from Clay County and he lives in London, jr gray. Okay, but uh, you know, if you ever get so, I'll just give you a little little insight. If you ever got into that sport and you like hunting with dogs, there's big money in that. In that industry it's not like, like this, retrievers, I get ribbons and I'm I'm probably a hundred dollars in the hole. You know, every time I do it and these guys are making thousands of dollars, we win a ribbon, they win a truck.
Speaker 1:You know it's insane and I thought I'm in the wrong business because I've had them on here. I'm realizing. You know, some of these guys are getting six figures or earning six figures on a coon dog Wow, unbelievable. So maybe we all need to switch over. Switch over to coon hunting wow, unbelievable, so maybe we all need to switch over.
Speaker 2:But uh, yeah, yeah, heck, there you go, hannah you want to hunt and quit, quit working full time.
Speaker 1:There you go absolutely yeah, and it's all about, it's all about the dog, but anyway. So do y'all, for upcoming waterfowl season, do you have your hunts already planned out, or do you? How do y'all do that? You do it last minute, or.
Speaker 3:For me, cause last year I hosted two or three with some outfitters. One was opening weekend of specs and that was my dog's first hunt, and then I think I hosted two others a duck hunt and then a snow goose hunt yeah, with the trainer and his buddy that owns the outfitter, which I didn't bring her. That was going to be too chaotic for her for being so young. But I'll post, I'll reach out to outfitters and then post on that Facebook group. Um, trying to fill spots, probably a little bit closer to season.
Speaker 1:Hello, this is Kenneth Witt, and gun dog nation is proud to have one of their sponsors as retriever training. Based in Alabama. Retriever Training Supply offers fast shipping on quality gear. Your dog will love it. Visit RetrieverTrainingSupplycom to purchase gear to help you train your retriever. Listen, they have some of the best leashes I've ever found. It's stuff made in America. Their leashes are, and they source them locally. They have anything you want fast, friendly service, fast shipping, just good people. Retriever Training Supply what states Now? Did both of y'all go to the Sandhill Crane Hunt?
Speaker 2:No, I did not.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:Me and Macy went to that one Okay.
Speaker 1:You know, abby, y'all are really close. I'm here in Midland today. Okay, y'all are really close to me, but my ranch is down southeast of here, about three hours from Midland. It's two hours from San Antonio, but when y'all were here, I had just left Midland and I had just hunted up there. You all didn't go to Lubbock, did you? You went to sterling city or something.
Speaker 3:No, maybe I'm not really sure. I just knew we were out out in west texas with the oil fields that's what.
Speaker 1:Yeah, how'd you think about the desert?
Speaker 3:it's. It was cool, it was cold. I was not expecting it to be that cold, but it was cold. But it was so fun. And then we waterfowl hunted a cow pond um sunday and that was probably the most fun I've had um yeah, we did.
Speaker 3:yeah, we did really good. I got my um day. It was one of the first like birds to come in um and they called the shot and no one like pulled up to shoot except for me, and I don't know how it happened. I took one shot and it was a hen wigeon and she fell and then I was like I was ecstatic, I was like never going to shoot that one again.
Speaker 1:Hannah, have you ever hunt crane yet?
Speaker 2:I haven't, I would like to though.
Speaker 1:Have you shot some? Yes yeah, yeah, it was fun can you believe how big they are?
Speaker 3:they're massive and to see the dogs work with them it's crazy.
Speaker 1:Don't watch so the dogs that you all were using, or the guys were using, you didn't have your dogs, did you? No, no did they use goggles?
Speaker 3:I don't think they did Okay.
Speaker 1:I didn't either.
Speaker 3:They might have had them just in case and might have thrown them on, but I didn't really see them having them on, Especially when they go out there and those cranes are so big.
Speaker 1:I mean they're, I don't know, three and a half foot high. If they're still alive, it's not fun.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they're feisty.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and they'll put a dog's eyes out in a second.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So it's neat. But yeah, there's, I've, I've. That's another hunting I do every year, I always. We do Sandhill crane, we do a three day and it's just a hundred, it's not even an hour and a half from here, but uh, did you eat it?
Speaker 3:I haven't yet. I still need to cook it. I've got some meat that I flew back with, but just need to find the right time.
Speaker 1:Hannah, you got to make her give you some of that.
