Tips for a first time dove hunter

[SARuger]

Shoot some skeet and upland trap. That will get you use to the target crossing and going away/quartering.

Lots of lead, dont stop your swing, dont drop the barrel(my bad habit).

You AIM a rifle, you POINT a shotgun. And its a lot like a quarter back hitting a receiver, you have to lead the target. The shot has to be where the bird will be. Or vice-versa

It takes practice and I'm a work in progress myself

 

[Bucksnort1]

Dakota,

My father was an excellent dove hunter. I remember going with him, only to retrieve birds (I was too young), near Waco, TX. He would get permission from a landowner, usually a rancher, then hide next to a stock tank. A water source is always good.

That is one suggestion. Another I have is, my father would buy the most expensive, high brass, 2 3/4" shells. Many years later, during a conversation with him about dove hunting, I told him I buy the least expensive #7 or #8 shot I can find. With the cheaper shells, I told him my per box average did not drop, which is mostly because I shoot at very close ranges and do as much jump shooting as possible. A couple of years later, he told me he changed to the cheaper shells and was able to bust as many doves as with the more expensive shells.

Here is another suggestion. Shoot them at close ranges and while they are going away or coming to you. This is because there isn't as much leading to do as with birds flying left to right or right to left. Also, if you can find a sun flower field or other field that has been cut to a height or has a natural height of stubble to your waist, walk the field and jump shoot them. Keep your gun at the ready position and not on your shoulder. For me, jump shooting is always more productive because your shots are almost always going away and very close. As another blogger said, watch your low shots because you may be shooting in the direction of another hunter. With jump shooting this is the case. Avoid the temptation of shooting at long ranges.

I never use a pump or semi-auto gun because the third shot is almost always a wasted shot. I prefer an over-under 12 or 20 ga or a side-by-side 12 or 20 ga.

Pick up your empty hulls, especially if you are on private land.

Here is my final suggestion. Go to Arizona during Christmas. If you are in the right field (it's hard not to be in the right field), you will see so many doves, you won't know which way to shoot. As a plus, many of these areas have Gamble's quail. Arizona has four types of doves. They are, white wing, mourning, Urasian collared and the tiny Aztec dove. The Aztec is about 3/4 the size of a mourning dove and, although it flies at about the same speed as a mourning dove, it appears to fly like greased lightning and they are hard to hit.

 

[Bucksnort1]

SARuger is right about leading and his statement about aiming a rifle and pointing a shotgun. If you follow my suggestion for jump shooting or shooting them coming or going, you don't lead as much. My rule of thumb for coming and going birds is to cover the bird with the muzzle. Many years ago, I hunted doves near Seneca, SC with a friend. We were in a harvested millet field (DOVES LOVE MILLET SEED). My friend was so good at shooting them, he would place himself under a large tree and wouldn't shoot a bird that required him to walk more than 30 feet to retrieve. Now, that's good dove shooting.

For your wing shots (left to right or right to left) someone suggested following through with the gun. Many experts say to start behind the bird then move the muzzle to in front of the bird then when you have the proper lead, shoot then keep the gun moving past the bird in a follow through fashion.

 

[krimmie]

Don't mount the gun too early. I have a buddy that does this with both dove and ducks, it ends up flaring the birds before they get in range. When you see dove coming, be patient, keep your eye on "one" bird, mount, swing ahead and pull trigger.

 

[Doyle]

When you see dove coming, be patient, keep your eye on "one" bird, mount, swing ahead and pull trigger.

Then, if you're like the rest of us, swear loudly.

 

[Boogershooter]

You are going to miss so don't get discouraged. After the first hour in the field u will see the path that most birds are taking. Put yourself in that path. The first thing u should practice is mounting your shotgun to your shoulder and cheek. You will encounter many different angles of shots but proper gun mount is important. If you don't mount your gun the same way everytime then your results will never b predictable or consistant.

 

[Buzzard Bait]

It's a lot of fun

When you hit a bird and it goes down mentally mark where it went down so you can walk straight to it. I put my hat down with the hat pointing in the direction of where the bird went down in case I have to go back and start over they can be hard to find on the ground.
bb

 

[The Big D]

You are going to miss. Shooting sporting clays helps.

It's easy to overstate the amount of lead needed. Doves move at a max of 40mph or so, and standard velocity shells are about 800 mph. So at 20 yards, with the dove perfectly perpendicular to you, you'd only need 1 yard of lead. Most shots need less than that.

