bear hunting
08-10-2006, 02:29 PM
#2
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location:
Posts: 903
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
uhh....well...cooning isnt unethical. The dog has to work at it, and the dog likes it. So I dnno, Id rather hunt bear out of a stand, but I wouldnt bash anyone for hunting bears with dogs...just my personal opinion
-Travis-
-Travis-
08-10-2006, 03:56 PM
#3
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Elizabeth Colo. USA
Posts: 4,413
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
If that's not "ethical" in your book, is using dogs to hunt upland birds "ethical"? What about using dogs to hunt mountain lion? Ethical? What about using dogs to hunt rabbit? Ethcial?
Dogs are used in many ways, to hunt many different animals. To many, the best part of the "hunt" is the "chase"! And at the end of a "chase" if I can make a clean shot and a quick kill, than I've been "ethcial" in the hunt!
Dogs are used in many ways, to hunt many different animals. To many, the best part of the "hunt" is the "chase"! And at the end of a "chase" if I can make a clean shot and a quick kill, than I've been "ethcial" in the hunt!
08-10-2006, 05:00 PM
#4
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Idaho
Posts: 2,072
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
I have done it. but its not for me. I wouldn't put anyone down for doing it though. Just out of curiosity, have you ever gone before???? Its not as easy as you may think.
08-10-2006, 06:07 PM
#5
Typical Buck
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location:
Posts: 549
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
I agree with howler 100%. Alot of people believe that by chasing an animal using hounds with the intent to kill is harrasment of wildlife. My turn for an opinion. The bear has a chance to get away from the houndsman and his dog alot more than if the bear was baited in. Or say those who bait in deer or put out food plots where it's like a candyland that brings in the wildlife. What about fenced in hunt's and exotic's. Here's a real ethical hunt go on a standard buffalo hunt out west where you drive up to the herd and get out and shoot.
I would love to run bears with hounds but it's not legal in colorado. Mountain lions you can, and that's a hunt. Half the people that you know couldn't keep up enough to go on a lion hunt. I've tracked lions clear into dark and started fresh the next day. Maybe to some it's not ethical but when an animal has just as much chance as getting away as to being killed then I think it's fair sport. An elk that has a pack of wolves don't get that good of break. To one what may seem like cheating is just another way someone else hunts. I would rather run hounds than go sit in a tree stand and wait for a whitetail coming into a food plot but that's just me.
I would love to run bears with hounds but it's not legal in colorado. Mountain lions you can, and that's a hunt. Half the people that you know couldn't keep up enough to go on a lion hunt. I've tracked lions clear into dark and started fresh the next day. Maybe to some it's not ethical but when an animal has just as much chance as getting away as to being killed then I think it's fair sport. An elk that has a pack of wolves don't get that good of break. To one what may seem like cheating is just another way someone else hunts. I would rather run hounds than go sit in a tree stand and wait for a whitetail coming into a food plot but that's just me.
08-10-2006, 11:37 PM
#8
Fork Horn
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Missoula,MT
Posts: 307
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
ABSOLUTELY!,
I have ran hounds for years on all types of game and bear too.
