What dogs do you use?

[Husqvarna]

What dogs do you use?

if i remember correctly hunting with dog is somewhat limited in the US, then on the other hand you guys can hunt with catch dogs and the like

so what do you use

Between my father and me we have three

a Jämthund (Hound of Jämtland 8region of Sweden) a spitz type breed, I guess you'd call it baying, he has bayed moose and boar and badgers. not tried on bear really but he did track a wounded(and dead) bear without

labrador, mainly a retriever now have done some flushing of deer and boar

my mastiff/boxer mix who has some tracking experience

if/when I get a new dog plott or german jagdterrier is high up on the list

[Pahoo]

On upland when we "Had" pheasants to hunt, we used Brittanies and female German Shorthairs. On water fowl, mostly Labs.

Be Safe !!!

[Husqvarna]

Labrador is the only breed we have had twice

when I was a kid we had a JRT, lean mean killing machine, me my friend and kid brother were shhoting rats with a .22 and a single shot 38 revolver, but the JRT was more effective

also had a rescue nova scottian but never got her to "toll", she was almost too small for retrieving geese

A German shepherd/labrador mix was the best tracker i have ever seen, he'd finish the roedeer or moose calfes of himself, could probably take unwounded7shot roedeers if let loose

[Buzzcook]

In my state we only hunt birds and some varmints with dogs. There is an exception where dogs can be used for cougar hunting under special circumstances.

I've hunted water fowl and pheasants with Labrador mixes. On two occasions I've hunted behind a Cocker spaniel for pheasants.

To my knowledge the only legal limitations on using dogs is with cougar, bear, and the various kinds of deer. Those restriction aren't in all states.

[Husqvarna]

why is that?

a ban on catch dogs I can understand, not so ethical (but for pigs i don't care) but just baying? especially since you guys probably hunt bigger areas

I mean we only use flushing dogs that follow the deer a short distance to get the game moving. doxens and similar type shortlegged dogs are used when driving long distances. at that is at a walking pace for deers

[Pilot]

I've used a dog to bird hunt, that is all. I like German Shorthaired Pointers, as the point and retrieve, but if trained properly will leave the flushing to you.

[Hansam]

I duck and pheasant hunt. I also train hunting dogs. I use and train primarily labs. I've trained and hunted behind English Cocker Spaniels and Golden Retrievers but the Labrador Retriever has been my go to dog for a long time. I've found that a well bred and well trained lab can hunt just about anything. I've used my labs to hunt rabbits, coon and birds. Labs are typically flushing dogs and I like it that way. Mine (and those I train) are trained to handle close to the shooter so the flush is almost always within 15 yards of the shooter. That puts the bird in the air well within shotgun range.

Come to think of it the last time a bird was flushed further than 15 yards from a shooter that I can remember was when I went hunting with an old buddy of mine who brought his lab out to hunt with and the brute bolted. Sure he had a great nose and a great desire to hunt but he wasn't well trained and as such he flushed three pheasants about 70 yards or more from us. We ended up bringing that dog back to my place to be kenneled while we went back to the field with my dogs and that day we each had our bag limits within an hour.

In my state you can use a dog to track a wounded deer so long as you're not carrying your hunting weapon on you. Basically if you shot a deer with a gun/bow and it wasn't a quick kill you can use a dog to track the animal. However that isn't considered hunting as its more locating the downed animal for you to recover. This came directly from my state's DNR office.

People CAN and DO use dogs to hunt rabbit, raccoon, coyote and bear in my state as well as birds. I've bear hunted behind dogs before and I can say that I personally don't find it sporting I'm sure others do. Personally shooting a bear that's been treed by a half dozen or so dogs isn't very sporting to me. A lot of people enjoy it though and I've nothing against them for that. Its just not the type of hunting I enjoy.

[hoytinak]

Here's my pheasant huntin' partner a German Shorthaired Pointer named "Buddy" posing for the camera in the first pic and "working" in the second.

[Pahoo]

we used Brittanies and female German Shorthairs

Isn't anyone going to ask why we prefered female German Shorthairs as opposed to males?? ...


Be Safe !!!

[roberto mervicini]

http://
English Springer she love the woods....!

[shortwave]

Isn't anyone going to ask why we prefered female German Shorthairs as opposed to males?? ...

Pahoo,

Is it cause male dogs are like most male species...given the choice, would rather chase a receptive female rather then do the job at hand..too, we're just so darned hard headed?

I had a male beagle, my buddy had a female. When she was coming into season, he would leave his dog at home or we shot no rabbits.

To the OP...also add BEAGLES to the list for rabbit hunting and Mountain Feist for squirrels.

hoytinak..that,s a beautiful GSHP you have.

[Hansam]

Why do you prefer females? They aren't brainless idiots when they're out in the field and there's a female out there in heat. Honestly I'm of the mind that if your female is in heat you shouldn't have her out hunting anyway (don't want unplanned litters with questionable bloodlines/breeds) but there are people who are out there year after year with females in heat. Females typically are easier to work with - not as bull headed as a male especially when the male's testicles drop.

