Renaissance Redneck
We have been seeing lower numbers here in the west Kootenays this year. The spring was wetter than usual, so not much of a surprise. Region 4 opens Sept 1, but the photo below is from the 10th and region 8 opener. We pointed/flushed two, and I took one as a “training bird” for our one year old. There seem to be stronger numbers up a bit higher.
Note my new turkey decoy flock in the background…
If we’re not supposed to eat animals, how come they’re made out of meat?
BHA, BCWF, CCFR, PETA, Lever Action Addict.
Renaissance Redneck
Is it illegal to use a dog to find a down/lost animal? You are not really “hunting” at that point. More like “tracking”. And in BC, you can use dogs for big game, but they must be leashed.Originally Posted by britman101
If we’re not supposed to eat animals, how come they’re made out of meat?
BHA, BCWF, CCFR, PETA, Lever Action Addict.
Senior Member
Yes the way the fish and wildlife regulations are set up in Alberta you cannot let your dog even track a wounded animal. That is why for any Navdha clubs in Alberta they focus on small game or birds for tracking during training sessions. Eventually a group will find time to challenge that law, which in my opinion is outdated, but at this point in Alberta you can be fined if your dog is spotted tracking a big game animal other than cougar.
Renaissance Redneck
That’s ridiculous. But, I think there are a lot of jurisdictions across North America with similar laws. I get that we don’t want packs of dogs running ungulates to ground, but anything that aids in the recovery of a lost or wounded animal can’t be a bad thing.
If we’re not supposed to eat animals, how come they’re made out of meat?
BHA, BCWF, CCFR, PETA, Lever Action Addict.
Senior Member
I agree - only the asshats that say they're "tracking" if they get caught "hunting" ruin it. Recovering an animal should be a priority.
forever noob
HuntingBC Champ
From the current hunting reg's:
Dogs*
» The use of dogs is permitted in the hunting of all game, but dogs must be on a leash when used to hunt deer, elk, moose, mountain sheep, mountain goat and caribou. Unleashed dogs may be used to hunt small game, lynx, bobcat, black bear, or cougar.
Retrieval*
» No person shall kill, cripple or wound game without making all reasonable effort to locate, dispatch, retrieve and include it in their bag limit.
I train and prove my dogs in sanctioned tests for blood tracking in addition to the usual training. We've recovered numerous wounded big game animals that may have been lost if I didn't use my dogs to assist.
Last edited by huntingfamily; 09-11-2024 at 05:32 PM.
HuntingBC Champ
How do you train your dog to follow blood trail? My dog only likes live birds, he’ll walk right over a fresh killed grouse without even pausing to check it out. When he’s not in hunt mode he’ll check out anything and everything, but when he’s hunting it’s a different story.
If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed.
HuntingBC Champ
The best way to train a dog to blood trail is to acquire some blood from a dead big game animal so the dog knows what to follow/find. When I got my pup (griff) I kept some blood from the two deer I shot that fall and froze it in small zip lock bags. I also kept a piece of the hide and nailed it to a small piece of plywood in order for the pup to figure out she had found the prize at the end. In the beginning of Sako's blood work training I just walked and put a few drops of blood every 5' or so which eventually lead to the hide. They catch on fast!
After doing 100% concentrated blood few times I put some of it a spray bottle with a little water to dilute it and would spray the ground every 3-5 yards and then eventually stretched out the distance, both with blood drops and the spray bottle for a few hundred yards. When I did the training at first I didn't use a check cord. Once the dog figured out what the name of the game was I started using a 15' check cord. Any longer than that and it tends to get caught up in everything.
For locating dead games birds just do drags with dead ducks/geese, pheasants or grouse when the field is a bit damp,,,,seems to hold the scent better when it is. Start at distances of 30-40 yards and then stretch it out to a few hundred yards if the field is big enough. Do searches, as well, using the same command you use for drags,,,,"Dead bird!". Just hide a dead duck you've unthawed unless you have a fresh bird on hand or some other game bird somewhere out in a field but put or throw it out there by taking a longer, round about route to put it there otherwise your dog will just follow your trail out.
As far as your dog blinking dead birds is concerned that's a retrieving issue. If you command your dog to retrieve a bird it needs to complete the task before he is allowed to continue to hunt. I did the force fetch process with my giff when she was about 8-10 months old because I wanted 100% reliability on retrieves. FF'ing a dog takes choice out of the matter for the dog. The retrieve becomes a job,,,,,no ifs, ands, or buts whether it's a land retrieve in bramble, across a flowing river, or in freezing cold water. That said, a trained retrieve process like force fetching is not the only way to correct the problem just as long as your dog has a willingness and the natural ability to recover game. Just correct the issue like you would any obedience command like having 100% recall, staying put, etc. using consistency and high quality treats. Hope this helps!
He's NOT your buddy, buddy!
HuntingBC Champ
It’s been fairly slow for me this set of days off. We were out again today and the dog bumped several birds in the thick stuff. I have to bring him to some more open spots so he can sight them and I can command him to whoa before they flush. If he sees them than he’ll stop and stalk and I’ll have a chance to work with his commands but when it’s thick he just chases down their scent until they’re flying.
Im going to throw this one in the freezer and bring him over to the school field with his chuckit ball and see if we can combine the two and get him retrieving.
If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed.
Junior Member
Extremely slow start for us in regions 2 and 3. Seeing a fraction of the birds I have in previous years. Surprising considering how much sooty calling there was this spring. My pointer has been getting on some older scent but hasn't had much to get excited about. With a mild spring and summer, I'm wondering if there's ample food supply to keep them dispersed
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