Running bear with hounds is more than meets the eye.First of all not all hounds make good bear dogs.You might cull 50 dogs before you get a good one.Then you have to break them off deer and other game you don't want them to run.And then train them on bear.Usually with other dogs.I have ran 2 dogs on bear and even had one that could tree them but it is best to use atleast 3,incase you get a salty boar that will not tree.You have to exercise the dogs everyday,either hunt them or road them.take them out on an old dirt road and turn them loose and follow with a truck.It gets them in shape and toughens their pads so they don't slip while hunting.You have to put in lot's of hours to get good bear dogs and running hounds has cost many divorces,I know because it caused mine.Not to mention all the money in high protien dog food,shots and vet bills and gas to hunt.Then you have your tracking equipment and shock collars.After all that then the fun begins.I know some dogs that you can't even buy and some you can are selling for $25,000.Some guys would rather shoot the dog than to let the bloodline get out into the wrong hands.Anyways when the fun begins I used to drive the back old logging roads and look for fresh tracks I had a hood pad on the hood of my truck and would put a good strike dog on and drive.When the dog winded a bear I would stop and check the track.If it was a good one I would turn the strike dog loose and listen.There is nothing like a good bawl mouth dog on track.It is kind of like an elk bugel up close and echoes through the canyons.If the strike dog lines the track out I would turn a few more dogs loose and when the race was on I would put in my pups.You can tell alot what a dog is doing by their bark and when you hear them chopping,the bear is usually treed.Then you have to get to the tree.and it can be as enduring as a long 15 mile elk hunt through the rockiest,steepest and brushiest country on this earth.If you come up on the bear tree too fast sometimes the bear will jump and run you over.I had a few knock me down.And Iv'e seen grown men scared to death.And if you are out of shape stay in the truck because you will never want to do it again.And if a bear chases you run as fast as you can,they can't catch you because they will be slipping in your $hit.
Also I think hound hunting is ethical because once you have the bear treed you can tell if it is a sow with cubs or a boar.If you have never tried hound hunting give it a try and see how easy and unethical it is.I think you will find otherwise.
Elkshed
I have ran hounds for years on all types of game and bear too.
Running bear with hounds is more than meets the eye.First of all not all hounds make good bear dogs.You might cull 50 dogs before you get a good one.Then you have to break them off deer and other game you don't want them to run.And then train them on bear.Usually with other dogs.I have ran 2 dogs on bear and even had one that could tree them but it is best to use atleast 3,incase you get a salty boar that will not tree.You have to exercise the dogs everyday,either hunt them or road them.take them out on an old dirt road and turn them loose and follow with a truck.It gets them in shape and toughens their pads so they don't slip while hunting.You have to put in lot's of hours to get good bear dogs and running hounds has cost many divorces,I know because it caused mine.Not to mention all the money in high protien dog food,shots and vet bills and gas to hunt.Then you have your tracking equipment and shock collars.After all that then the fun begins.I know some dogs that you can't even buy and some you can are selling for $25,000.Some guys would rather shoot the dog than to let the bloodline get out into the wrong hands.Anyways when the fun begins I used to drive the back old logging roads and look for fresh tracks I had a hood pad on the hood of my truck and would put a good strike dog on and drive.When the dog winded a bear I would stop and check the track.If it was a good one I would turn the strike dog loose and listen.There is nothing like a good bawl mouth dog on track.It is kind of like an elk bugel up close and echoes through the canyons.If the strike dog lines the track out I would turn a few more dogs loose and when the race was on I would put in my pups.You can tell alot what a dog is doing by their bark and when you hear them chopping,the bear is usually treed.Then you have to get to the tree.and it can be as enduring as a long 15 mile elk hunt through the rockiest,steepest and brushiest country on this earth.If you come up on the bear tree too fast sometimes the bear will jump and run you over.I had a few knock me down.And Iv'e seen grown men scared to death.And if you are out of shape stay in the truck because you will never want to do it again.And if a bear chases you run as fast as you can,they can't catch you because they will be slipping in your $hit.
Also I think hound hunting is ethical because once you have the bear treed you can tell if it is a sow with cubs or a boar.If you have never tried hound hunting give it a try and see how easy and unethical it is.I think you will find otherwise.
Elkshed
08-11-2006, 01:59 AM
#9
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 27
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
woody19792000 please tell me what equipment you use, what areas you hunt, how you hunt, etc etc and I'll degrade you and tear apart your choices as unethical, pathetic, and unfair.
Yes, I can play the same game to you, that you play towards houndsmen
Yes, I can play the same game to you, that you play towards houndsmen
08-11-2006, 07:37 AM
#10
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 801
RE: Is Bear hunting with a dog ethical?
Woody, you are of course entitled to your opinion but I have to believe you have never been on a bear hunt over hounds. It is easy to think of it as unethical if all you have seen is pictures of bears in trees and guys standing at the bottom of them shooting bears from 10 yards away.
