Author Topic: Thoughts on hunting deer with dogs (Read 3163 times)

CatSlayer · « **on:** January 15, 2007, 09:42:05 AM »

Hey, hunting deer with dogs has been a family tradition for many years in my family. We are very careful to not run on anybody but our own land and if we do, we first get permission. Hunting with dogs is a experiance that shouldnt be missed. whats are your guys views on running dogs?

beemanbeme · « **Reply #1 on:** January 15, 2007, 10:41:44 AM »

Get your asbestos drawers on.

Keep in mind that 99.9% of the folks that get off on you won't have the slightest idea what they're talking about.

victorcharlie · « **Reply #2 on:** January 15, 2007, 11:42:54 AM »

Quote from: CatSlayer on January 15, 2007, 09:42:05 AM

Hey, hunting deer with dogs has been a family tradition for many years in my family. We are very careful to not run on anybody but our own land and if we do, we first get permission. Hunting with dogs is a experiance that shouldnt be missed. whats are your guys views on running dogs?

Sounds good to me! Not legal here, but I certainly understand the tradition.....have fun!

Don Fischer · « **Reply #3 on:** January 15, 2007, 01:58:23 PM »

Wouldn't bother me in the least. Thats 100% for. Someone lock the thred!

Land_Owner · « **Reply #4 on:** January 15, 2007, 11:18:14 PM »

Never done it myself. Have heard others describe the experience positively. Have experienced dogs chasing deer where no dogs should have been. That was a negative. Getting the dogs to "mind the property lines" means having enough property not to have to worry about lines. It is probably a very effective method (if the hunters are good shots) at finding and killing deer in a relatively short time. Hunting with dogs is just another implement in the outdoorsman's toolbox that will be and should be continued.

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #5 on:** January 16, 2007, 01:17:42 AM »

I never done it and won't, but if that is how you like to hunt, more power to ya.

jhm · « **Reply #6 on:** January 16, 2007, 04:04:50 AM »

The bigest draw back from dogs has already been pointed out property lines, and the most miss-used statement from the dog runners, is ( the dogs cant read the no trasspasing signs and they dont know where the property lines are) Figure out a way to correct that, and I am sure you will have a great time. JIM

Syncerus · « **Reply #7 on:** January 16, 2007, 05:41:05 AM »

I think that it's a great and useful technique for population management when the terrain is very rough or swampy. I also agree that dogs should only be run on private property.

Graybeard · « **Reply #8 on:** January 16, 2007, 06:29:20 AM »

I hate it. I hate it. I hate it.

Yes I've tried it and didn't enjoy it in the least. We spent most of the time hunting the dogs NOT hunting deer. I like being in the woods one on one with the deer not running all over the country chasing down lost dogs.

If anyone is doing it legally in the state of Alabama I've yet to run across them. Most are putting their dogs out on land they have no permission to be on and hoping they will run deer to where they are and even that often isn't where they have permission to be. I've seen them try to block public roads yes even PAVED public roads while their hunt was going on. I've seen them parked every 75 yards along paved roads with loaded guns fully intending to shoot any deer the dogs run across the road. I have a friend who owns a house near a popular spot for folks to run dogs. The doggers have no permission to be anywhere near his house. They ran a 4x4 truck thru his fence into his yard and were shooting at deer running thru his yard.

I'd love to see it stopped all over the country.

But as much as I'd love to see it stopped I don't want it done via law. I'll support you doing it legally but I'll be damned if I'll support the outlaws that seem to be all that does it anywhere I've seen it done.

SDS-GEN · « **Reply #9 on:** January 16, 2007, 08:21:42 AM »

Never done it but I've heard its a blast. Wouldn't happen here in the midwest because of small properties and urban development. It does amaze me that the coon hunters turn their dogs loose around here and follow them onto whoever's property they run off to. Question one of them about their dogs and they'll tell you what great, well trained dogs they are and how many awards they have won. The dogs just don't understand the command "COME" or "HEEL"?

Snowshoe · « **Reply #10 on:** January 16, 2007, 11:02:21 AM »

I have never done it, never will and have no interest in trying, it is not my way of hunting. It is also illegal around here, and if a dog is chasing and harrassing deer, the dog is shot.

Wynn · « **Reply #11 on:** January 16, 2007, 04:08:40 PM »

It is perfectly legal during the general gun season here in Florida on private tracts and many public WMAs. We have a dog responsibility law that requires private hunt clubs to register with the state and each dog used is tagged with our number for ID purposes. Fines are stout. If you have never done it legally then you have not participated in a traditional dog/deer hunt. It does not involve busting down fences, crashing gates, shooting within 200 ft of a public right of way or across it, trespassing,(hunters or dogs) or any of the other things you non dog-legal state hunters pontificate about.

