dog for god sake don't bait me I am bad enough as it is now working on the definition of fair chase what the wet duck is that

Fair chase is whatever you believe it to be, with the essential ingredients being that the animal has a chance to escape and that at least some of the efforts to get it are your own.

That's about all I can remember from José Ortega y Gasset's "Meditations on Hunting". He was a Spaniard that did a fair amount of pondering on the subject.

I prefer to use the term wild-and-free or free-ranging when describing hunting. Either it is restrained by game fences or it isnt. 'Fair chase' blurs those lines... and it is frequently misused by the unscrupulous.

Even free range is by itself is not the total story. Most Canadians wouldn't know a game fence if they drove into one with the truck, but there are a myriad of wildly varying traditions, ethics and laws just by driving a few hours. Then there's the rest of the world.

You can start a debate or argument just by bringing up dogs, bait, waterholes, ATVs, airplane use, horses, day or night, stands or no stands, fences, long range shooting, running shots, bows or rifles and just about anything you can think of. It mostly seems to come down to where on the planet you're standing at any given time. Just to make it more confusing everything seems to change again with species. That's why I boiled it down to fair chase being whatever the individual thinks it is.If he doesn't like something, he probably shouldn't do it. If he likes something and it is frowned on where he is, then a short trip will restore his standing as a up-standing sportsman. Same guy, same opinion, different location, different result. He never changed his mind, therefore...............

I showed Caleb his picture in the newsletter, he is taking his new-found celebrity well. A merry Christmas to you and yours.