Pointer breeds hunting fur

[T Bone]

Mine were from Americanized lines.

If bird hunting was slow, my female would scent, and creap up on jacks and caught a couple jacks on her own. She'd bring them back whole, and was she proud of them!

Unfortunately it took her twice to learn to stay out of porcupines.



Cats on the other hand, she would dismember. The only evidence was her silly grin, matted in blood and a cut up face.

 

[Mudder]

In Europe, they train them not to run Deer and not to close with Hogs, bay and chase. They don't run Deer mostly because once a dog starts it loses all good sense. They'll run right across a highway, right into a thicket or won't quit and may be miles away in no time at all. When you pay a thousand or more for a good dog and put hundreds of hours into it's training, besides it being a friend, you get a little protective.

Mine put a sharp stick four inches into his chest chasing a wounded Hog. You hear stories about a dog getting away and chasing Deer never to be seen again, Usually because they didn't have a breakaway collar and the collar got hung up on a branch in a thicket. I've helped try to find a few for hours and days. I put a light plastic collar on mine when doing a drive hunt just in case. One dog went into a culvert under some railroad tracks and got stuck, we never did get the dog out.

If a big Hog gets ahold of a Dogs leg it can break the bone.

My Weimaraner was born with a hate for Fox. The first time I tried to get him to retrieve one he turned it inside out and spread it in a six foot circle.

Like mentioned German Drahtharr have a reputation for having a really strong prey drive, GSP almost as strong. Getting them to go after something is easy, getting them to stop not so easy.

Every fall we have numerous kettle hunts, often thirty dogs or more. German wirehaired pointer being the most popular, GSP also being a favorite and recently long hair Weimaraner have been getting popular.

You can see he isn't a happy camper, he wants to be tearing that Fox to bits and not carrying it around.

 

[jt13]

My small female GSP was never trained on fur, if anything she discouraged from all things but birds, and will still kill just about any small furry critter given the opportunity. She's developed a taste for squirrels, rabbits, and woodchucks. If she ever came across a raccoon or porcupine there's no doubt she would instantly be after them. When she was a small pup I didn't think she would hurt anything without feathers, but she has since proved otherwise many times over.

 

[1_pointer]

My dog's chased small furry critters, but to my knowledge hasn't ever caught one. Kinda would like to see what he'd do if he did catch one. The backyard rabbits/squirrels do get his attention though...

 

[JLS]

I would suggest getting in touch with someone who is involved in the JGHV testing system. This is the testing system Drahthaars, Langhaars, and Kurzhaars (among others) go through. Just because a dog is used for fur does not mean they won't mind or stop the pursuit. Quite the contrary. In addition, a properly force fetched dog will retrieve anything you send it after without destroying it. German dogs are marked "loud" on game during testing.

Regardless of what breed you choose, I would strongly recommend you spend some time with that particular breed, and more importantly with the dog(s) used for the breeding.

remember what I said about prey drive vs. cooperation. My dog would gladly kill any cat I released him on, but he will remain in a down stay in the yard while the neighbor's fatty strolls across the street giving him the finger.

 

[Kyboy88]

There is no such thing as too much prey drive. There is too little cooperation and obedience.

Well I say that because I have heard dd don't do really good with house cats and other small dogs

 

[Kyboy88]

This drahthaar is hard on furry things. Pic is at 8 months with first solo coon. I don't encourage it, nor do I deny him a little fun. He'll retrieve anything I shoot. But he does get a little twitterpatted over rabbits lol.

If we're in pheasants and I know he is on a bunny, just a quick "leave it" command and we go back to roosters.

cool do you mind me asking how it happened with the coon and rabbit? Did he catch them or run them to the gu n

 

[Kyboy88]

There’s a guy that posts a lot on a squirrel hunting fb page I follow. Two year old male 1/2 bird dog 1/2 treeing fiest. Looks like it should be running through fields but he is a jam up squirrel dog.

Yeah I have heard guys doing that with fiest curs and hounds as well seems like the bird dog adds speed brains and makes a quieter dog which a lot of people say catch faster

 

[Kyboy88]

In Europe, they train them not to run Deer and not to close with Hogs, bay and chase. They don't run Deer mostly because once a dog starts it loses all good sense. They'll run right across a highway, right into a thicket or won't quit and may be miles away in no time at all. When you pay a thousand or more for a good dog and put hundreds of hours into it's training, besides it being a friend, you get a little protective.

