Jared McCool’s path to becoming a farmer began — nearly a decade ago — with a dog.

The Marine veteran and self-described “city boy” from Waterbury had agreed to go pheasant hunting with friends in the Naugatuck State Forest. It was McCool’s second attempt after an unsuccessful earlier outing, and he was reluctant to try again.

But this time his friends brought along Boone, a German short-haired pointer, and McCool said he was inspired by the way the dog and its handler worked together to pursue, shoot and retrieve their quarry.

“When I was in the Marine Corps, I felt like I had a purpose,” said McCool, who served from 2008 to 2014 and was deployed in Jordan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. “What I did made a difference to myself, the people I directly worked with, and part of an o

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