hunting dogs

[mccallum]

YOU CONTROL THE DOG! Dog needs to be kept track of. Also beagle's are use to hunt rabbits.

[Hikenhunter]

Originally Posted by mccallum

YOU CONTROL THE DOG! Dog needs to be kept track of. Also beagle's are use to hunt rabbits.

Well said. I love my dog but he is still a dog. Too many people treat their dogs like they are 4 legged people. They need to be kept in check. It doesn't matter what the breed is either. I used to hunt with 2 labs and they made great backpacking partners too. I didn't leash them when we were on the trail, but I kept them close and I kept an eye on them. If I saw a potential problem ahead of us I would call them to heal and sometimes leash them until the problem was past. The dog I had, before my present dog, was 1/2 golden retriever and 1/2 lab. When we hunted I gave her the go ahead and when we hiked I kept her at heal. My present dog is a golden/labrador cross as well. He hunts but not as well as his successors and he hikes and backpacks with me and never have I had a problem with him. The key to all of this is training, but that takes time and patience. If you are going to own a dog, and especially if you are going to take him places with you then it is your duty to TRAIN him. If you do your job as a dog owner it will help to keep him safe. It will help to keep others,both human and non human safe, and it will help you avoid a lot of bad situations. Teach him that you are the leader of his pack and he will be a much more pleasant partner for all your activities.