HILLSBORO, Ga. — Georgia squirrel hunting season begins August 15, and it's one of many game animals that you can go out and track.
However, most game critters don't just walk up to you, you've got to coax them out of their habitat.
One Jones County man is in the business to do just that, and has turned his passion into a side hustle with dreams to go big.
John Peterson is the owner of Piedmont Game Calls, and makes a variety of custom animal calls.
Peterson, who still has his day job as a Robins Air force Base Mechanic, would eventually like to run his business full time.
He loves to hunt, and it's part of what's driving his passion to make custom calls.
Every call is different and they are pieces of art, but he doesn't build them to be displayed or collect dust.
"I don't want to make a call someone keeps in a cabinet. I want to build a call that someone will use in the field and get years of enjoyment out of," Peterson said.
He's got seven different kinds of callers in his inventory.
He says a slate turkey caller is the hardest to make, because they have glass inside.
Peterson uses a lathe to craft his calls, which is a machine that spins and is used to shape wood into cylindrical profiles.
“I found out when it came to lathes, I had caviar taste on a hamburger budget," Peterson said.
He curbed the caviar and found harmony with the hamburger side of the budget to create his business.
It's really not surprising that Jon got into making these beautiful callers, because he loves to be outside.
He even made his own fishing lures with his kids, and his dad was a carpenter.
Piedmont Game calls is located next to the Piedmont Wildlife Refuge, and that location is part of the reason the business got its name.
WHAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE READING: