Deer Hunting With Dogs
Hunters have many different opinions about hunting with dogs.
It seems everyone has different opinions on this issue. I have never been deer hunting with the help of a canine, but I bet it is very exciting. I have had the help of a tracking dog to help me recover one of the trophy bucks that I harvested, and without the dog I don’t believe the buck would have been recovered. I have heard stories about people killing big bucks deer hunting with dogs. The only issue I have with it is if the dogs run over on another mans property while he is in the stand, and messes his hunt up. Just this year I was in the stand and it was perfect time to see a deer, when all of the sudden I hear dogs coming my way. They eventually came by me and I wanted to shoot those dogs, I know plenty of hunters who would have but I just couldn’t do it since one of them had a collar. I was very frustrated that these dogs had messed up my deer hunting. But did that give me the right to shoot another mans dogs? I really don’t know, I wanted to but I just couldn’t do it.
Here’s the article I ran acros the other day.
The History Of Hunting With Dogs
Perhaps one of the oldest activities on earth is hunting with dogs. The history of hunting, as a consequence, is also one of the most complex and diverse. Hunting for food has always been something that human kind was obligated by nature to do, dating back to the very beginning of any civilizations known to the human kind. As a result of the above mentioned, there have been literally thousands of weapons as well as devices used for hunting purposes. The long and complex history of hunting is way more complicated than any other history in the world, as it dates back to the begging of the human race.
In order to fully understand this history, humans need to break down and study each era where hunting has been a crucial part of life. Although there are very exact timelines of when certain weapons or guns were manufactured, understanding the great importance of hunting should be done on a far broader scale. There is a lot more to the history of hunting than when the gun was initially created. Regarding hunting dogs, some were developed for waterfowl such as the retrievers because they have the ability to go into the water and bring back to the hunter the downed bird. Other dogs were created for upland birds, like the pointers or the setters.
Dogs played an important role in the development of the hunting history as it helped humans survive and even today they are used for hunting purposes. Although for a lot of people, hunting with dogs it is considered to be a sport, for many other people it means survival and putting food on the table. In the prehistoric periods, people hunted for food as well as leather for clothing and fur but as the society became less nomadic and agriculture expanded, the importance of the hunting activity diminished but didn’t disappear.
Even in the 13th there were a few laws regarding the fact that people were forbidden to hunt during the breeding season in order to insure the conservation of game animals. The gunpowder and the firearm are quite recent but bows, arrows, snares and traps have all been used to animals. The hunting dogs were created in order to point and “set” game birds thus allowing the handlers to toss a net over birds. The faster dogs were primarily used for chasing down game. Falcons and eagles have been used in the capacity of hunters. With the domestication of the horse, the human had a means of speed to get alongside big game such as the bison in the North American continent.
The early hunters used methods of digging pits as a game trap and running larger game off the cliffs as a means of survival. Nowadays the most common hunting methods are: still hunting, stand hunting, stalking and driving. Still hunting consists of tracking animals when it is known they are in the area but they are not sighted. Stand hunting is about taking a position and waiting for the game to go by. Stalking takes place when the targeted animal is spotted but out of the hunter’s range and he moves within that range while trying to stay out of sight. Driving is done when a group of hunters deliberately make noise in order to drive the animals in range or past armed hunters.
All things considered, the hunting activity played a major part in the development of the human kind and still is very important for some people not only as a sport but also as a primary way of survival in remote exotic areas.
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With Dogs? You mean that the rifle which can reach 400 yards is not enough? If you need dogs to get a deer you should just forget about deer hunting. http://www.sportsmansparadiseonline.com
I think we should be able to hunt with dogs. I have been doing it as long as I can remember and I have three kids ages 18,16 & 14 that i have been taking ever since there where the age of 2, whether it be coloring in the bottom of the stand or sitting next to me in the stand or on a trail waiting to see a deer. It is a sport that we put alot of money and time in just like any other sport. But now that is being effected, What happened to the land belonging to the people, we have no rights anymore, they are slowly being taken away. All hunters need to stick together and fight to keep the land and the sport alive
Still Hunting is simple. Anyone can shoot a deer standing still in a food plot. It’s not even fair. I guarantee that the people that say deer hunting with dogs is easy has never really experienced it. I promise you I could take someone that has been still hunting their whole lives with me one day and they couldn’t hit a barn. It’s alot harder to hit a deer running 35 mph and about 4inches off the ground with their ears laid back than practically target practicing with still hunting. I promise you it’s greater hunting and the love for hunting is more also, and just to tell yall still hunters our dogs cant read posted signs, and if you forget remeber theres people who feed those dogs and those dogs mean more to them than you do so if you put your hands on them or shoot them….just put it this way it wont be pretty. So you do your thing and i’ll do mine.
First I love nature, staying under the sun walking to get my catch, so there’s no reason to get dogs. Second, dogs are dangerous (I mean to him) if there are other hunters around. they could have mistaken him for a deer or something. It’s bad losing a dog in that way…
Dogs are the best way to hunt,More of a sport in the hunt,Not for those that can”t hunt.Who think that killing like a sniper is a sport.Are a sucker punch is boxing,The two are paralell.