Speaker 2:I know I need to brag a little bit.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's called the ribeye of the sky for a reason. It looks like a filet mignon when you fix it, the guy that I always go with up there. His name is dusty brown. I need to get him on here sometime, but he wrote. He has the recipe on sicka's website for sandhill crane, which is very simple it's olive oil and butter or something like that. But you can get on there and pull that up on sicka and his.
Speaker 1:That recipe's on there, it's real simple yeah, you just pan fry it, but it's good, it's. Yeah, it's the best, definitely the best waterfowl mate I've ever had yeah, that's what I've heard, so but yeah, so I think the ones we go with the outfitter called final descent okay yeah, and it's just outside of Lubbock. You have to check them out and they have they do it right. I mean it's a pretty good setup.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So now, Abby, you haven't mentioned turkey. This year Are you turkey hunting?
Speaker 3:I turkey hunted Are you wedding planning A little bit of both. I turkey hunted, I guess opening day Didn't have any luck, um, they just weren't cooperating, um, and then had to work. So maybe next week I'm taking a couple days off and like before the wedding, so might try to go then for a little bit that'd be a good stress relief pre-wedding stress relief yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's. I think I mentioned to you. My daughter got married in December 1st.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 1:And she, she's actually starting to do event planning, wedding planning stuff.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we.
Speaker 1:I don't think I yeah, not for me either Too much emotion, right, I think I yeah. Not for me either Too much emotion right Too emotional ladies.
Speaker 3:That's not a fun thing Right, I just had like so much going on with work, um, with like dog stuff, so that I ended up sending Margo back to her trainer.
Speaker 1:Um, who's the trainer that you use? If you don't mind me asking.
Speaker 3:Um, his name's actually Alan Jackson. Um, not the singer, um, but his, like I guess, company's lattice creep retrievers okay, where's he at? Somewhere in indiana okay I know it's like an hour north of princeton, indiana what princ Princeton's right on the line right. Yes, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, okay.
Speaker 3:But he's done an amazing job with her so far and she loves it, loves being there.
Speaker 1:You know, hannah, there's a lot of ladies now in the industry that have kind of made this outdoor life their life, their business, hunting and stuff. Do you have those aspirations?
Speaker 2:I do, um, I have a couple things going that I don't necessarily want to spill the beans on just yet, so I'm ready to open those blood gates. But something I am starting just out of pure love of duck hunting is waterfowl taxidermy. So I've got about seven or eight ducks I'm gonna get started on. I've gotta finish getting shop set up, um. But I just saw a lot of my friends that were traveling had no place to take their birds, so I figured you know I'm already with them.
Speaker 2:I think doing mounts and preserving what you've hunted is super important, so I figured you know, why not just capture that for my friends and start there and eventually go on with that hopefully? But something else I've really wanted to do was drone recovery for deer. That's something else I've kind of played around with. And then there's also another company that I'll be taking over. It's called DIY Fishing. It's an informational page where you can kind of plan your own fishing trips, anywhere from fly fishing to bass fishing or musky. But I'll be booking fishing trips for people as well. So that's kind of something I've got going on at the moment.
Speaker 1:So you're going to take that, you're going to have that business that will be yours.
Speaker 2:Yes, I will be taking it over by the end of the summer. I went and actually, a friend that I worked with at Cabela's he's super knowledgeable about fly fishing and he started his website back in 2018, where he just wanted people to get out on the water and start fishing. And he started his website back in 2018, where he just wanted people to get out on the water and start fishing and he knows how much I like to do the social media marketing side of things. So he approached me and was like hey, you know, this is something I really would like you to take off and run with. So we're kind of in the in between of transferring at this moment.
Speaker 1:Wow, I think that's a great idea.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't know I've I've prayed a lot about it cause, I don't know, I just love the outdoor industry and it's something that fell in my lap and just kind of worked out.
Speaker 1:You know this is off my normal podcast subject, but I got into. I was laid off in 16 out here for an oil company and went back to Kentucky for a year and I still did land man work, but it's for telecom. Anyway, I got into muskie fishing while I was there and I got hooked I mean obsessed. I had a Gator G3 boat with a turbo where I could go in shallow water and man that's. So if you ever catch one, it's addictive and went with. My buddy was a guide and you know he taught me how. I had no clue, even though I grew up right next to the Middle Fork River which is full of huge muskie. But y'all if you like to fish and I bet y'all would love muskie fishing- I've heard it's a one in 1,000 cast fish.
