A Boy and His Dog Continued
his dog as calm as he could.
Unlike a typical dog, Cooper was bred and
trained for retrieving, so he had little interest in
the strangers on the boat that morning. At only
a year old, he had already retrieved over 250
ducks in his first season, and he seemed completely focused on the work ahead.
Once we finally arrived at the blind that
Randy had prepared the day before, Lindsay
and I peeled ourselves apart and began to
study our surroundings.
Randy was using natural cover to hide the
boat and set up a “stand” off the side for
Cooper. We watched the gorgeous sunrise
change the colors of the reeds, and peered
through our cover at the indescribable beauty
of our Louisiana water landscape. As I studied
the movements on the boat, I noticed there was
nothing about Cooper that resembled a
“puppy,” and nothing about Hunter that resembled a child. Both boy and dog were in their element, and both settled into the task without a
word. It was obvious
that Cooper obeyed
Hunter, and I asked
about his training.
Randy explained that
Ronnie Mathis with
Ponchatoula Kennels
trained Cooper, and
that all commands
come from Hunter.
It is always amazing to see the relationship between a
boy and his dog.
Their love for each
other and for the
sport was abundantly
clear, and Lindsay
couldn’t capture enough candid photos of the
two.
At precisely 6:26, we were settled into our
spot, under cover, decoys out, dog waiting on
his stand with every muscle under tension, and
the boy and his dad poised with guns loaded.
When we didn’t immediately see any ducks flying nearby, Hunter made it known that he would
have chosen a different spot. His dad handled
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February 2016 www.marshandbayou.com
the criticism with a confident smile, and Lindsay
and I knew this was all part of a young boy’s