On our lease, the six point rule applies to dog hunters same as still hunters. Not a single member has been fined in 3 years for the infraction. Our dogs are pretty much done hunting after a few hours and show up at the main camp or road to it by dark. Did not lose any dogs the past two seasons. Not a single lost, wounded deer either. Neighbors call us, not F&G, if dogs stray off property. We make every effort to keep good relations with surrounding land owners and have for years. Club is 3000 acres, 16 members, about evenly split between the dog runners and still hunters. If the dogs run a buck near a still hunter, he probably has a better chance than the standers participating in the dog run of taking it. The runs take place in the same block I prefer to still hunt in at least once per week. After two months of weekend dog runs in that block, I took a 8 point, 168 lb buck from that stand that had been deer run the day before.

I enjoy running the dogs AND still hunting and have since I was a kid. (I'm 56) I imagine that with encroaching developement (Disney is 15 miles) and growth, future generations will never experience the thrill of hounds turning toward YOU on a hot run. THE buck that busts thick cover into a opening 30 yds away. You don't remember the shotgun comeing to your shoulder, the recoil, muzzle blast or the buck going down. You will remember for the rest of your life what YOUR monster buck looked like in a mid leap high into the air across that narrow opening. It will certainly be a lost tradition in a few, short years. Ya reckon they have Blue Ticks, Beagles or Redbones in Heaven? I hope so....

beemanbeme · « **Reply #12 on:** January 17, 2007, 05:45:28 AM »

In parts of Mississippi, they like a walker/beagle cross. Shorter dog that doesn't hustle the deer so fast.

rockbilly · « **Reply #13 on:** January 17, 2007, 05:51:27 AM »

Been there, done that. I hunted with dogs for years while living in MS and LA, and enjoyed it at the time. I also hunted bear and big cats in several of the Western states with dogs but that has been many years ago too. Today I would rather sit in the confort of my stand and watch nature.

Like GB, most of our dog hunting was split between hunting the dogs, and hunting the deer, and property lines, highways, and creeks didn't stop the chase. We ran Beagles, they didn't run the deer to death, just kept them moving, but I remember one trip along the Red River just North of Alexandria, LA, the dogs jumped a big buck and ran it in a northern direction for quite a long while. One of the dogs didn't return after the deer crossed the river. We waited, looked, called for well over an hour, but no dog. I returned to the area several times over the next week looking for the dog, but couldn't find him. About two weeks later I had a phone call from a lady who lived up near Coushatta, La, she said she had my dog. We drove up the next day to pick the dog up. The house was a shotgun house out on the edge of a bean field, the lady and several kids came out when I drove up.. I seen the dog tied up to a fence post in the back yard, it was barking and doing double back flips. She said, I can tell that is your dog, I said yes, she said good, you owe me $75.00 for all the clothes the dog tore off the clothes line. That was a bunch of money in those days, but I paided up. Not too long after that I got rid of the dogs.

If I had been a fast thinker, I would have looked at the dog and said, No, thats is not my dog, I gave that one to Graybeard last week.

slave · « **Reply #14 on:** January 17, 2007, 06:48:35 AM »

If you are hunting on your own land you should be able to run dogs. Hey do it naked if you want. You pay the taxes not me. Good hunting.

Wynn · « **Reply #15 on:** January 17, 2007, 09:58:42 AM »

Quote from: beemanbeme on January 17, 2007, 05:45:28 AM

In parts of Mississippi, they like a walker/beagle cross. Shorter dog that doesn't hustle the deer so fast.

Most of ours are crossed with Beagle for the same reason. They seem to be able to penetrate the deep, briar & Tupelo swamps better and are pretty good swimmers as well.

K.K · « **Reply #16 on:** January 17, 2007, 02:40:43 PM »

It is not something that I'd ever do, but I understand the Southern tradition, and where legal, I guess there should not be a problem. Just a question, do you always hunt with hounds, or do you mix it up with stand, still, or spot and stalk hunting? I think that I'd just miss the quiet and solitude, but maybe that's just me.

billy_56081 · « **Reply #17 on:** January 17, 2007, 03:13:16 PM »

Not legal here in MN. But I'd love to do it sometime. I'm one for hunting any way you can. And hunting deer over dogs sounds like alot of fun.

beemanbeme · « **Reply #18 on:** January 17, 2007, 04:49:00 PM »

I have never hunted deer with dogs but I have had several packs of rabbit beagles. Working the dogs is as much fun as the hunt. If you know your dogs, you can tell which one is doing what. Which one just picked the last check, which one is running kinda hit or miss to get the front of the pack, and so forth. I ran my dogs year around just to hear them work. there's nothing like it.

