“If heaven doesn’t have dogs I’m not so sure I want to go.” -Chris Tippette

Back in November of 2013 while visiting my family for Thanksgiving I gave an old high school friend, Chris Tippette, a call and expressed interest in doing a series of photos featuring his business for my Southern Living series. Chris has taken his passion for birddogs and made a career out of it through his company, Whistling Wings, a licensed hunting preserve located in Madison County, FL.

They “specialize in nothing but showing clients a really good time with some wing shooting and quail hunting sprinkled in.” I asked Chris to tell me more about what his business means to him, but didn’t get an email from him in response to that the next day as expected. The following day he texted this to me:

“Sorry I hadn’t gotten back to you but I had a sad day yesterday. I had to bury one of my original employees. My lil’ Boykin spaniel, Rosie, died of – I’m guessing old age. She had become deaf and just didn’t have that fire anymore. I’d seen it for some time and just couldn’t comprehend her not being her spunky self. So Wednesday afternoon I witnessed her point, flush, & retrieve her last quail. Wish they could live forever. If heaven doesn’t have dogs I’m not so sure I want to go. Anyway sorry for my sappiness. There are quite a few people I owe a debt of gratitude to for helping me get started – from family to friends – I can not thank enough. Quail huntin’ & birddogs are such a passion and love of mine – I would still do it for my own enjoyment if my phone never rang again. These amazing dogs I’ve followed throughout the fall & winter seasons have introduced myself to some wonderful people that I call friends & family now. I wouldn’t change anything for those experiences. Here’s a cool quote in a book I’ve read numerous times that pretty much sums it up ‘I don’t know whether the legend is true, but I do know that certain dogs are shameless poachers. They’ll steal your favorite chair, your wife’s affections, your lunch, and your heart.'”

Just that text says it all about what he does, why he does it, and how much he loves it. If you’re interested in a guided hunt with Chris and his dogs he can be reached via his phone number (850.869.0318) or email address (northflabirddog@gmail.com).

It has taken me till now to finally get around to finish processing  the files that I shot that day. These are the best of them along with the captions I posted with each of them for my new photo of the day challenge.

Mr. and Ms. Whistling Wings – Chris and his wife Sarah – with one of his team members – Jill. Chris told me that she was amazing, and she was a real “crackerjack.” I ask him to explain that term: “A crackerjack birddog. It’s a term I’ve heard, seen in books & magazines I’ve read. My interpretation would be a dog that is just simply amazing, once-in-a-lifetime. One’s that all you have to do is teach them their names. You know when you have one, & you know your damn lucky to be feeding them. All you have to do is follow them. It’s weird some of them are just instinctively world class. The ones I have to train they just need practice in what to do. The crackerjacks read your mind. They handle like Cadillac’s! They know what to do, when to do it, & why you want them to do it. I’ve been lucky to have, raise, & feed a few in different breeds. And I’ve buried a couple (like losing a family member). I’m lucky enough to still have a few puppies showing some potential for that. The trained birddogs are good too, but just not crackerjacks.”

The Kill Of The Day. after cleaning these I ended up stuffing them with cream cheese, wrapping them with bacon, and grilling them one night for my girlfriend and I. They made every single one of our taste buds do a happy dance.

One of the up and coming Whistling Wing team members – Lil Bit.