Hunting Etiquette Question

[H20 Fowl]

Heck, I've hunted 5 dogs.at one time without any problem. it just all depends on the dog. We had 3 dogs working on one hunt last year, and killed 72 birds over them. Never had a problem during that hunt.

I hate leaving my dog in the kennel, but if there isn't room, and I'm a guest, I have no choice. Just don't expect me to get out of the blind and go get a duck your dog wont go get......thats what I have a dog for.....

[Northbigmuddy]

Maybe I've missed the point. Correct me if I'm wrong. I assume the only problems arise from "problem" dogs or pets. If someone or several people have dogs that will perform average I have no problem. I don't expect every dog that hits the water to be a $2500-$10000 finished perfect dog.

[Greenhead22]

An untrained dog will ruin a good hunt in a minute. We have clients all the time want to bring their "trained" dogs. I'd venture to say 9 out of 10 shouldn't leave the kennel. I'm like H20Fowl, I hate leaving mine in the crate, but I'll do it if invited somewhere or our clients mandate taking theirs. I'll tell someone to go put their up dog up before a duck call. I know of at least 6 hunts that I wasn't involved in that were ruined by client dogs last season. And then they wonder why they didn't kill birds. When I drop 50 geese in front of two "fully trained" dogs and they won't pick up the first one without rocks being thrown ......... I got a problem with that.

I have no problem hunting 2 dogs at a time, IF they are well mannered and get along.

[H20 Fowl]

Problems dont arise from your dog being a pet. Problems arise from lack of training/hunting experience.

my dog is the biggest pet in the world. He sleeps in the bed with my kids, and even has his own easy chair in our man room......come go time though, he's ready!

[greenheadgrimreaper]

More than one dog is just a pain in the !@#.

I disagree.

If the dogs are well mannered you can have 12 in the hunt and it will not make any difference.
We usually have more than one hound with little problems. Multiple dogs can be a huge asset when you have 5-6 people that can shoot, on a big flock of birds. It saves one animal from getting too tired and from not being out in the water for 30 min retieving cripples. All that time is 1.making it more difficult for the single dog because of wind or current or them trying to escape and getting more distance from the blind. and 2. probably screwing up the next birds trying to get into the hole. Generally speaking the dog should be ALL about the hunt and not worried about the other dog that is there. You can fix that by having the dog on his "stand" and not letting him come away from that position until he is getting a bird then go right back to his spot. Anything else, like checking out the other dog is not tollerated.

Now that being said, my brown dog does as well with other dogs as he does by himself. That may not be saying much but the only dog he has any issues with is one of his littermates that a friend of mine has. When either of the dogs are by themselves, they do fine, but add them both together and it can be a disaster.They seem to be trying to out screw up the other one. But its just that one dog, other peoples dog in the blind or boat doesnt seem to matter, just that one littermate.

I will be honest with you, most people that duck hunt with their own dog care more about working the dog than the other parts of the hunt. If I was told to leave mine at the house, which I have done a few times, the first thing I am thinking is "alright where else can I hunt tomorrow".
it has to be a "special" hunt for me to leave him at home. I mean think about it, you have a max of 60 days to use the animal for what he is for, and lets face it most of us dont get to hunt 60 days. I feel its kind of like cheating him and me for me to leave him home.

My opinion.

LODI

This ^^. A dog that can't find a bird that has dived or whatever does not ruin the hunt. A dog that cannot sit still, won't shut up, wants to fight other dogs for birds, one that breaks, etc is what ruins a hunt. OBEDIENCE is the difference between folks thinking highly of your dog and folks hating your dog. Nothing, absolutely nothing, is worse than a hard headed dog with an owner saying "HERE, DRAKE...HERE...DRAKE HEEEEL HEEEEEEEL" then a limb snaps and you hear a dog getting his skull drug. It takes away from the noble, gentleman like nature of duck hunting- it just feels wrong, on top of being really annoying. I think hunting young or inexperienced dogs with more seasoned hunters is hands down the best way to teach a dog what to do. When I first started training Angus it did him a lot of good to watch other dogs that a couple of members on here have. Just let him sit there and watch and honor with the occasional mark thrown for him helped out a lot until he got the memo on what is to be done.