Personally I prefer males - I like having the higher energy levels and toughness to work with but I don't just train for normal hunting. I also train for hunt tests and trials and that means there is more demand put on the dog and they'll need more energy for that. Not only that but AKC rules prohibit the use of females in tests and trials when they're in heat. You don't have to worry about that in males. I'm not saying females aren't good test and trial dogs - there are many females out there that are master hunters, AFC, FC and MNC but overall I just prefer the males so I don't have to plan around the female's cycles.

[buck460XVR]

For the past 40 years I have been using Drahthaars, better known in the U.S. as German Wirehair Pointers. They are what is known as a "Versatile" hunting dog. I use them mainly for pointing upland birds but have used them also for blood trailing wounded deer, scattering fall turkeys and retrieving waterfowl. They are extremely smart and hardworking hunters. They also make great family pets.

This is my newest prodigy, Wilbur, a ten month old female......

[celtgun]

I grew up racoon hunting with Plotts and they are reguarded as the best "big game" hound, ie bear, boar, couger. They are the state dog here in North Carolina. They were deveoped (in western NC) by the Plott family from dogs they brought from Germany. And they hunted them in rough country, often on Russian Boar stock planted by the Vanderbilts in the late 19th century.
They are very strong, natural fighters. Loyal, don't like dogs from other kennels.
Good noses, brave, and they have a love for and desire to please their master.
Lots of info on the web.
Good Hunting.

Lee Jones(Celtgun)

[Buzzcook]

why is that?

Several years ago a popular set of initiatives banned hunting cougar and bear with dogs or baiting them.
Many people were convinced that it gave hunters an unfair advantage.
I can't speak to why using dogs to hunt deer is not allowed.

The restrictions on hunting cougar with dogs was relaxed because of predation on domestic livestock.

[fatwhiteboy]

My two Westies have killed 4 rats, 5 mice and 7 possum in the last year.

[shortwave]

My two Westies have killed 4 rats, 5 mice and 7 possum in the last year.

7 possum

fatwhiteboy,

Your Westies on steroids or somethin ?

[Saltydog235]

Deer - Walkers

Hogs - Pits and curs

Everything else - Nothing beats a good GSP or two.

[Pahoo]

I can't speak to why using dogs to hunt deer is not allowed.

A few years back, I had the same attitude and thought it was unethical to hunt deer with dogs. That is until I had the privledge of hunting in Alabama where at that time, they could. I quickly understood that indeed, it was ethical and let those folks make that call. Then I reminded myself that we hunt Pheasants in Iowa, with dogs ...

The hunt really comes together when hunting with or behind dogs. Seeing our German Shorthairs working a field, is sheer poetry. Most of the time I just watched in appreciation of their skills, not to mentions finding wouned birds that worked back behind us. .....

Be Safe !!!

[mnhntr]

Coons, Cats, Bear, or Yotes = Blue tick
Rabbits or Fox = Beagles
Bird hunting = Lab or Toller

[nathaniel]

My 2 hunting dogs are a catahoula who is dead now and most recently a blue heeler.

[bswiv]

Great uncle ( this has been 45 years ago now! ) hunted deer with small beagles. This was in northern Alabama. He said the smaller dogs did not get away from the hunters as easely and that it was more of a "push" than a chase.

Here in NE Fl. where it is FLAT, the guys who dog hunt will use bigger dogs, will even change dogs during a "race" as they call it.

I'm not into it myself but it's not as easy as folks might think.....got to love the dogs or it would not be worth doing.

[Deja vu]

My father has an Irish Wolf hound (mix). It was the only dog I have seen not get all skittish when hunting elk. We tend to hunt in an area where there are a lot of wolves (less elk now) and for some reason that freaks out dogs. I have seen dogs go after bear but as soon as they catch wind of a wolf they start acting skittish.

We have not actually hunting elk with him but he does go with us to camp and keep the lady folk company while we are out. He does very well with birds!

[dogrunner]

I run mostly Walkers on deer but the group I hunt with have a mixed bag of beagles, bluetics and various cross breed variations of all those. Beagles do have an advantage in that no deer will move a bit faster than he must to stay ahead of those hounds. With the shorter legged dogs one can usually walk into a race, normally that's not possible with the faster breeds & one must be either on horseback or utilize a vehicle........even then it is truly the most difficult way to hunt deer I have ever experienced.....you might jump a good buck, know it, and when the dogs leave a patch of timber they're running does and yearlings. I've had instances where a buck suddenly stopped, let the hounds run by and then got up and ran back on his tracks....that last maneuver will fool all but the most experienced of dogs.

Why's it been made illegal......started with a retreat from the market hunting days during the early 20th century as game numbers were down dramatically, then the practice just became stigmatized thru a lot of misunderstanding and the tradition died in most northern states. Too, it takes a LOT of land to dog hunt deer and the trespass issue is a very real consideration..


And yeah, the standard joke (not really!) is that as a dog hunter you spend 15 minutes hunting deer and the rest of the day (and night) hunting your dogs!

[shortwave]

Too, it takes a LOT of land to dog hunt deer and the trespass issue is a very real consideration..

+1 dogrunner

This has been the reason that has been given for not hunting deer in Ohio in past DNR meetings when the subject has come up. Deer just don't circle like rabbits and there's just not that many single 'several hundred' acre ranches in the state like out West for instance. Trespassing would surely be an issue.

It IS legal to track a wounded deer/turkey in the State of Ohio with a 'leashed' dog but again, trespassing laws apply.