This is my opinion. I am a 20 year old girl. I have been deer hunting since i can remember. I was raised in the woods. Me and my daddy and grandaddy have always hunted together. Hunting with dogs is not only about the killing of deer. I is a good way to meet new people and bond with your family. There is nothing wrong with hunting with dogs. People complain about dogs running at their deer stands. But those dog’s owners are not doing it the legal way. They are illegally hunting on someone else land. They are dropping the tailgates on the side of road that have no business doing so. We are a member of a hunting club in nichols, sc and i love it. I would rather be in the woods than somewhere at Myrtle Beach. It is a good way to raise your family. I have gotten closer to my daddy and grandaddy in the past 4 year than i have ever been. It is also about raising your dog to do what they are suppose to. And then when they run accross the road in front of the pack running a monster buck, it makes it all worthwill. So there are other things to deer hunting than just harvesting a deer.
A lot of stand hunters thinks it wrong to hunt with dogs but dogs enjoy it also some people say its easy to kill the deer but its hard to kill a deer with dogs kause when the deer comes cross the road he’s running 30 to 4o mph plus you dont know when he coming because the dogs dont even be that close the deer come cross the road the dogs arrive 2 to 5 minutes later plus a bucks going to stay in the woods its not that often you see a buck come cross the road but i do give it to steel hunters because i couldnt stay in a treestand all day.
I have hunted all over the U.S. and I currently live in NC and I have hunted with dogs since I was a kid in VA. I am 30 and have a 5 year old son and he has killed 2 deer and never been in a tree. I belong to a still hunting club here in NC but I go run dogs on the gamelands. But for the first 2 weeks of gun season in VA I go off to VA to hunt with the club that I grew up hunting at with friends and family and this year my boy is going with me. The sound those hounds make when there on the chase is like music. And yes I own 4 hunting dogs and they get treated like my house dog, so I could’nt tell you what I would do if someone hurt them but it would’nt be nice.
Here is the deal. Dog hunting did not appeal to me the couple of times that I have gone. It was too easy, too un-ethical, too lazy, and too trashy. Anyone can drive around in a big piece-of-crap truck snorting cocaine and drinking beer while chasing dogs with five other trucks all talking to each other on CB radios. This is a lazy, fat mans sport; loved because of it’s mixing of trucks, guns, drugs, speed, ease, alcohol, and killing anything that moves. Why is it that in dog hunting areas everyone uses semi-auto rifles? Why is the biggest deer shot in these areas usually 120 pounds or less? It is a shame that we let people hunt in this manner. It takes patience, skill, and intelligence to still hunt effectively. One must find a hunting spot, craftily slip in downwind on that perfect day, sit still, wait for hours, and when the moment comes, make a skillfully long shot with the rifle in which you love so much. With dog hunting you ride around to get in front of the dogs, wait until the deer jumps the road, shoot down the road multiple times and then drive your loud annoying P.O.S. truck to the dead doe or extremely small buck and yell “I got one, Pa!!!!” You then collect all of your dogs, if you can find all of them. If not, who cares? They are just “deer dogs”. Come hunt the Apalachicola National Forest or Aucilla Wildlife Management area in Florida. You will then hate dog hunters, too. It isn’t the sport I hate, because doing it right could be fun and safe, although simple. It is the 95% of Deliverance people that dog hunt for deer in America that I cant stand!!
I have hunted with hounds my whole life. My whole family has done it. It takes a real hunter and a sharp shooter to kill a deer being ran by dogs. Fist off you have to have a dog that can trail a deer and jump it. Then you have to have a few more dogs to run the deer. Then after that you have to be smarter than the deer. You have to anticipate where the deer is going to run. When that deer comes across the road wide open you have a blink of an eye to kill it. If it was where i had to take a gun or my dogs i would take my dogs. Its more than just killing a deer to me. Its taking that puppy and traning it to be a real hound. Still hunters are excuctions.
I’m researching hunting with dogs. Last week we had a devestating experience. We are dog lovers. My husband accidently hit a hunting dog. We killed it. I cried and cried, actually still do. This poor dog had a number painted on her side and big box around her neck. The hunt club was given our numbers by someone that helped us. Later that day they came and got the dog, and their box. But they never contacted us. We would have gladly paid the value of the dog, and then some. It cost several thousand to have our vehicle repaired. After reading on this site I can see where some people truly care for their dogs and see the value in hunting WITH a dog. But people should do it responsibly as one young lady pointed out. There was a truck on the side of the road full of dogs. Not sure if it was the same club but why would anyone allow their dog on a fairly busy road? My husband returned to get our vehicle, we’re out of staters, and passed 3 puppies walking along the same road where we killed a dog. For those who do not hunt it is absolutely devastating to kill a dog. They are domestic animals in our world. Our dog lives in our house, is treated almost like royalty! Hunt responsibly! Also, we swerved to try and avoid the animal. We could have hit another car head on or collided into a tree. We’re lucky it was as little money as it was. It was the mental trauma that was bad. Just wanted to share our story in hopes that people would take care of these beautiful puppies.