Moreso than anything else, if a fellow's dog is inexperienced or rusty from the offseason, nothing is worse for he and his dog than for said hunter to try to shoot and run the dog. Put the gun down and focus only on obedience and marking. Don't tie him up to try to teach him, don't carry a pocket full of empty hulls- devote all attention to getting him up to speed. If the dog didn't mark the downed bird then take him out closer to it and let him mark it. Throwing pebbles into the water does nothing but make everyone's life harder, and it makes the "handler" look like a dumbazz.

When Angus was 8 months old I thought he was plenty ready to go on a hectic public land hunt. By all indications, he was more than capable of being a fine member to the hunting party; so I took him to the refuge for a draw hunt. Given the time constraints everyone is in a huge hurry to get their stuff together and get into the hole. The first time I ever met Anatidae was when my dog was running behind he and his wife with his nose to their dog's booty. I was devastatingly embarrassed. Once I got him under control I realized it was my fault for assuming he was ready, not for the hunt itself, but the hell-on-wheels scenario that is public land draw hunting. All obedience went out the window when he saw everyone else acting like a pack of wild apes getting our stuff together. Long story short, I should've never assumed he would obey commands at such an early age in such a hectic moment with no experience in the aforementioned situation. For the rest of the morning I put the gun down and focused only on him- and promptly apologized to Anatidae and his wife and their hound. Bottom line it is the trainer and only the trainer's fault if he or she's dog is not under control. Nothing is better than a few dogs working efficiently after a volleys of birds fall while we sit on our butts and watch and enjoy. If you know your dog is rusty or inexperienced then why expect anything more? If you want to shoot then leave him at home. If you want a dog that is going to make you proud and allow you to shoot on future hunts then face reality and leave the gun on the tree hook and handle your dog. Hopefully there is another, more experienced dog that can help you help your dog.

[Anatidae]

Depends entirely on how many birds are in the area and what kind of action you can realistically anticipate. We hunt primarily out of a boat and there's a spot on each end for a dog. Don't mind another dog coming along if I know it's trained - kinda like invited hunters

As a guest, I probably wouldn't accept an invitation to hunt if 'Fluffy' couldn't come along. She's just part of the team and can do the work including (most importantly in multi-dog hunts) remote honor of other working dogs. Otherwise, I'll take my chances somewhere else.

If I was a guide, and somebody really wanted to bring their dog, the rule would be - OK, but its your hunt and your money (if they are the only 'client' hunting) - either the dog or the owner is responsible for picking-up whatever falls and I'll leave mine at the clubhouse. I might also impose a hunt cut-off time to keep the circus short enough to get out of the hole early enough to allow it to recover for future hunts.

'Greenheadgrimreaper' - there was no need to apologize. Goldens just smell different and 'Angus' was just doing what dogs do - no harm, no foul. Nice of you to apologize - but all dogs will do something to embarass their owners - it's what they do - they're no more 'perfect' than we are. Like you said, there was a lot of activity and other dogs - lot of excitement for a dog......all part of their socialization.

When BJ was a puppy, I was holding her on a lead about 150 yds up a long hill above the test. She slipped her collar at her first hunt test. She streaked down the hill and sat right next to the handler (who happened to be one of our training partners at the time) and both were watching the working dog out in the pond. Funny thing was, John's dog had gotten away from him 5 dogs earlier but they caught her before she got to the line. As embarrassing as that was, it's not uncommon for idiots to let their dog get away from them - the digs are just being dogs. We are able to laugh it off later saying that our dogs places fist & second in the downhill event.

[duckhunterdoc]

""What is a good, straightforward, non-offensive way to ask someone to hunt but to leave their dog at home (at least for the first few hunts or later in the season if Cooper is struggling)? My gut is to just lay things out as I stated above and see what happens. Thoughts and opinions?"""
.................""If I'm the guest then I do as the host says. But... if I was taking clients then of course they are welcome to bring their dog. Yes on the vest.""

