#342 | Winter Birds, Running Roosters & the Making of a Dog Handler with Isaiah Osborne

Birdshot Podcast

Nick Larson

Wilderness, Hobbies, Science, Nature, Leisure, Sports

4.6 • 936 Ratings

🗓️ 12 December 2025

⏱️ 70 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode of The Birdshot Podcast, Nick Larson sits down with Minnesota upland hunter Isaiah Osborne to talk pheasants, sharptails, German shorthaired pointers, and growing up hunting without a bird dog. Isaiah shares his journey from discovering wild birds with friends in high school, to serving in the Marine Corps, to learning bird dogs from professional trainers in Arizona. The conversation covers pheasant behavior, Gambel’s quail, tracking vs. true dogs, winter pheasant strategies, and building a reliable upland hunting truck setup. Isaiah Osborne is a dedicated upland hunter from New Ulm, Minnesota. Raised in a large family with no dogs allowed, he eventually found his way into upland hunting, served in the Marine Corps, trained with Gordon’s Gun Dogs in Arizona, and now hunts behind two German shorthaired pointers across Minnesota and the Great Plains. Expect to Learn How Isaiah grew up pheasant hunting without dogs and how bird dogs changed everything What he learned training quail dogs in Arizona with professional handlers The difference between true dogs and tracking dogs in upland hunting Why pheasants run early season and hold tight after snowfall How Isaiah hunts Gambel’s quail, sharptail grouse, and Minnesota pheasants Tips for public land hunting, dog handling, and winter bird behavior Details of his truck, kennel, and gear setup for multi-dog upland hunting Episode Breakdown with Timestamps [00:00:00] - Introduction and winter conditions [00:03:26] - Growing up in New Ulm and discovering pheasant hunting [00:06:11] - Bird-hunting article and Isaiah’s background [00:12:15] - Hunting Gambel’s quail with and without dogs [00:15:52] - How many birds did they walk past without dogs [00:18:05] - Tracking dogs vs. true dogs in pheasant country [00:26:14] - Snow conditions and birds holding tight [00:32:27] - Ideal pheasant hunting weather [00:40:08] - Sharptail grouse hunting in North Dakota [00:40:51] - Adjusting pheasant dogs to big running prairie birds [00:44:56] - Isaiah’s bird dog training setup with pigeons [00:52:13] - Truck setup: F-150, topper, Decked drawers, Ruff Land kennels [01:02:24] - Favorite shotguns and 28-gauge pheasant loads [01:03:15] - Closing thoughts and hunt-swap idea Follow the Guest Isaiah: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isaiah_osborne10/ Follow the Host Nick: Instagram: @birdshot.podcast Website: www.birdshotpodcast.com Listening Links: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/17EVUDJPwR2iJggzhLYil7 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/birdshot-podcast/id1288308609 YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/@birdshot.podcast SUPPORT | http://www.patreon.com/birdshot Use Promo Code | BSP20 to save 20% on https://www.onxmaps.com/hunt/app Use Promo Code | BS10 to save 10% on https://trulockchokes.com/ The Birdshot Podcast is Presented By: https://www.onxmaps.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	One of my favorite things about hunting sharp-tailed grouse is hunting the topography. And one of the best ways I have found to do that more effectively and efficiently is with Onyx Hunt's 3D map view. The next time you're scouting from your living room, the roadside, or when you're in the field hunting it, fire up the Onyx Hunt app and turn on the 3D map view to get an up close and in detail look at the topography of any piece of property.
0:22.6	Whether it's a gentle, rolling piece of terrain or a truly elevated and mountainous landscape,
0:26.6	you can use the exaggeration slider to fine-tune your view and highlight the topographical features you're looking for.
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0:47.0	Download the hunt app today know where you stand with on X hunt
0:52.8	When it comes to shotguns, it seems every upland bird hunter has a slightly different vision
0:57.4	of what their ideal wing-shooting shotgun is, which is exactly the kind of thinking we welcome
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2:08.1	The hen hit me in the face the other day.
2:10.5	We hunted for maybe 35 minutes on Sunday, and we shot our two birds.
2:14.2	They were whiskey got, I think, closed to hypothermia last weekend. Her whole body
2:18.6	was that way and she was just shaken, so I had to carry her back to the truck. Are you all set up with pigeons and launchers and that kind of stuff, or how do you go about it? Do you just kind of hunt your dog? What do you do? So my neighbor and I, three years ago, got into the pigeon trapping business. So we put it an ad on Craigslist free pigeon removal for farmers.
	...

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