Speaker 1:Do you think that they call it the fish of 10,000 cast? That was way off. Yeah, and now I think that's what they call it. Hannah, you might be right, but that's what I thought they called it. But well, I mean it's. I only caught I think only caught three, and only the first one I caught wasn't my biggest and it wasn't even big in my buddy's standards it was a 39 and a half inch and I had a rep cut of it but I turned it back loose. But yeah, those guys, I think they still gather in hazard over in hazard Right, and we we've caught one, caught them in Clay County and then one in Prairie County, yeah, anyway, sorry. Well, listen, we might have to. When you get all these business ventures going, we have to have you a show on here and let you talk about, you know, debut your business.
Speaker 2:I know I said I wasn't going to spill the beans, and then I just got too excited.
Speaker 1:No, I think that's great. I'm working on something too, and I won't say it on here yet, but hopefully I'll be announcing something pretty soon. Can you also hear me, okay?
Speaker 2:Yeah, of course.
Speaker 1:Okay, my light went yellow, Now it's green. Let me think there's something else I was going to ask you about. I lost my train of thought. I got musky fishing. That was a bad idea. So this fall, when does hunting season start for you girls? Like, when do you like you get you change the mode? I know turkey season, but like I'm talking about the fall, Is it deer?
Speaker 2:Is it?
Speaker 3:ducks.
Speaker 2:So I really start preparing for deer season in June. Last summer I did shoot, run, lift, every lift every single day and honestly I got burned out on deer because I took in my first private land kind of experience and I got so burned that it threw me off, kind of ruined my whole season as far as getting ahead of the game. So my deer season ended rather quickly and I got started on wood ducks in September. So after that I was just kind of enthralled with duck season at that point. Where did started on wood ducks in September? So after that I was just kind of enthralled with duck season at that point.
Speaker 1:Where did you do wood ducks at?
Speaker 2:In Western Kentucky on public.
Speaker 1:You know, here I am from Kentucky. I've never hunted Western Kentucky. Is it pretty good?
Speaker 2:I would say the only duck hunters I really know, besides Abby and a handful of others, all live out there. I mean, kentucky is just not a state to want to duck hunt, unless you go about four to five hours from here.
Speaker 3:On the Ohio River. If you want to risk your life, it's pretty good. One of my friends that lives out in Shelbyville, her and her boyfriend and friends hunt the river all the time river, yeah, yep, and they do so good, but it gets a little dangerous and I don't know just the water, so swift and strong yeah, yeah is that what you're? Meaning, yeah, the current barges? Um, I grew up sailing on the Ohio. Really I used to race sailboats and stuff.
Speaker 1:Really.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:That's pretty neat. I got a cousin in Richmond who used to be the vice president of Eastern Kentucky University, james Stringer. Okay, he sails. He's a sailboat person and he's been on the Ohio, took the river. I guess he's went from land between the lakes all the way to the Keys.
Speaker 2:Wow.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he hit the Mississippi and you go down without ever getting out of the water. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, and you raced sailboats. I don't know if I've ever met anybody that raced sailboats.
Speaker 2:I didn't know she did that. That's so cool yeah.
Speaker 3:I started, I guess, in eighth grade or in high school, because my dad grew up racing sailboats and stuff and he got back into it, so I traveled all over. I went out to san francisco, sailed on the bay there, uh, like tiny small boat, 16 foot or so, that's scary. That sounds kind of yeah, been on lake pontchartrain um in louisiana um, but the river always terrified me.
Speaker 1:The Ohio River.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah, duck hunting.
Speaker 2:I don't know, I know people do it, but we'll hunt it when everything else freezes up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I guess that freezes, but it's the end of time, right, right Can't be good enough. That's a boat racer.
Speaker 1:Seriously, I think you may be the first person I've ever talked to, especially being from Kentucky. Yeah, it's boat racer. That's seriously. I think you may be the first person I've ever talked to, especially being from kentucky, you know, yeah, it's not very calm yeah, if you're from the hamptons or something, I might see that. But yeah, that's. Yeah, that's very unique. What? What do you ever do it anymore? I mean?
Speaker 3:um, not really. No, my dad kind of got out of it too, um, and being in geor Georgetown, there's nowhere, um, so I kind of switched that focus to dogs and hunting and stuff, which I like better now.
Speaker 1:See, I think we all three have something in common we have to have a hobby.
