05/20/2026
In loving memory of HB
My "Hunting Buddy" passed away around 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. We estimate he was 14 or 15 yrs old.
For those who don’t know the story I found him … or he found me … 13-yrs ago.
So, imagine this. You're out hunting. Sitting in a pasture in a hunting chair, on a tree line, everything is quite, you're waiting for a buck, doe, hog or turkey to pop out then - something starts licking your hand! You turn to see a dog (appears to be a young one) wagging its tail then curls up next to your chair and goes to sleep. What? Anyway, he sat there for the rest of the evening. He smelt like a skunk and looked like he had been in a scrap or two. I called Rebecca and said, "I can't leave him out here in the pasture - coyote food for sure." I got up once to do some glassing, when I turned around he had climbed up in my chair and was sound to sleep. I said if he loads up, we'll give him a temporary home in hopes of finding a permanent one.
I tell him to load up in the front of the truck - he does and curls up on the passenger floor area and sleeps all the way back to Wichita Falls. We gave him a meal, water and a place to sleep. He sat, had a great personality and the kids liked him ... so we named him "HB" for "Hunting Buddy."
On many occasions when we would go out of town, Keagan would come over and feed him and she refers to their "love / hate" relationship. Ha Ha. As he aged, he slowed down but he was always up for some fresh air, rubbing on his ears, and hanging with me by the grill or fire pit.
I took him back to the ranch where we met and placed him beneath a tree near my hunting stand. A cross and his collar will be there to greet me along with the spirits of Oreo, Stephen's dog (our neighbor), and HB himself. Sad to lose our dog, but grateful for the many fond memories.