Wynn · « **Reply #19 on:** January 17, 2007, 05:41:35 PM »

Quote from: K.K on January 17, 2007, 02:40:43 PM

It is not something that I'd ever do, but I understand the Southern tradition, and where legal, I guess there should not be a problem. Just a question, do you always hunt with hounds, or do you mix it up with stand, still, or spot and stalk hunting? I think that I'd just miss the quiet and solitude, but maybe that's just me.

I do a lot of stand and still hunting as well as run hounds. Especially on weekdays or evenings after work during general gun season. I hunt archery and muzzleloading seasons to. Again, still or stand hunting, of course.

Hunting deer with dogs requires a group effort, organization, cooperation on the part of the participants and the right weather and time of day, not to mention the right dogs for the job. We usually send out a couple of hunters before first light looking for overnight, fresh deer (buck) sign at known crossings, dirt roads, tilled areas or food plots. This will determine which area we will try to run at first light and a handler will walk the dogs in while the rest report to their stand locations. The dog handler will take in a couple of good cold trail dogs (we call them jump dogs) while the running dogs are kept in check. Like someone else mentioned, dogs have individual traits and when you hunt with them regularly, you know what they are doing. Ideally one or both jump dogs will pick up a good scent and begin to trail, now barking occasionally. The hunters will know from the dogs sounds if its a hot scent and then a couple or three running dogs will be turned in. When the run is on (deer is jumped) and someone spots the deer, they communicate to the rest of the hunt group whether it is a legal buck or not. Deer have characteristics to. A big buck will double back, jump sideways, go to water, circle around in cover, etc. but sooner or later, he will break cover and flat, out, RUN>>>. He knows his territory better than any of us. Many more get by us without a shot being fired than are taken. Does, on the other hand will just scamper in all directions if jumped and the dogs tend to split up and follow in all directions to. We immediately start gathering up dogs when that happens. Our older dogs seem to know a buck from a doe and often break off on their own. The younger dogs soon follow suit. I think they read our lack of excitement as well. When the season is over, members share the responsibilities of caring for the kennels the other 9 1/2 months out of the year. Feeding, washing out pens, regular exercise, veterinarian care, etc. It can be time consuming and costs keep going up. It is worth it to me. Members must keep up their end of the bargain or they are out.

Echo4Lima · « **Reply #20 on:** January 18, 2007, 11:16:06 AM »

A Rat Terrier/Beagle mix is the best deer dog for gettin 'em outa the brush!!

264 WIN MAG · « **Reply #21 on:** January 19, 2007, 05:13:20 PM »

Let me start off by saying that I was raised deer hunting with dogs. Later on in life we started still hunting.

Now I can honestly say I don't like it. Most of the guys around us that do it get on someone else's property line and send their dogs across your property trying to run off your deer. I couldn't tell you how many times I have heard the phrase "well, my dogs can't read the signs".

I know there are guys that do it right. We used to do it right, but there are too many groups of dog hunters out there giving them all a bad name. When I'm out there still hunting the last thing I want is dogs running across me. It has been getting better the last couple of years though...I remember a few years ago you couldn't go out still hunting on our property without our neighbors sending their dogs across us.

rockbilly · « **Reply #22 on:** January 19, 2007, 05:40:49 PM »

AS I said earlier, I was a dog man at one time, and have no problem with those that continue to do it today. As for dogs crossing into anothers property, I have seen dogs shot, and tempers flare because they were shot. On a trip near Natchez, Ms several years ago, we had to take a gun away from one of our hunting friends because he was going to shoot a man who had shot one of his dogs. The man said the dog was on his property chasing cattle, which was not true, but we would not have stood a chance with the local LEO if it had got to the point that someone was shot.

I have heard several people in the Southern Ms area say they shoot all dogs on their property. I guess it is not as freindly as it use to be, people value prpoerty, and respect for their land soo much that a dog hunter today is putting his dogs at a big risk when hunting, ar allowing them to cross on to some one else's property.

30-30man · « **Reply #23 on:** January 21, 2007, 03:04:17 PM »

We do a lot of dog hunting here. I've tried it and it is very exciting. It is quickly becoming a dying part of the outdoor experience though. The problem is nobody respects other people's property anymore. The dogs can't read property lines and most dog hunters don't care. There are just too many houses being built now and the vast countryside is getting smaller and smaller. Dog hunting makes deer move that wouldn't otherwise. It also does a great job in thinning out herds. The only problem I have with dog hunting is it is just TOO Dangerous. Most people in my area that are hurt during hunting season have been hurt while running dogs.

MS10point · « **Reply #24 on:** January 21, 2007, 03:52:03 PM »

When I was a kid, our camp used to run Beagles and the guys would ride horses and put on "drives". There was never a dull moment. Nothing gets your heart pumping any faster than to have a pack of dogs bearing down on your stand. Often you could see the deer easing through the thickets running just hard enough to stay ahead of the dogs. It was great fun....but..............
all good things must end. Now with rising property prices, strict management practices and the lack of respect that some dog hunters show for others property, dog hunting is a dying tradition. I haven't dog hunted in over 20 years but I must say that on the rare occasion that some dogs run through our property that I can't help but get a little excited about what might be in front of them. Like many others have said here, I don't do it anymore but I am glad to have had the experience.