Speaker 2:And when we get into a hobby.
Speaker 1:It's whole hog like hardcore.
Speaker 2:I don't do anything like it Every season.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that's this podcast, you know, and it's. I'm just very fortunate that people like it and it's it's six months old and we're 2,700 downloads a month. That's insane, it's. It's really crazy. But that's how I go with stuff. I mean, I went to Fezzit Fest and probably did meet and greets with probably five 6,000 people and promoting it, you know, and I go to hunt, test and promote it, and it's just when I do something I don't. You know that sounds like you girls are that way.
Speaker 2:All in.
Speaker 1:Yep, all in. Uh, some people think I'm crazy, but it's uh, yeah, I have to keep busy. Um, all right. Well, what would you tell young ladies maybe even you know youth age, like you know early teens what would you tell girls or listeners that maybe we can get them on, you know, listening to this podcast. What would you tell them to encourage them to hunt, and why?
Speaker 3:Why should they?
Speaker 1:do it.
Speaker 2:You can go first so I will say the way I learned a lot was just kind of diving in and researching and then a lot of trial and error. So after I went on my first turkey hunt, I hunted mostly by myself and it was mostly just learning from my own experience. But I would say connecting with the community was huge for me and kind of finding a mentor and that friend group, cause there's a lot of girls out there that are willing to help. Um, like Julia Gibson is one girl that I can think of. I think she held a couple um like beginner style hunts which she took her time to do those things which I think so cool, but she grew up hunting and finding someone similar that's willing to kind of extend their time and bring you under their wing is like huge.
Speaker 1:And if you could share someone your enthusiasm with a younger person that may contemplate getting in the sport. What makes it fun to you? Why do you love it? Try to try to see if you can convey that to them.
Speaker 3:You know if you were telling them, hey, here's why you should do this um, I guess I to speak for him like the dog, training, running, hunt, tests and stuff, just like having that bond with your dog, I guess, and building as a team. You get to watch them grow too, which I love watching and putting all the pieces together. I guess that's kind of what motivates me to keep going.
Speaker 1:Abby what I like and I'm sure you've you've experienced this. You can just see when that light bulb clicks on when they get it right yeah that's what I love. You know, like you've trained them to do something and even the hunt test, like now my dogs know. They look at those blinds where they're throwing ducks. The hunt test they know the game, but I remember the first time, you know we probably had two passes under our belt before that really happened.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know, like they get out there now. They know the game. They come out of the trailer, you know, and they're wired up and they know what's happening when they hear the gunshots and the duck calls. They know, and that's just a great thing, isn't it? But, yeah, so, but, but yeah, I mean Hannah, back to you. Like you, you obviously have fallen in love with the sport. All of the waterfowl upland, you know big game. What would you say to a young person, a young female, to, to try to entice them over to this world that we live?
Speaker 2:Gosh, it's hard, cause I love so many different aspects. Um, one of the biggest ones for me was community, which I really loved. That about waterfowl hunting was, you know, I got to meet Abby and little did I know. I lived 30 minutes away from her. We follow each other on social media for years, never met her, but you know she's a really good friend. Now I feel like I've made some of my best friends hunting and traveling, um, and also like when I get to hunt by myself, being able to accomplish those things is so rewarding. I get to sit there and eat the meat that I harvested and, you know, make different artwork or get birds mounted or whatever it may be. I don't know, it's just an all around like entire life change.
Speaker 1:I agree. And, Abby, if you've been to Hunt Test, you found this already. You know I've made some of my greatest friends now. Some of my closest friends now are guys I've met at Hunt Test women.
Speaker 3:there's women too you know they're, yeah, but do you find that? Yes, everyone like um has been so helpful in the hunt test community, um, so encouraging. It was very intimidating going in as a young female not knowing anything or anyone, and for them to be so welcoming has just been, I guess. So like it was a relief, I guess. But I've found, like multiple mentors that have helped me and just that sense of community as well.
Speaker 1:You know, abby, some of the best advice I've gotten in training which I go to seminars, I go to schools, but it's really been guys at hunt test and ladies at hunt test, not hunt test at the training club that I go to.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, hannah, look out, because I see your personality type is type A++. If you get a dog, it's over.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think I have to know?
Speaker 1:yeah, I think you'll be hunt test field trials huh I really do.
