When a hunting podcast leaves you fighting back tears, you know you've heard something extraordinary.

This episode of Bringing Back the Wild shifts from outdoor communication to one of the most inspiring conservation and service stories you'll ever hear. Brandon Butler shares the remarkable journey of Retrieving Freedom, a nonprofit that trains exceptional service dogs for veterans with disabilities and children with autism—always at no cost to the families they serve.

On this episode of Bringing Back the Wild, I sit down with my friend Shane Jahn for a wide-ranging conversation about hunting, handguns, and a life built around shooting and conservation. Shane shares how he grew up hunting whitetails in Texas, learned patience the hard way under an oak tree, and carried those lessons into a career with the U.S. Border Patrol in some of the roughest country in the Trans-Pecos.

Shane walks us through his passion for handguns, his work covering revolvers for Gun Digest, and his role as a co-founder and editor of Gun Tales. He explains why traditional handguns still matter, how they perform in the field, and what it takes to hunt everything from Texas whitetails to Cape buffalo in Africa—with a revolver.

This episode blends stories, hard-earned experience, and honest talk about hunting culture, shooting skill, and conservation on the ground. If you love firearms, wild places, and conversations that don’t pull punches, this one belongs on your playlist.

#BringingBackTheWild #ShaneJahn #Gun Tales #HandgunHunting #Revolvers #WhitetailDeer #AfricanHunting #GunDigest #HuntingCulture #Conservation #Firearms

In this episode of Bringing Back the Wild, Mike Arnold sits down with Dusty Vickrey, wildlife operations manager at Choctaw Hunting Lodge, to explore how passion, stewardship, and science drive one of Oklahoma’s premier hunting properties. Dusty shares how he grew up deer hunting and bowhunting whitetails before building a 17-year career in the school bus industry. A chance hunting trip and the COVID shutdown redirected his path and led him into full-time wildlife management.

Dusty explains how the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma manages more than 22,000 acres of free-range habitat alongside a 1,000-acre high-fence operation. He details a strict, biology-driven approach to conservation, including aging harvested bucks, spotlight surveys, habitat burns, and collaboration with wildlife biologists. Mentorship from Larry Weishuhn plays a key role in shaping long-term management decisions.

The conversation also covers elk, bison, exotic species, and turkey hunting, along with partnerships through Dallas Safari Club. Dusty emphasizes discipline, restraint, and teamwork as the foundation for growing mature animals and sustaining exceptional hunting experiences year after year.

https://choctawhuntinglodge.com/