I think you need to decide what is your most important goal...the Customers or your Dog.........asking a buddy to go hunting then bringing in the dog issue("non-offensive") is different from entertaining a customer that really likes to hunt his dog......plus knowledge of the customer (are you trying to gain more business, or is this hunt "oh, by the way here is a little thank you hunt") I agree with all the above post...if invited I will do as you say,,,,but very few people have commented on the "customer" part of this...not sure how BIG this is for you

[skywalker]

Don't forget dog face paint, more important than a vest.

[digger]

We hunt with more than 1 dog'at times and no problem.I agree that your dog should be your main focus durning the hunt.Working my dog is my satisfaction I hardly ever shoot anymore,don't get me wrong I kike being out there with my friends,seeing the sun come up and other stuff but my dog work is my hunt.I 'd like to think I could over look it because I love to duck hunt but if I was asked to leave my dog behind I would decline the offer to hunt,1 because she's part of the team,2nd and not to brag but she's as good or better than anything else in the blind be it 1 dog or 10.

[tica-tica]

The only thing worse than a hunt with a bad dog is actually paying for a hunt with a bad dog.

I would love to play pebble beach but if you force me to use a caddy that farts when I'm trying to putt then I would rather carry my clubs and play at the local city course.

[Greenhead22]

I hear this all the time. "My dog doesn't break".

You show me a dog that doesn't break, and I'll show you a pit blind that he or she will break out of.

I keep extra trainer's leads in my bag for this specific reason. I'll use one on Hunter from time to time, especially if I've got a pit full of guys.

[jacksbuddy]

Problems dont arise from your dog being a pet. Problems arise from lack of training/hunting experience.

my dog is the biggest pet in the world. He sleeps in the bed with my kids, and even has his own easy chair in our man room......come go time though, he's ready!

+1

I guess it's about time to break out the ole bumpers and work Jack in preparation for opening day of Dove season. If we're lucky, maybe uncle torch won't shoot him after Thanksgiving. (Or GREENHEAD won't run over him again either.)

[ragon]

More than one dog is just a pain in the !@#.

I disagree.

If the dogs are well mannered you can have 12 in the hunt and it will not make any difference.
We usually have more than one hound with little problems. Multiple dogs can be a huge asset when you have 5-6 people that can shoot, on a big flock of birds. It saves one animal from getting too tired and from not being out in the water for 30 min retieving cripples. All that time is 1.making it more difficult for the single dog because of wind or current or them trying to escape and getting more distance from the blind. and 2. probably screwing up the next birds trying to get into the hole. Generally speaking the dog should be ALL about the hunt and not worried about the other dog that is there. You can fix that by having the dog on his "stand" and not letting him come away from that position until he is getting a bird then go right back to his spot. Anything else, like checking out the other dog is not tollerated.

Now that being said, my brown dog does as well with other dogs as he does by himself. That may not be saying much but the only dog he has any issues with is one of his littermates that a friend of mine has. When either of the dogs are by themselves, they do fine, but add them both together and it can be a disaster.They seem to be trying to out screw up the other one. But its just that one dog, other peoples dog in the blind or boat doesnt seem to matter, just that one littermate.

I will be honest with you, most people that duck hunt with their own dog care more about working the dog than the other parts of the hunt. If I was told to leave mine at the house, which I have done a few times, the first thing I am thinking is "alright where else can I hunt tomorrow".
it has to be a "special" hunt for me to leave him at home. I mean think about it, you have a max of 60 days to use the animal for what he is for, and lets face it most of us dont get to hunt 60 days. I feel its kind of like cheating him and me for me to leave him home.

My opinion.

LODI

+1

[champcaller]

There are some dogs i enjoy hunting Cash with. However, most that do can't handle it.

[BucksandDucks]

Some of the most enjoyable hunts I've had over the past two seasons were with two dogs. Last year they even sat on the same stand together. It's awesome watching two well trained dogs doing what they were bred to do....Doesn't hurt to have the birds hovering over the decoys to shoot at either.