I agree with Shorthair 100%. My feelings exactly. Most of the hunters that don't think hunting deer with dogs never had a chance to experience it. I love it and did it for many years. I had my own Walker hounds as well as Beagles. If you have a good club and surround the area you hunt in fairly well (most club members know the normal deer escape routes), the deer normally don't get to go very far before someone gets them. The problem comes in when you try to hunt too large an area with too few people. The deer get through as well as the dogs, and they're out of hearing range pretty fast. I used tracking collars and was lucky enough to keep in contact with them and know their direction to catch them before they cross roads or other property. A good club will help you with staying with the dogs and keeping them out of trouble. Like Shorthair said, there are good clubs and bad clubs, just like with anything else. It's too bad the bad ones spoil it for everyone. I don't know about you, but the sound of a pack of dogs coming hot on a deer trail is pure music to my ears. To me, it's no different than fox hunting. It IS fiar chase and a lot of the deer get away unharmed. In fact, most of the areas I hunted in SE VA, the deer are so used to dogs being around, even if they are chased out, they are back in the same spots withing a few days. It's a different kind of hunting (one that I love) but it's not for everyone. If you like sitting in a tree stand all day "hoping" something comes by, then that's fine. Don't knock it until you've tried it.