TP

ronbow · « **Reply #25 on:** January 24, 2007, 08:54:54 AM »

I tried it one weekend in Georgia. In Ga. only shotguns are(were) allowed when running dogs. The results were disgusting. 3 deer were recovered, 4 were splattered with buckshot and lost. Sorry that's not my idea of hunting so I quit the club. Now I hunt (still hunt) in the Osceola Natl. Forest in North Fla. Dog s are run daily during the gun season and run constantly into the still hunt area. The doggers mostly look and act like the bad guys did in the movie "Deliverance". I have killed several deer with old buckshot wounds and witnessed illegal doe killing. I just don't see some guy calling himself a hunter who is standing on a dog box on the back of a pickup smoking a cigarette and holding a shotgun with a 30 in. barrel. My question has always been - if you splatter a trophy buck and happen to recover it, which dog's cage do you place the mount on ?

Sixpack · « **Reply #26 on:** January 27, 2007, 09:05:02 PM »

I had a whole short story typed up about dog hunting but decided to say just this instead.

I grew up dog hunting and do not have a problem with it. It is part of my southern heritage here in the deep south and there is nothing like the sound of beagles or walkers burnin one up! However, I have not dog hunted for deer in over 4 years now and am ok with that too. I will never totally quit hunting with dogs but it has changed from deer to rabbit and squirrel. And that's ok too because people don't have the same issues wth small game doggin as they do with deer dogs. The hassel of trying to deer hunt with dogs isn't worth it anymore. But everytime I hear a good race I can't help but smile.

When it is time to get serious about hunting, I have always been a still hunter anyways. Bow hunting will teach you that. But, I would like to say that all dog hunters are not "illegal" or "slob hunters". Yes, there are some but most of the ones I have hunted with were not.

The only thing that bothers me is I heard someone or either read that "...stopping any kind of hunting only hurts our bottom line as hunters..." and that is very true. Around here, lots of folks still dog hunt and if it is outlawed, they will quit. That is not a good thing. I guess the dog hunters will always have some kind of critic.

kyelkhunter3006 · « **Reply #27 on:** January 28, 2007, 05:02:59 AM »

I've never hunted deer with dogs, and don't plan on it. Same with boars and bears.

BUT, I don't see what the difference is using dogs to hunt just about any other animal and using dogs to hunt deer. People use dogs on rabbits, coons, bears, boars, cougars, upland game......the list goes on and on.

If it's legal for you to do it, and you want to, fine by me. Just don't do it on the land where I hunt.....to the people that own the farms, any unknown dogs are considered "feral" and are to be put to rest. They lost 3 Black Labs in 5 years from the people down the road letting their dogs run wild in packs of 5 dogs or more. They'd steal the Lab's food and gang up on it and tear it up. The Lab was outside only to eat and do it's business. Other than that, it was pretty much a house dog. Since my cousin and I started hunting out there, the dogs don't run wild anymore.

beemanbeme · « **Reply #28 on:** January 28, 2007, 06:42:03 AM »

We're clouding the issue. I was trapping some coyotes for a fellow in Tenn and I told him that there was a whole lot of meaness blamed off on coyotes that was really people's free running dogs. There is a whole world of difference between a well-schooled hunting dog and somebody's loose running POS cur.
I can't recall anyone I've known that let their hunting dogs run loose when they weren't hunting. First off, you've got too much money tied up in them to chance them being stolen, and secondly, a loose running hunting dog can (will) start hunting for himself instead of you.

WylieKy · « **Reply #29 on:** January 29, 2007, 06:54:16 AM »

If it's legal, and you do it in a responsible manner, have fun. Not my cup of tea....I like the quiet, and love nothing more than a still doe. I participated in a dog hut once. I consisted of being dropped off with a bucket and a shotgun and told to sit until the driver came back. Several sweat intensive, mosquito infested hours later, the picked me up with a truck full of deer, none of which I had anything to do with. I got 30-40 lbs of meat, and it was the worst deer meat I have ever had. On the land owner side, we used to have trouble with dog hunters on our land. We asked nicely. We asked firmly. We told. Unfortunately, they did not listen and some good dogs paid the price. After a several $500.00-$1000.00+ dogs + collars and equipment failed to return from the hunt, well......we don't have much trouble with dog hunters anymore. LEO's will just not get involved because it is so wide spread and they are overworked as it is. I had a friend of a friend get caught pulling a deer into his truck a 3am, and the LEO took the deer, put them in his own SCDNR truck, and left!!!

WylieKy