Annual Southern Gentleman® Issue
The age-old bond between a man and his hunting dog is fueled by trust, love, and a mutual passion for the sport. Here, five local gentlemen share what makes their dogs special in the field and at home. As W.R. Pursche wrote, “Everyone thinks their dog is the best dog in the world. And none of them are wrong.”
By Abby Callahan / Photography by Tall Tails Media
Porter Ownbey has been hunting all of his life, but college is when he really became interested in upland hunting. Starting out as a hunting guide in Southeast Georgia, he says he’s been hooked ever since. His Boykin spaniel, Sap – “a fun, loving, and loyal ball of energy” – later joined Ownbey in 2018, making them a full-time team for nearly eight years.
“The first hunt I took Sap on was at a well-known South Georgia plantation,” he says. “I had worn out three other dogs, and he was the only one I had left. I never told folks it was his first time, and they never suspected it. He was 6 months old and ran a perfect hunt, flushing and retrieving about 20 birds like he had done it for years.”
Hunting primarily quail and pheasant, Sap helps to flush upland birds after pointer canines have located them. Working alongside pointers for several years, Ownbey says Sap has now begun mimicking the skill. He also helps to track deer and shed antlers in the early spring.
Known for their energetic, spunky personalities, Sap is the perfect example of his breed. During initial training, Ownbey had to learn to work with the Boykin’s inherent personality and find ways to channel his energy.
“It can be frustrating to handle a breed with their energy level, but it’s very rewarding once you get to a point when you’re both on the same wavelength,” he explains. “Now, we are extensions of each other in the field and can anticipate each other’s next move.”
At home, Sap’s energy levels and intense focus are much the same.
“He’s obsessed with anything that moves: balls, bugs, falling leaves, you name it,” Ownbey laughs. “He’s also notorious for stealing tomatoes out of my garden about a day before they’re ripe. He needs constant stimulation, but he can shut it off when he wants to relax.”
But relaxation has looked quite different for the pair recently, as Ownbey and his wife recently welcomed their first baby into the world. “Sap has taken over as the third parent and is the first one to the nursery door when our baby starts crying,” Ownbey concludes. “It’s been fun to see him transition to his newest – and probably most important – role.”
“Whatever it is he’s doing, I treasure getting to watch him work.”
Jeff Zierenberg never expected to find his hunting companion while driving along the intersection of Highway 58 and Highway 306. But fate determined he would stop and rescue the stray black Labrador retriever that he later named Goose.
“I opened my truck door, said ‘kennel up!’, and Goose immediately jumped in,” he recalls. “I couldn’t just surrender him to a shelter, leaving his future in question. So, I brought him into our home and dog family of three mini Australian shepherds and a Tennessee walker hound who is also a rescue. He assimilated quickly and literally would not leave my side.”
After three weeks and no luck with locating the Lab’s owner, Zierenberg and his wife knew that Goose had found his forever home. “It was simply meant to be,” he says.
With a lifelong passion for hunting and previous experience with Labradors, Zierenberg immediately enrolled Goose in a six-month training program with Timber Creek Retrievers. The two now work together to hunt waterfowl and doves.
“Goose has been trained to follow where the birds fall; be sent on command to locate and bring the bird back; and heel by my side to release the bird when given the command,” explains Zierenberg. “Hunting conditions include dry land and water, but Goose loves the water retrieve. He enters with a big leap and splash as he swims to the bird, and this is the most incredible skill for me to watch and admire.”
For Zierenberg, the best part of hunting with Goose is simply “sitting still together in the hunting blind, being in God’s outdoors.” For Goose, it’s being next to his human, as he often pouts when Zierenberg hunts white-tailed deer and turkey without him on their property.
During the off season, Goose’s exercise routine includes running alongside Zierenberg’s four-wheeler or UTV, topped off with a swim at the water hole they have designated as “Goose’s Pond.” Goose also loves to ride shotgun with Zierenberg, never more than two feet away.
“He really enjoys riding in the cab of my tractor with me while doing work on our property or sticking his head out of the truck to ‘feel the breeze’ with his dog goggles on,” Zierenberg finishes. “And whatever it is he’s doing, I treasure getting to watch him work.”
Before graduating college, Cody Stubblefield says hunting and spending time with his family’s dogs were two separate pastimes. As he settled into his adult life and profession, he found himself craving the familiar companionship of a canine, but this time he wanted one that could “play and work.”
“I’d always grown up with dogs, but they were never hunting dogs,” he explains. “It was kind of by accident that I ended up with a Brittany spaniel. Everything I read online said they were extremely hardworking and high-energy dogs, but they would also curl up right beside you on the couch after a long day. So, I started looking for a breeder, and it all fell into place.”
Enter Boomer. At 4 months old and the last of his litter, Boomer had already begun learning how to point and hold from his breeder. So, when he began dove and duck hunting with Stubblefield in 2015, he was already a natural.
For 11 years now, Boomer has demonstrated the strength of his lineage – a long line of pheasant and quail hunting dogs from Texas – forever surprising Stubblefield with his sheer grit and determination.
“A few years ago, my friends and I went to a dove lease that I was on,” he recalls. “It was incredible to watch Boomer pick up bird after bird for me, as well as retrieve some for my friends that they couldn’t find. He picked up right at 45 doves that day. He was exhausted afterward, but you could tell he was proud of himself, and
I couldn’t have been happier watching him work.”
After challenging hunts, Stubblefield says he and Boomer like to relax with a day on the lake. “He’s a pretty great fishing companion. Though he isn’t always sure what to think about the fish that are caught, he has always loved coming along for the ride.”