Mine put a sharp stick four inches into his chest chasing a wounded Hog. You hear stories about a dog getting away and chasing Deer never to be seen again, Usually because they didn't have a breakaway collar and the collar got hung up on a branch in a thicket. I've helped try to find a few for hours and days. I put a light plastic collar on mine when doing a drive hunt just in case. One dog went into a culvert under some railroad tracks and got stuck, we never did get the dog out.

If a big Hog gets ahold of a Dogs leg it can break the bone.

My Weimaraner was born with a hate for Fox. The first time I tried to get him to retrieve one he turned it inside out and spread it in a six foot circle.

Like mentioned German Drahtharr have a reputation for having a really strong prey drive, GSP almost as strong. Getting them to go after something is easy, getting them to stop not so easy.

Every fall we have numerous kettle hunts, often thirty dogs or more. German wirehaired pointer being the most popular, GSP also being a favorite and recently long hair Weimaraner have been getting popular.

You can see he isn't a happy camper, he wants to be tearing that Fox to bits and not carrying it around.

Interesting sir I have experience training hounds on rabbit coon and a little fox would you say there was any different in training a hound and a dog like yours? Also when it comes to fox I have heard two different accounts on how it is done with them some saying they are used to push the fox to a waiting gun others saying they are breed and trained to run the fox down what has your experience been

 

[Kyboy88]

I would suggest getting in touch with someone who is involved in the JGHV testing system. This is the testing system Drahthaars, Langhaars, and Kurzhaars (among others) go through. Just because a dog is used for fur does not mean they won't mind or stop the pursuit. Quite the contrary. In addition, a properly force fetched dog will retrieve anything you send it after without destroying it. German dogs are marked "loud" on game during testing.

Regardless of what breed you choose, I would strongly recommend you spend some time with that particular breed, and more importantly with the dog(s) used for the breeding.

remember what I said about prey drive vs. cooperation. My dog would gladly kill any cat I released him on, but he will remain in a down stay in the yard while the neighbor's fatty strolls across the street giving him the finger.

Good to know I have a wife who is a cat person and that why I was having doubt about the DD

 

[JLS]

Good to know I have a wife who is a cat person and that why I was having doubt about the DD

Any dog that is sharp on fur is a potential hazard to the cat. That is why it’s so important to have one who hunts for you and not itself.

 

[30338]

cool do you mind me asking how it happened with the coon and rabbit? Did he catch them or run them to the gu n

We hunt cattail areas in a few places for pheasants. So the occasional coon will get killed along the way. On rabbits, he'll sometimes point them but you can typically tell when he is working one. If one happens to jump up and I don't call him off he just runs it with glee. That rabbit there he jumped on the side of a winter wheat field and I rolled it out there about 40 yards or so. It was a slow bird day so let him have some fun. He'll retrieve any of that stuff to hand.

If you are interested in a DD, be sure to check out the local chapter before buying. They will typically have training days monthly and it really helps a new DD owner to get his first one trained up nicely. I'd say if you socialize your wife's cat with the DD, that cat should be safe probably. I don't think any stray you come across while hunting will be safe. I mean you can command leave it, if you see it coming but I'd not want to be a stray around mine lol.

 

[runningmt]

Here and there I have heard accounts. Of the German pointer breeds being used to hunt fur. Fox rabbit deer and hogs in Europe and hogs coon coyote and some cats in the u.s.a. also in the usa seems x them with curs or pits is some what common. Was just wounding if anybody has seen or done it

An old friend of mine had two GSPs mostly for hunting sharptails in ND. When we would take them duck hunting, they would inevitably find raccoons, usually a bunch of them. Each dog would get on one end of the raccoon and the dogs would literally rip the raccoon in half.
The dogs were gentle and professional with upland birds, ducks and geese, brutal and sadistic with small mammals.

 

[Salmonchaser]

JLS has a very good point, not to take anything away from his other comments.
I’ve been around hunting dogs all my life. German dogs are best, followed by Goldens and Labs.
To his point:no matter the strength of a dogs prey drive the handler must be able to control it. I can turn Molly off the grizz, but I really have to get after her. For my guests safety and mine I want her aggressive on bears. But I need to improve on my control. Both my dogs have been guiding upland hunts for the last seven years. They would gladly eat my neighbors chickens. A simple “Leave it” or “out” is all it takes. That’s how it should be.
The best example of the control training I’ve ever witnessed were our police dogs. When you understand dogs and prey drive and you see a dog chasing a bad guy, who suddenly puts his hands up, you know what’s going to happen. But what I’ve seen is the handler yell “down” and the dog go down to his belly, even when he was just yards from making contact. If the bad guy tries to take advantage of that moment and attempt to flee again, a simple “take him” will quickly resolve the issue.
Point being control is absolutely possible without destroying prey drive.