I can assure you it is so much more than that. Hunting bears with hounds is a year round endeavor. Those dogs don't get put in the safe at the end of the year. They are out in the yard and in the kennel and NEED good exercise and training. The cost of agood pack is enormous and the time and devotion to training is a true labor of love. The hunt itself is extremely challenging, as you are talking true wilderness areas. Guys don't run those hounds near highways, their dogs mean to much to them to be hit by cars. In addition, while it may seem that each cast results in a bear up a tree, that is just not the case. Some real big bears will NEVER climb, they may just bay and fight. Wading into an all out brawl between dogs and a boar and placing a single killing shot is not easy. If you think buck fever gets your adreneline pumping. A true houndsman often loves his dogs so much he'll often wade right into the fray if he sees a dog in trouble. In addition, some bears that are treed are females and the ability to look over closely the bear and spot cubs really helps eliminate shooting sows. Sitting a stand over a wildblueberry patch does not give you the same ability to look for cubs which is important in ethical bear harvest.
Lastly, some hound/bear hunts are the most physically challenging hunts left in North America. Once a bear is treed or bays there is only so much time to get there. This often means running through thick swamps and brush so tight as it reduces you to crawling.
I'll wrap up and sayI can understandyour opinion from someone who has not taken part in a hunt like this. But it is a hunt, and truly one of the most exciting and challenging you may ever do. That said, it is absolutely not for everyone. It is different than deer hunting on so many levels. The "thrill" is not the killing of the bear at all as it so often is with deer or other animals. The "hunt" is in the sounding of the hounds, the chase through miles of woods and the reward of working so closely with great dogs. If you are not aware, this type of hunting has been around as long as man has been hunting, and the domestication of the dog was for this very purpose. A true houndsman feels this in their hunt.
Dog hunting, whether for birds or bears is not for everyone. But if you try it, even just once, I promise you will at least understand and appreciate the ethical nature of this type of hunting even if it is not for you.
I can assure you it is so much more than that. Hunting bears with hounds is a year round endeavor. Those dogs don't get put in the safe at the end of the year. They are out in the yard and in the kennel and NEED good exercise and training. The cost of agood pack is enormous and the time and devotion to training is a true labor of love. The hunt itself is extremely challenging, as you are talking true wilderness areas. Guys don't run those hounds near highways, their dogs mean to much to them to be hit by cars. In addition, while it may seem that each cast results in a bear up a tree, that is just not the case. Some real big bears will NEVER climb, they may just bay and fight. Wading into an all out brawl between dogs and a boar and placing a single killing shot is not easy. If you think buck fever gets your adreneline pumping. A true houndsman often loves his dogs so much he'll often wade right into the fray if he sees a dog in trouble. In addition, some bears that are treed are females and the ability to look over closely the bear and spot cubs really helps eliminate shooting sows. Sitting a stand over a wildblueberry patch does not give you the same ability to look for cubs which is important in ethical bear harvest.
Lastly, some hound/bear hunts are the most physically challenging hunts left in North America. Once a bear is treed or bays there is only so much time to get there. This often means running through thick swamps and brush so tight as it reduces you to crawling.
I'll wrap up and sayI can understandyour opinion from someone who has not taken part in a hunt like this. But it is a hunt, and truly one of the most exciting and challenging you may ever do. That said, it is absolutely not for everyone. It is different than deer hunting on so many levels. The "thrill" is not the killing of the bear at all as it so often is with deer or other animals. The "hunt" is in the sounding of the hounds, the chase through miles of woods and the reward of working so closely with great dogs. If you are not aware, this type of hunting has been around as long as man has been hunting, and the domestication of the dog was for this very purpose. A true houndsman feels this in their hunt.
Dog hunting, whether for birds or bears is not for everyone. But if you try it, even just once, I promise you will at least understand and appreciate the ethical nature of this type of hunting even if it is not for you.