As much as Stubblefield enjoys hunting with Boomer, he says witnessing the Brittany’s relationship with his 2-year-old son has been his favorite experience. “Typically, dogs can’t get far enough away from babies, but Boomer is right in the mix of everything Leland is doing,” he finishes. “He’s always had a very sweet personality, but I didn’t anticipate him being as attached and protective of my son as he is.”
When Seth Wier began looking for a hunting companion, he had a difficult time deciding between an upland dog and a retriever. Thankfully, he learned about the Draht breed and found the perfect blend in Nico, his 2-year-old Deutsch Drahthaar.
“I’ve been hunting my whole life thanks to my dad who raised me up that way,” Wier says. “I harvested my first deer when I was 7 years old. Since then, I’ve hunted ducks, turkeys, quail, and everything in between. With Nico, we can start in a flooded-timber duck hole in the morning and complete the day with an upland quail hunt in the afternoon. He’s also very good at finding rabbits and tracking wounded deer.”
Because Nico is so multi-faceted, Wier says preparing him for the hunt depends on the terrain. While hunting ducks, he dresses Nico in a neoprene vest to protect him from the cold water. For quail and mammals, Nico wears a protective vest to avoid brush and briar wounds.
No matter what they are tracking, “Nico is full throttle” from the moment they start until the moment they return home. In fact, Nico’s focus is so intense that Wier needs only to look his way to re-center himself.
“When I lose focus or get distracted, all it takes is me catching a glimpse of Nico’s eyes, and it puts me right back in the game,” he says. “His eyes tell you everything you need to know, and you can see the instant they shift from playful to focused.”
When Wier took Nico on his first duck hunt last year, he learned just how precise and driven the young canine’s focus allows him to be. Arriving at an unfamiliar property well before daylight, Nico was faced with nearly 400 yards of flooded timber that he had to swim in order to get to the hole where the pair would be hunting.
“Once we arrived at the spot, Nico went straight to hunt mode and he inherently knew exactly what his job was: get the birds and bring them to dad,” finishes Wier. “He retrieved a total of 15 ducks – with several 100-yard retrieves – like he had been doing it his whole life. It was a very special day, and it’s one that I won’t ever forget!”
At 14, living and hunting in western Pennsylvania, Jeffrey Thompson dreamed of owning a pointing dog. After moving to New York City as an adult, that dream finally became a reality in the form of a pudelpointer.
“Greta is often confused for a male because of her beard,” Thompson laughs. “She’s also quite large for her gender, as her father was an enormous, highly bred versatile champion from the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA). She arrived during the pandemic and was part of a life change, so my wife and I had plenty of time for puppy training and welcomed the furry distraction.”
The three of them later moved to New Jersey, where Thompson joined the state’s NAVHDA chapter. He later transfered to the Tennessee Chapter in 2024 when the family settled in Chattanooga.
Hunting pheasant, grouse, woodcock, duck, chukar, quail, and geese in New York, New Jersey, Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama, Thompson and Greta are going on their sixth hunting season. He says her prey drive is naturally high, but he adds, “When she saw her first covey of quail in Tennessee, she was so excited, she practically lost her mind!”
Due to Greta’s successful hunts, Thompson and his wife decided to welcome Ellie May – Greta’s niece – into their pack. After a year of training and watching Greta, she will join the pair this fall.
“Ellie May has been a drastically different dog to train and was a little timid when training to swim; Greta’s prey drive had her launching into water with gusto from the very start,” Thompson recalls. “But boy, it was magical to watch when she first realized a game bird was what she was missing in her short, 12-week life at the time.”
Every year, Thompson looks forward to the quiet walks through the forest, but his favorite part of hunting is the art of preparing their game.
“As a career chef and hunter, I get asked what I enjoy cooking the most,” he finishes. “Without question, it’s the game I’ve prepared field-to-table for friends and family. When they experience something homemade and unique, I get the opportunity to wax on about the entire hunt, the statuesque points, and impossible retrieves made possible by my willing companion and true best friend who is laying tableside – just waiting for the chance to do it all again.”
Introduced to hunting in the ‘60s by his late father, Hunter Payne is now welcoming his 58th hunting season with Oakley by his side. Over the years, he has had both pointer and setter companions, but he was always partial to one breed.
“Growing up in the South in my era, there were only two breeds of bird dogs, and they were pointers or setters,” Payne recalls. “While I had and still have both, I always favored the English setter.”
Often referred to as the “gentlemen of the dog world,” English setters like Oakley are known for their active, loyal, and sweet-tempered personalities, but their namesake dates back to the 14th century, when hunters used nets instead of firearms and a successful hunt relied on the setters’ ability to silently indicate a game bird’s location.
“Oakley is 2 and a half years old and has a line of field-trial champions in her pedigree; this is her first year of getting to demonstrate her prowess,” says Payne. “While training in the field, she’s been all business about the hunt, and her hunting drive has proven high. Off duty, she’s pretty flexible and fairly calm, but she can be quite mischievous due to her age.”
Though Payne has always preferred the quiet of the country, he spent a decade living and working in Atlanta before moving to Spring City to pursue a career in breeding and training hunting dogs by opening Gundog Development. For the past 26 years, he has bred and trained hundreds of setters and pointers – including Oakley.
Throughout her training, the pair have traveled to Oklahoma, Kansas, and North Dakota to hunt upland birds such as grouse, quail, pheasant, and woodcock. Though Oakley was originally raised as part of the kennel, Payne says he quickly learned that they would be hunting companions for years to come.
“I ultimately raise and train my dogs to find a loving home where they can be the best hunters possible for their new owners,” he finishes. “But sometimes dogs like Oakley come along and we make a connection that can’t be broken.”
