# Outfitter in GA?



## Hareshunting (Dec 10, 2014)

Anyone hunted with an outfitter in GA? My son is 11 and loves any type of bird hunting, we have not been on a waterfowl hunt.


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## tinydaniel78 (Dec 10, 2014)

Abbiella farms in South Georgia, great guide and experience. (229) 254-7162 owners name is Richard


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## Boudreaux (Dec 11, 2014)

Jerry Russell


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## Animal slayer (Dec 11, 2014)

www.huntmallards.com/ skeeter branch


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## GSURugger (Dec 11, 2014)

Animal slayer said:


> www.huntmallards.com/ skeeter branch



lol


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## across the river (Dec 11, 2014)

Animal slayer said:


> www.huntmallards.com/ skeeter branch



Where the migration _(from the big pond to the corn ponds)_ is always on.


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## Flaustin1 (Dec 11, 2014)

Good place to work a dog though.


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## rnelson5 (Dec 11, 2014)

Flaustin1 said:


> Good place to work a dog though.



Or you could just take them duck hunting and work them.....


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## king killer delete (Dec 11, 2014)

Boudreaux said:


> Jerry Russell



This one^^^^


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## tradhunter98 (Dec 11, 2014)

I bought a mallard one time from "THE BRANCH"  threw it out on the pond let my dog chase it then I killed it, forgot to post a pic tho.


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## steelshotslayer (Dec 11, 2014)

Animal slayer said:


> www.huntmallards.com/ skeeter branch



Why did you have to start this fight


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## groundhawg (Dec 11, 2014)

tinydaniel78 said:


> Abbiella farms in South Georgia, great guide and experience. (229) 254-7162 owners name is Richard



We have also hunted with Richard.  See post below.

http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?...ighlight=goose

Please see this in the upland birds area and contact Richard or PM cooperheadmike.

Took my son on one of their hunts. Great guys, fine time, not to far to drive.

http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?t=817227&highlight=

Story of our goose hunt. They offer doves shoot and also duck hunting


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## Darkwing (Dec 11, 2014)

Say what you want about skeeter branch it's a good time either way. I was takin there as a wedding gift and I had a blast. For an 11 year old boy it would be duck hunting heaven. Give him a call and tell him to blow it like there's no tomorrow and watch him have himself a ball! And don't forget the video camera. It's no different than taking your kid to a pay fish pond.


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## Hunteradams (Dec 11, 2014)

Darkwing said:


> Say what you want about skeeter branch it's a good time either way. I was takin there as a wedding gift and I had a blast. For an 11 year old boy it would be duck hunting heaven. Give him a call and tell him to blow it like there's no tomorrow and watch him have himself a ball! And don't forget the video camera. It's no different than taking your kid to a pay fish pond.



There is a difference. What happens in a fish pond stays there, not so much on a release pond with ducks that can fly, or other ducks can come interact with them. Good try. If you want your kids to grow up right in the sport do it the right way, no need for handouts out country gives out plenty of those already.  And the working the dog excuse is no better.


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## Darkwing (Dec 11, 2014)

I agree with the interaction with wild birds but from the stand point of shooting ducks and catching fish in a pay pond it's no different. A pay pond don't teach anyone how to fish either. I think you pay with your hard earned money no matter how you do it so it's not a hand out. Good luck to you and your son on whatever type hunt you go on.


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Dec 11, 2014)

Darkwing said:


> I agree with the interaction with wild birds but from the stand point of shooting ducks and catching fish in a pay pond it's no different. A pay pond don't teach anyone how to fish either. I think you pay with your hard earned money no matter how you do it so it's not a hand out. Good luck to you and your son on whatever type hunt you go on.



Good post.


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## mizzippi jb (Dec 11, 2014)

Darkwing said:


> I agree with the interaction with wild birds but from the stand point of shooting ducks and catching fish in a pay pond it's no different. A pay pond don't teach anyone how to fish either. I think you pay with your hard earned money no matter how you do it so it's not a hand out. Good luck to you and your son on whatever type hunt you go on.