i will just say this. we hunt with dogs not because we have to or because we cant kill a deer without dogs. we hunt with them because we love doing it and love the sound of your own hunting dogs running a deer. i could go out anyday and kill a deer still hunting, i know this because every time i do still hunt i see at least 10 deer(bucks and does). also i would never kill adeer still hunting unless it was a nice buck becuase i just dont get much excitement (unless im bow hunting). hunting deer with dogs is way more challengeing because hitting a deer running flat out is way harder than sniping them out of a treestand. and dont even think about arguing with that last statement unless youve actually tried it. all in all, with all the anti hunting people these days all hunters should get along because if we dont hunting in general will go on a downward spiral.
[...] Top 2009 Hunting Blog Post: Deer Hunting With Dogs [...]
Dog hunting deer is a pure social event
There are druggies and drunks in every corner of our social makeup
I do hate it when people put there hounds in bad places, whether it be close to a road ot close to private property where dog hunting is not allowed
The original thread sounded to me as though this person had some strays run across his stand
We take alot of effort in making sure our hounds, if lost can be indentified and we can be contacted
We also use tracking collars
Hunting with hounds as I said above is a social event
The harvest of the animal is only part of the entire event. It has become in some places an event that the use of hounds 15 inches and smaller are required
I do this as it just keeps the entire day alot less stressfull.
One last item I would like to add. most times the deer is taken in front of a pack of hounds, the deer at times can be as far as 15 minutes ahead of the dogs and unless ill or injured the hounds are never “right” behind it
Anyone have any questions about this style of hunting I will be glad to answer them, it is a huge part of my faimlies life, that involves 30-40 of us in the entire days hunt with only 10-15 of us involved in the actual hunt
You folks are making a case to ban dog hunting and you dont even realize it. Stop talking about shooting at deer running 30 MPH, stop telling people that its your GOD GIVEN RIGHT to dog hunt, because its not, and stop telling people that they are wrong to still hunt because “anybody can execute” a deer still hunting. Im from a dog hunting family and over the last 35 years I have seen dog hunters run across yards shooting deer, running cars off the road, cutting private fences and trespassing, totally disregarding land owners rights and using the same lame excuses. This year, on the 7000 acres surrounding me dog hunting was banned by the timber co. I saw more deer this year on my place than in the last 15 altogether because I didn’t have a pack running through from oct. 1 th jan 31. Sorry guys, but if you dont police yourselves, you are a thing of the past. personally I think its too late, but you can try.
I live in appomattox va. I have hunted with dogs all of my life. I have also still hunted. I don’t get the same pleasure from still hunting. Hell I would rather hear the dogs run than kill a deer most days, and all you people bad mouthing people hunting with dogs, don’t knock it until you try it, you don’t know what your missing. My grandpa has hunted with dogs for 70 years and if he was told he couldn’t run his dogs anymore I don’t think he could survive so all you left wing tree huggers can kiss my conservative heritage loving ass. If you don’t want dogs coming on your property then but a fence around it where a dog and a deer can’t cross dogs can’t read. Its not just the dog hunters that hunt from the road I’ve seen plenty of still hunters shoot deer from their truck windows, but they are just bad seeds aren’t they. All I got to say if you want to kill the economy even more then outlaw hunting with dogs and make your President Obama happy cause hell you probly voted for him.
I have been hunting with dogs my hole life I am now 19 years old and hearing a good pack of dogs run in one of my favorite sounds in the world. I am from NC and hunting with dogs is part of or culture almost every one has a dog box in the back of there pick up. killing a deer with a pack of dogs hot on em is not an easy task but there is no other thrill that could match it.
Hunting deer with dogs is much more difficult than still hunting. Still hunting allows you to lure in a deer with food plots,corn feeders, doe urine or rattling, and then instantly ambushing them. Dog hunting gives deer the advantage by allowing him to run freely ahead of the dogs. This will always be a much more exciting hunt that is truly missed in the Great State of Texas. I guess Hog Dog Hunting will have to do for now.
Obviously the 1st blogger’s (Dale’s) not much of hunter if he thinks dog hunting is easy.
I been hunting with dogs all my life . I hunt in a big club in south Louisiana. we dont ride around in trucks cause our hunting grounds is all swamp. We don’t use rifles because its to dangerous ” SHOT GUN ONLY”
Were all sportsman why cant we just get along . Cause one day yall still hunters might need the dog hunters .If they ban Deer dogs every where whats next Rabbit hunting with dogs ,Bear hunting with dogs, Hog hunting with dogs , Coon hunting with dogs , Squirrel hunting with dogs , Bird hunting with dogs , Then they will ban still hunting cause their is no one else to pick on but the “STILL HUNTERS” And all the dog hunters wont be around to back yall.