HELENA – Thanks to everyone who participated in FWP's hunting dog photo contest. We received almost 500 photos. After staff picked 20 finalists, we invited our social media followers to vote on their favorite photo.
Mike Clingan's photo of his chocolate Lab, Crosby, received 1,000 votes. Adam Hunt's photo of his wirehaired pointing griffon, Crockett, received almost 850 votes. Clingan and Crosby live in Toston. Hunt and Crokett live near Great Falls.
Crosby
Crosby is 6 years old and began hunting with Clingan when he was 9 months old.
"He's hunted in more states and has retrieved more species of birds than most guys ever will," Clingan said.
If dogs could sign magazine covers, Crosby would wear out his paws. His hunting travels are so vast because he accompanies Clingan on his assignments for his outdoor photography business, Montana Outdoor Imagery. Clingan said that Crosby has graced the pages and covers of many magazines.
Clingan captured this particular photo during a hunt on Christmas Eve morning.
"He's truly living the best life a Labrador retriever could ever have," Clingan said. "He's a high-energy dog but also is well behaved and loves to hunt as much as I do."
Crockett
Crockett was a candidate for president in 2024. His campaign slogan was "A pheasant in every pot."
"We had banners and yard signs all over the county, and lots of people voted for him," Hunt said.
Crockett is 8 years old and has been hunting since he was a puppy. He is trained for both upland and waterfowl. He also sniffs out elk sheds in the spring, goes hiking with his family and goat siblings, and tells Hunt where to place his beaver traps.
"I let Crockett out on different beaver huts, and he will not only tell me if it's a hot hut, but exactly which runs the beavers are using and picks where I should put my traps," Hunt said. "No joke. He is currently batting a thousand on picking hot runs."
This photo was taken a few years ago when Hunt and Crockett were on a river hunt on one of the last days before the river froze.
"It was brutally cold, and the water was icing up, but no amount of cold or ice can stop him," Hunt said. "By the time we got all our gear back to the truck, Crockett had turned into a 'griff-cicle'; but he was still hot and ready to keep hunting."