May Joy All Star: William Newby

William Newby is a fourth-generation farmer in Copan, Oklahoma. His love for dogs began as a young boy, working on the farm alongside Catahoula cattle dogs. As Will got older, he trained these dogs for more than just working with the cattle, as he wanted a hunting dog by his side to help him find raccoons and squirrels. They served him for many years until 2004 when he moved to Colorado to work for a saddle company making saddles. While in Colorado, Will met a group of men that hunted big game with a pack of hounds. They hunted big cats, elk, and mule deer on the back of horses with their hounds. After joining them a few times, he was hooked and went off to buy several hounds of his own. A job that was supposed to be temporary was turning into his dream home and Will was sure he was going to live in Colorado for the rest of his days. He went back to Oklahoma to gather the rest of his things and tell his family he was moving to Colorado permanently, until he met the true love of his life, Nicole, whom he, later on, would go to marry. 

After they had gotten married, Will tried to convince Nicole to move with him back to Colorado, however, she was happier in Oklahoma than in the deserted mountains that Colorado had to offer. They stayed at the Newby family farm and built a home together, and soon after welcomed a little girl. They built a life together in Oklahoma and Will continued to run hounds for years to come. From walkers to English hounds, he had a whole pack that he ran almost 6 nights a week. He was content and happy. It may not have been chasing big cats horseback through the mountains of Colorado, but he had his dogs and his family and farm and was happy with that. 

One evening one of the hounds ran through a batch of stagnant, murky water. No less than 24 hours later the dog died. Concerned for the rest of his dogs, he sold them all. Feeling like a piece of him was missing, he started to look for his next working dog to walk by his side day in and day out. He thought long and hard and did his research when he heard from a friend that was selling German Wirehaired Pointers. He knew that was going to be the dog he worked with next and his next challenge. Not only did he have the upland game on his property, but these dogs could also hunt squirrels and raccoons with him. He got to work with his new pointer, training day in and out. After some time, he bought more German Wirehaired Pointers and even a few short hair pointers to hunt with. He was truly enjoying the new sport and it gave him and his daughter a chance to be out in nature, spending time with the dogs and horses. One day out of nowhere, he received a call from a buddy that worked at the local shooting facility about an open position to guide upland game hunts, he was surprised as this was a rare position that was not often available. The word had gotten around that Will was a great hunter and starting to get into hunting upland game so when their position opened up they knew he was the man to call. Without hesitation, Will accepted the position; and is now the local guide, and part of the Big Bluestem Quail Forever Chapter along with the Okie Dog Pro Staff Team. Through these channels, he gets to guide other hunters with their children, as well as be a representative for a sport that he has found a great passion for. 

“The thing with being out in the field and upland game hunting is you can talk a lot more and build those friendships and relationships with people. I get to see grandfathers with their sons and grandsons connecting on a whole new level and that multiple generations of being out in nature and working with dogs are something that hits home to me”

– Will

 Will spends his days tending the farm, working and hunting with his dogs with his daughter by his side helping him every step of the way, training bird dogs for others, and of course, being a local Joy Dog Food brand representative. 

“We were looking for a new dog food after our Chihuahua passed away from a heart murmur that was directly related to her dog food. After asking around, I heard a lot of people were feeding Joy Dog Food. I looked into the brand, and I really liked the morals and how it was family owned and made in the USA. My dogs are pretty picky, but the ingredients looked good so I decided to give it a whirl. Instantly, they started to gain weight and they had more energy. I have fed it for over a year now and never had any issues. I love that Joy sticks with their word, providing a great product with each bag.”

– William Newby