What is more important than lead is swing-through. If you try to stop and shoot at a fixed lead, you will be behind because you will underestimate how long it takes to get the shot off. With proper aim and swing through, you have a wide range of times (relatively speaking) when you can pull the trigger and get a hit.

 

[Chuck Dye]

Be prepared to be humbled by the birds and by other hunters. My first dove hunt was as a sixteen year old on an opening weekend on private land in California's Imperial Valley, over recently harvested stubble fields. High speed sets of four to six dove rocketing by from any direction. I did limit out, ten dove, but expended nearly three boxes of ammo. Sunday showed improvement, got my limit with a good deal less ammo. Finally, late Sunday, I managed my first pair on the three rounds in the Ithaca 37. I was pleased with my self until, moments later, the hunter down the eucalyptus windbreak took four from one flight...with a lovely old side-by-side double. Had I only listened, I might have thought he had an autoloader or pump without a magazine plug. After the hunt ended, I told Dad of my letdown. Dad smiled and said "Well, there you go: something to aspire to." I now have a double, Dad's Superposed, but don't get into that kind of dove hunting any more. (Perhaps just as well, no one listening to my reloads will guess an unplugged repeater.)

 

[dakota.potts]

I went the other day to a friend's house in another city and I had to drive through a lot of back roads because I live in pretty much the middle of nowhere.

However, the road took me right past the WMA. I'm not sure where the public dove field is compared to the WMA, but there were doves flying around everywhere. I scared a group of 6 or 7 of them on the side of the road as I drove by, and they took off in all directions. They're really something to watch when you know what you're looking for. Very different from other birds and very fast.

I'll have to plan a trip to the field some time this month. My shotgun won't be here for at least a week, so that gives me some time to go and check it out.

Thanks for all the advice.

 

[Erno86]

Crow and dove decoys might help.

 

[yadkin]

Stay away from public lands.

 

[stumper1300]

If legal in your state, get a Mojo dove decoy. You
wont be able to reload fast enough if there are doves in the area.

 

[dakota.potts]

I went to the local hunting outfitter to pick up a couple of things and almost got a set of Mojo decoys, but I didn't know how to use them or set them up, so I figured I'd hold off until I could read more about them. They had a 4 pack for $14, so it's not a horrible investment. Do the crow decoys help also?

 

[stumper1300]

Spring for the motorized decoy, you only need one.

 

[Erno86]

A crow or a Great Blue Heron decoy helps during a spring turkey hunting setup...but decoys have been shot at during turkey hunting forays --- So I'd be wary of setting-up decoys while on public hunting lands --- But make sure you wear eye protection. Sometimes you'll hear spent shot raining down on the cornrows, from other dove hunters.

 

[bshefa]

If legal where you are, definitely spring for the Mojo with batteries (usually around $30). They definitely make it easier to get a good shot.

Be patient and let the birds come in. Don't waste time shooting at birds that are out of range. You will likely find yourself with a bird coming in to you and you need to reload. I like my semi or a pump because of the third shot. Triples are rare for me but I still like to try! It is a good feeling to have three birds on the ground in three shots.

Make sure you mentally mark where your birds go down. They have a habit of being hard to find, and you end up wasting time looking for your birds rather than shooting more.

Get a good dove vest or belt pouch. It helps keep ants off your kills and you can easily reach in and count to make sure you are still under your limit. Also serves as a place to store your spent hulls.

If it is your first time, you are going to suck. Don't let it frustrate you. It takes a while to get used to how they fly and dart.

Have fun! Less than 3 weeks away!

 

[dakota.potts]

Well, shotgun should be here Monday! Finishing up my hunter safety course (we have the nice option to take it online here) and I should be going out to shoot a round of clays next Sunday. I was recommended to a local place that meets on Sunday afternoons only and will do a round of 100 clays for $25. I've heard that particular group is a good source of information and is good at taking new shooters into the sport, so I hope that will be a fun experience!

I'm running close to my budget, but if I end up with some extra spending, I might spring for a motorized decoy. I might end up just getting some regular decoys and purchasing a battery powered decoy later in the season if it's an exercise I end up enjoying and wanting to do again.

I still need to get myself a decent set of camouflage and I'm researching some information on building ground blinds, which I hear is a helpful tool for dove hunts.

As far as I know (and I will of course double check this) it doesn't seem blaze orange vests are required during dove hunting in this state. Are they normally worn during dove hunting if not required? Do they effect your camouflage abilities?

 

[FITASC]

Like turkey, you want to be hidden, not seen - lose the orange. when folks are placed around a field, it has usually been determined ahead of time where everyone is, when everyone will rotate, where NOT to shoot, etc.........(blue sky rule)