Yep. You said it.  "Shooting ducks."  Not hunting.  What if it were white ducks, not pen raised mallards?  Would you view it as the same?  Because it would be exactly the same thing.   Paying hard earned money to these places is (in my opinion) not being a good steward of the land or our natural resources.  Paying 250-300$ to shoot yard ducks that ruin the wild duck population when you could take a kid to a wood duck swamp for free?  Nah.  I'll take my boy on an ethical hunt when he's ready.


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## GSURugger (Dec 11, 2014)

Older, but applicable. http://www.upc-online.org/ducks/52004plight.htm
"Disease outbreaks

Domestic ducks can also carry many diseases which wild populations of ducks do not have immunity to and which there is no cure for. New Castle Disease, duck virus enteritis (DVE), fowl cholera, paratyphoid, avian tuberculosis, chlamydiosis, bird flu and West Nile virus are just some of the diseases that domestic ducks can transmit to wild flocks. In 1993, Muscovy ducks, released into the canals in Venice, California, tested positive for duck plague, duck virus enteritis (DVE), a fatal herpes virus spread through feces. Ducks and geese on the canals began to have violent seizures and then died.

All the ducks and geese in the canals were rounded up by the California Department of Fish and Game and killed out of fear that some birds might fly to other areas and infect entire wild flocks. The canals had also become overpopulated. People were overfeeding the ducks and geese, which can cause them to have more and larger clutches. This leads to stress from too many birds in too small a habitat, resulting in fighting, injuries, death and disease.

This issue received international attention, when residents kidnapped some of the birds and took them to secret locations in an attempt to save them. However, it was the release of domestic ducks, compounded by feeding and the resulting overpopulation that was the real tragedy. (The full story and debate can be found in the Newsletter of the Santa Monica Bay Audubon Society , March 1994."


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## Animal slayer (Dec 11, 2014)

Haha how did I know this would turn out like this


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## king killer delete (Dec 11, 2014)

I have duck hunted for 53 years now. If it aint wild it aint huntn, I can go to Disney world and kill Mallards over french fries. Just killn not huntn, That what I got to say about this.


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## king killer delete (Dec 11, 2014)

Animal slayer said:


> Haha how did I know this would turn out like this


Haha you can delete the thread or if it gets bad I will


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## Hareshunting (Dec 11, 2014)

So how do I contact Jerry Russell? Thanks for the input all, but we will not hunt at Skeeter branch. I have looked at them before. My son is a fairly accomplished hunter. Has taken many a limit of doves, more than his share of whitetails, and 5 turkeys with the last 3 calling himself. None of his animals have come easy and has had to put in many hours to take what he has.


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## king killer delete (Dec 11, 2014)

He is on this forum go to the members list. Then shoot him a PM.


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## deast1988 (Dec 11, 2014)

His name under member search


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## Animal slayer (Dec 11, 2014)

No give us all something to read lol


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## GSURugger (Dec 11, 2014)

Hareshunting said:


> So how do I contact Jerry Russell? Thanks for the input all, but we will not hunt at Skeeter branch. I have looked at them before. My son is a fairly accomplished hunter. Has taken many a limit of doves, more than his share of whitetails, and 5 turkeys with the last 3 calling himself. None of his animals have come easy and has had to put in many hours to take what he has.



Sounds like he's on his way. Good luck to y'all


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## Flaustin1 (Dec 11, 2014)

rnelson5 said:


> Or you could just take them duck hunting and work them.....



Not in oct, feb, and march.  There also isn't a place in ga. I can take my dog and make as many retrieves, blinds and so on as I can at a preserve.  Im not shooting the birds there.  Just letting the pup have fun(when I had a dog).


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## Hunteradams (Dec 11, 2014)

Flaustin1 said:


> Not in oct, feb, and march.  There also isn't a place in ga. I can take my dog and make as many retrieves, blinds and so on as I can at a preserve.  Im not shooting the birds there.  Just letting the pup have fun(when I had a dog).