Speaker 2:I I think I definitely have to have a lab just seeing her do her thing. I have to brag on her because she was very modest before we went hunting with margo in arkansas and margo is a young dog, but seeing them work together as a team was, like I don't know, indescribable. It was really cool to watch. They were a really good pair.
Speaker 1:Well, macy talked about it. She's kind of like in the I'm not speaking for Macy, but what she's asking me about dogs and I've actually found a hunt test for her to go watch in Berea. But she's kind of like Hannah, she really wants a dog but she wants to wait till time's right, but she's dying for it but she's being smart about it. I don't blame you. You're doing the right thing. But yeah, if you start that, be prepared because you'll want to do like Abby, you'll want to be at hunt test because you know people like say well, I don't want hunt tests, I just want to meet dog and that's fine, that's perfectly fine.
Speaker 1:But to me it's more things I can do with my dog in off season is that? Do you agree, abby? I mean like yeah, and it's, it's helped me be a better trainer and a better handler and better everything. I just it's real fun.
Speaker 3:I'm hooked on the hunt test stuff too yeah, the hunt test and brea you're probably talking about is may 17th and 18th it's with Central Kentucky.
Speaker 1:Okay, so you belong to right. Yes, yeah.
Speaker 3:So I'll try to get Macy to come out there and watch a few dogs run.
Speaker 1:Well, I found that for and I sent her a screenshot of the test and the location and time and stuff. It's been probably a month ago.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 1:I think she's planning you, probably a month ago. I think she's planning on going. If she can, yeah, it'll be a fun weekend.
Speaker 1:Girls, you and I I figure three of us could talk for a long time about all this stuff. I know you all have things to do. It's been a pleasure because I really love y'all's enthusiasm about hunting, about hunting with dogs, about training a dog and working a dog. But I really hope that we can get more people involved and I think you ladies are actually doing that. You don't even know it, you know, I think you're probably you're posting stuff on social media and I think other people see you hunting. I think, man, that looks fun, you know, and I think it's contagious. I hope it's contagious, you know. I hope more people get into it. But, uh, because you know, I think and I don't know the statistics, but I think hunting licenses sales are down across the U? S and that's a bad sign, you know. I mean cause hunting lots is. You know revenue goes to conservation and all that stuff too. But anyway, well, ladies, thank you all so much. Uh, I'll be in kentucky soon.
Speaker 1:My oldest son graduates from alice lloyd college may the 10th yeah, and he's uh, he's going to law school in the fall. God help him.
Speaker 2:I don't know if I'm gonna do that, but that's in there he, but he doesn't know where he's going.
Speaker 1:He's got accepted to four schools and he's uh, he's waiting to hear on three before he makes his mind up. So, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's man. My youngest son's mentioned going. So we see, I don't know. But you know, I didn't practice that long. I hated it. I mean, you do a divorce case or two and you're like, yeah, I'd rather flip. Yeah, I like what I do now. I'm a land man. I'm not like Billy Bob Thornton land man, but I'm a land man. Yeah, I'm not that glamorous. He's got a pretty extraordinary life, all right. Well, hey, if y'all talk to Macy, tell her hello and hopefully I'll meet y'all, I'll be in. Yeah, I I'll talk to Macy, tell her hello and hopefully I'll meet y'all. I'll be in for a while. Maybe I'll get to meet y'all sometime or something. But stay in touch and we may get you back on again sometime and keep doing what you're doing. Stay at it.
Speaker 2:It's very encouraging to see y'all do what you're doing, and, hannah, good luck with your business. Absolutely. Thank you very much.
Speaker 1:All right, and again, tell the listeners where they can find out the Facebook page and the Instagram. What's it? How do you find it?
Speaker 3:Go ahead On Facebook. It's Women of Waterfowl. And then I think there's Women who Hunt, maybe, and those are both super great communities to join.
Speaker 1:Women of Waterfowl and Women who Hunt.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 1:Okay, and then on instagram, is it the same thing?
Speaker 3:um, I don't think there's like no groups. There's just like girls, like women that hunt right post okay, they post their pictures, things like that okay, okay, well, good deal.
Speaker 1:Well, thank you all so much and, uh, it's a pleasure talking to you. Hope you have a great evening and good luck in turkey season. Ab Abby, good luck with your wedding.
Speaker 3:Thank you, I appreciate it.
Speaker 1:All right, thank you, I'll see you.
Speaker 2:Bye-bye.
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