All dogs live forever in the hearts of their owners. But hunting dogs take that love to ultimate dimensions of affection. The dogs and their owners have worked together to obtain skills and understanding of the outdoor world where they thrive. Diversity reigns in this world. There are pointing breeds, retrievers, hounds. There are many hunting dog cemeteries, and field trial halls of fame. For many hunters, the work of the dog in the field is the real purpose of the hunt. The simple pursuit of a gamebird or animal is not the purpose of going afield. The dog work—the radar-nosed probing of cover, the searching gait to check out fields, the retrieving of downed birds—moments spent in these elements are the real reason hunters have bonded with their dogs. The stories here are real accounts of hunting dogs in action. The dogs may be gone now, but the affection they provided and their performances in the field are everlasting treasures.

Lamar Underwood is the former editor-in-chief of Sports Afield and Outdoor Life and former editorial director of the Outdoor Magazine Group of Harris Publications in New York. The numerous books he has edited include Tales of the Mountain Men, The Greatest Hunting Stories Ever Told, Survival Stories, and War Stories and the novel On Dangerous Ground.