So they only shoot release birds then how do they know. It's a crap rule. You can use a frozen bird for that or trap pigeons for training. Encouraging these places does no good for the sport or the environment. You can shoot plenty of ducks and dove without going to these places. Please tell me how many times you have been to a preserve to work your dog.


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## Flaustin1 (Dec 12, 2014)

I agree, its a crap rule.  Wild birds probably do get shot.  That place is not getting any benefit from me.  I don't pay him.  I was benefiting from him letting my pup get some experience.  I probably took her over there 20 times.

Yall do yalls thing and I'll do mine.


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## MudDucker (Dec 12, 2014)

Why y'all got to be hatin' on clip toes?  Everyone needs a clip toe trophy.  Its kind of like a trophy wife, a real status symbol.


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## Ocmulgee Arms (Dec 12, 2014)

How is Skeeter Branch any different that the hundreds of preserves that release quail or pheasants and call that hunting. Some say to watch the dogs work. I grew up quail hunting, when there were some. Ive been on one released quail hunt years ago and it was terrible. A lot of the dogs that get bragged on on released birds would get smoked by wild birds. To me its the same thing. There are a few wild quail out there. Do they not get problems from released birds. I'm asking cause I don't know. Never looked into it. I don't like it because its not very sporting to me but I know a lot of folks that do it. To each his own. Let the flogging begin.


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## Uptonongood (Dec 12, 2014)

Hunteradams said:


> You can shoot plenty of ducks and dove without going to these places. Please tell me how many times you have been to a preserve to work your dog.



I would disagree with that in terms of public hunting in Georgia. Most of the open areas are hit hard, over hunted and there are folks on those lands who probably lack some of the ethics most others follow.

Preserve hunting, from my experience, ranges from very poor experience to truly outstanding.  It depends on the acreage available to hunt, the way the birds are conditioned and how the birds are handled on release. 

Over the years the populations of humans has increased here and the availability/access to lands previously open to hunting has declined significantly.  This is going to continue into the future and it won't be too many years until preserve hunting is about all that will be available. In my opinion.


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## Hunteradams (Dec 12, 2014)

Preserver hunting is not hunting. I watched a show with guys standing on the bank in blue jeans talking with birds landing right next to them. This was skeeter branch. It's all cool if you want to go there and be a great duck hunter. I don't care. What I and many others do care about is the negative impact on wild populations. Like you said there is less and less places to go and the habitat is not there. Instead of crying about it do something about it. Go to some of the regional meeting where they discuss ways to improve habitat or to take away from it. Go put out nest for birds. Be active with organizations like flyway foundation, ducks unlimited. For the cost of hunting one of those places you can go out of state. And as far as hunting Georgia there are birds to kill. There are many guys on this forum who kill 100's every year. Training dogs is not a good reason, taking a kid is not a good reason, entertained guest is not a good reason when you consider the negative impacts that they produce.


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## GSURugger (Dec 12, 2014)

Some of y'all need to go back and read the link I posted and do your own research. There's pretty sound science as to why this practice is bad for wild migrating populations. 
And the comparison to quail plantations is astronomically flawed.


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## Ocmulgee Arms (Dec 12, 2014)

I understand why and agree that it is bad for the population. I was just trying to state that from a sporting perspective it is no different ,to me, than hunting any released animal. As I stated I don't know if the released quail pose any kind of risk to the wild population. There is a private "plantation" behind my house and I frequently see released birds on my property so I know some survive and may intermingle with wild coveys.


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## across the river (Dec 12, 2014)

Ocmulgee Arms said:


> How is Skeeter Branch any different that the hundreds of preserves that release quail or pheasants and call that hunting. Some say to watch the dogs work. I grew up quail hunting, when there were some. Ive been on one released quail hunt years ago and it was terrible. A lot of the dogs that get bragged on on released birds would get smoked by wild birds. To me its the same thing. There are a few wild quail out there. Do they not get problems from released birds. I'm asking cause I don't know. Never looked into it. I don't like it because its not very sporting to me but I know a lot of folks that do it. To each his own. Let the flogging begin.