 

[lpcoutdoors]

There’s a guy that posts a lot on a squirrel hunting fb page I follow. Two year old male 1/2 bird dog 1/2 treeing fiest. Looks like it should be running through fields but he is a jam up squirrel dog.

Oh, that reminds me, my great granddad, according to my granddad, had brittanies that tree squirrels. I've often wondered about this, since my brits will certainly get after every squirrel they see in the city and since we don't see too many squirrels in the bird hunting areas there would be no problem getting mixed up. Though I'd have no problem anyway, I'd take some bonus squirrel while quail hunting.

I have to wonder though how well those brittanies treed the squirrels, my granddad's stories can be a little off.

 

[JTHOMP]

Oh, that reminds me, my great granddad, according to my granddad, had brittanies that tree squirrels. I've often wondered about this, since my brits will certainly get after every squirrel they see in the city and since we don't see too many squirrels in the bird hunting areas there would be no problem getting mixed up. Though I'd have no problem anyway, I'd take some bonus squirrel while quail hunting.

I have to wonder though how well those brittanies treed the squirrels, my granddad's stories can be a little off.

I think as long as they stay on a tree they would be a good dog.

 

[Mudder]

Interesting sir I have experience training hounds on rabbit coon and a little fox would you say there was any different in training a hound and a dog like yours? Also when it comes to fox I have heard two different accounts on how it is done with them some saying they are used to push the fox to a waiting gun others saying they are breed and trained to run the fox down what has your experience been

Mostly used to flush and retrieve, with some pointing. When we do a drive hunt, line hunt or a Kettle hunt it is usually multiple game in the same seasons. No telling what is going to flush, mostly Hare, Pheasant, Grouse, Fox and occasionally Deer and Hogs. Ducks and Geese by the Creeks. We don't shoot Deer during a drive or kettle hunt (illegal here).

Usually mixed agriculture and forest. No telling what is going to flush out of a Corn or grain field. We pay special attention to hedgerows.

Hard for a hound to catch a Fox until the Fox runs out wind, a dog can outlast a Fox. Dogs have deeper chests more lung capacity, Fox have narrow chests to fit in the burrows better, a skinned Fox reminds me of a narrow chested Whippet, the fur makes them look bigger than they are. But mostly a Fox will run from cover to cover or often to a den. We often have a few earth dogs with us to send down a burrow or into a stack of hay rolls. Where we hunt, a Fox is seldom farther than a quarter of a mile from a burrow, often multiple burrows within a hundred yards.
Very few Jackel, Wolf or Lynx around, a lot Fox. Fox are pretty much the apex predator here, cars. disease and hunters are the only real threat to them. Occasionally a Hawk or Eagle will pick off a pup. Side note, one way I find a Fox burrow is to watch the trees and see which ones the Hawks are sitting in late spring. the Fox pups come out to play about dark or a little earlier, the Hawks know this. If there is no nest around the Hawks are sitting up in that tree for a reason.

 

[JLS]

a skinned Fox reminds me of a narrow chested Whippet, the fur makes them look bigger than they are.

I shot a red fox one time while I was elk hunting in SW Montana. I didn't realize how damned small they were until I picked it up.

 

[Kyboy88]

We hunt cattail areas in a few places for pheasants. So the occasional coon will get killed along the way. On rabbits, he'll sometimes point them but you can typically tell when he is working one. If one happens to jump up and I don't call him off he just runs it with glee. That rabbit there he jumped on the side of a winter wheat field and I rolled it out there about 40 yards or so. It was a slow bird day so let him have some fun. He'll retrieve any of that stuff to hand.

If you are interested in a DD, be sure to check out the local chapter before buying. They will typically have training days monthly and it really helps a new DD owner to get his first one trained up nicely. I'd say if you socialize your wife's cat with the DD, that cat should be safe probably. I don't think any stray you come across while hunting will be safe. I mean you can command leave it, if you see it coming but I'd not want to be a stray around mine lol.

I was thinking more like a gsp because I have heard they are a little less high string as the DD and plus being in the south I was thinking a gsp could handle the hot weather better

 

[Kyboy88]

An old friend of mine had two GSPs mostly for hunting sharptails in ND. When we would take them duck hunting, they would inevitably find raccoons, usually a bunch of them. Each dog would get on one end of the raccoon and the dogs would literally rip the raccoon in half.
The dogs were gentle and professional with upland birds, ducks and geese, brutal and sadistic with small mammals.

Just from instruct or did your friend do anything to bring it out