No flogging here, but there is a difference.   Quail have an extremely small home range.  They don't migrate, and essentially all released quail will die and not reproduce.  Some plantations may have enough habitat and food to get a couple to live through the winter, but a release quail plantation in  South Georgia isn't going to really influence anyone else's property, or at least the risk is extremely small.    If you put out a bunch of tame Mallards on your pond, they aren't all going to stay on your pond.  Some are going to end up on the neighbors pond.  They will also reproduce, making more mallards, and you eventually end up with a feral population like we have now.  Migratory mallards don't breed in Georgia, so all the green heads you see on lakes or at the part are feral birds that are "wild", but descendants of a farm duck or some other tammie off of grandma's pond.  Eventually you end up with a huge population of feral mallards that breed with ducks they aren't supposed to.  This is the problem they have now in Florida where mallards are breeding with mottled ducks and  diluting down the gene pool.  See the article below.

http://myfwc.com/license/wildlife/nuisance-wildlife/mallard-control/
  You can also see from the Frost Band Database, that  some released mallards are often recovered away from where they ere released. 
http://frostwaterfowl.net/database/new/newresults.asp
You aren't going to see a pen raised bobwhite recovered a long way from where it was released.


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## welderguy (Dec 12, 2014)




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## wray912 (Dec 12, 2014)

welderguy said:


>



what took you so long to get here


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## welderguy (Dec 12, 2014)

wray912 said:


> what took you so long to get here



Haha..Been covered up with welding jobs.Doesn't leave me much time for trolling.


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## maconbacon (Dec 12, 2014)

Pen raised quail absolutely have an impact on wild quail...the only caveat is that the wild birds have to be there to begin with. The pen raised birds transmit disease and can decimate the wild birds just as the pen raised ducks have done to wild ducks. But as has been said before, there are very few wild birds left and the pen raised birds don't travel very far if they survive so I would guess the impact on the wild population statewide is minimal. The main limiting factor is loss of habitat and the use of pesticides.


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## Hunteradams (Dec 12, 2014)

maconbacon said:


> Pen raised quail absolutely have an impact on wild quail...the only caveat is that the wild birds have to be there to begin with. The pen raised birds transmit disease and can decimate the wild birds just as the pen raised ducks have done to wild ducks. But as has been said before, there are very few wild birds left and the pen raised birds don't travel very far if they survive so I would guess the impact on the wild population statewide is minimal. The main limiting factor is loss of habitat and the use of pesticides.



Like I said before what you do on your land doesn't bother me. If it effects others off your property then I have a problem with that.


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## rnelson5 (Dec 12, 2014)

I would quit hunting and take up knitting before i would shoot at a preserve......


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## mizzippi jb (Dec 12, 2014)

rnelson5 said:


> I would quit hunting and take up knitting before i would shoot at a preserve......


Yes sir!  Basket weaving here I come if tamie hunts are all that's left.  I love shooting ducks and watching them crumple but I also have the utmost respect for them and the journeys they make every year.  Tamies do nothing good whatsoever for wild populations.  My dogs and my son will not participate in a canned duck hunt while I'm putting food in their mouths


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## Flaustin1 (Dec 13, 2014)

rnelson5 said:


> I would quit hunting and take up knitting before i would shoot at a preserve......



X2. ..  . but id go to one and work my dog in a heartbeat!


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## welderguy (Dec 13, 2014)

Flaustin1 said:


> X2. ..  . but id go to one and work my dog in a heartbeat!



Sure beats throwing bumpers in the yard, right Flaustin ?


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## king killer delete (Dec 13, 2014)

I got a mallard with a French Fry at Disney world. Does that count?


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## wray912 (Dec 13, 2014)

killer elite said:


> I got a mallard with a French Fry at Disney world. Does that count?



Same thing


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## Larry Young Jr (Dec 14, 2014)

Jerry Russell  web page:  www.russelloutdoorguides.com


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