Are Dogs used for Big Game Hunting in Ontario?

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Originally Posted by Sam Menard

I’ve never hunted with dogs, but had an experience with dog hunters once that wasn’t too favourable. Once, when I was a young man, I was hunting near Griffith and sitting along a trail hoping that a deer would come by. Some time afterwards, I could hear a dog baying off in the distance. After a while, the dogs started coming my way. As the dogs approached my location, 2 guys showed up and butted me out. The dogs eventually showed up and chased a rabbit out, which one of the guys shot with his rifle. Not once did the guys acknowledge me. I guess they figured that any deer that their dogs run belongs to them. Sucks to be those that don’t run dogs I guess.

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Don't blame the dog hunters for running into aholes, that is what you dealt with, they are in every group.

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Originally Posted by MikePal

Sorry you've done nothing to clear this up...I personnly have had 3 dogs that were great "Deer' hunters and blood trackers. I know of others that at local camps.

Now if you want to talk about bird - water fowling dogs...maybe you have a point, I don't know any off hand that were any good if not trained.

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MP - Bird and waterfowl dogs need to be trained, but it's not so much training them to hunt, it's training them to be under control. The hunt/retrieve instinct needs to be there to start with. The training it is to training the dog to keep the hunt instinct under control so it's useful. Examples - training a pointer / spaniel to stay put after the flush/shot - "steady to wing and shot" - that's where that phrase comes from. Also having a waterfowl dog that can stay quiet in the boat/blind until he's needed.

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Originally Posted by Bo D

I've been running hounds for close to 35 years now and prior to that ran and trained retrievers and it's always been about the dog work. Watching a pup progress through the stages of becoming a finished hound or field trial champion... If you've never hunted over dogs be it duck hunting, upland game, deer or bear hunting you're missing out on an exciting way of hunting....

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Agree with you 100%. Never tried bear hunting with hounds though. Ducks/grouse/deer - without a dog, you are missing 75% of the hunting experience. And even when your not successful, but the dogs were working hard, you know that you did your best. If the dog couldn't pick up a deer track or flush a grouse, you know that your lack of success was not you not seeing game - it was that there was none there.

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Originally Posted by LiveBates

How would you like me to explain that the dogs we use now, are not as trained and not as good as some past dogs there Fox? Please don't use ballistics or any other nonsense that's usually posted.

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Having a dog that is not trained or not having a lot of game drive and a dog being a pampered house pet really have nothing to do with each other.

The only knock I have on "pampered house pet" dogs is that once they are leash trained, it makes them very difficult to use for blood tracking on a leash. They don't think they are supposed to pull and you need to make sure you always keep slack in the leash otherwise the dog will think you want him to stop.

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Originally Posted by werner.reiche

Having a dog that is not trained or not having a lot of game drive and a dog being a pampered house pet really have nothing to do with each other.

The only knock I have on "pampered house pet" dogs is that once they are leash trained, it makes them very difficult to use for blood tracking on a leash. They don't think they are supposed to pull and you need to make sure you always keep slack in the leash otherwise the dog will think you want him to stop.

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I agree....."most" of our dogs over the years have been good, and usually got good by running with the older seasoned dogs. Majority of the time over the years, our best ones were the outside dogs....but....we also had a few that slept in the bed, did lotsa fun tricks etc... but 9/10 times......could get a chase started easily.....I've only ever hunted with dogs, so part of me is wanting to explore the up close and personal type of deer hunt that comes with a Xbow.....deer season can't come soon enough.........

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Originally Posted by LiveBates

I agree....."most" of our dogs over the years have been good, and usually got good by running with the older seasoned dogs. Majority of the time over the years, our best ones were the outside dogs....but....we also had a few that slept in the bed, did lotsa fun tricks etc... but 9/10 times......could get a chase started easily.....I've only ever hunted with dogs, so part of me is wanting to explore the up close and personal type of deer hunt that comes with a Xbow.....deer season can't come soon enough.........

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I've been rifle hunting deer with dogs since the 1970's. Took up bow hunting (xbow) in 2008. It's a completely different game.

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Originally Posted by werner.reiche

I've been rifle hunting deer with dogs since the 1970's. Took up bow hunting (xbow) in 2008. It's a completely different game.

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For sure.....last year was my first with an Xbow, but didn't connect. Hopefully this year I can tweak some mistakes from last. Luckily I got tag for the rifle hunt, and an additional for bow around halton....I've shot deer with a dart in my mouth in front of the dogs.....but I know that likely won't be happening with the bow....lol....

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Originally Posted by Fox

Don't blame the dog hunters for running into aholes, that is what you dealt with, they are in every group.

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I guess it’s like anywhere else, there’s good guys and there are not so good guys.

I know that using dogs was really popular, especially in central Ontario. Is it still as popular?

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Originally Posted by Sam Menard

Is it still as popular?

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I joined a camp here in South Eastern Ont some 25 yrs back and we ran dogs as did 4 other local camps. Throughout the years many of the camps have folded or the old guys passed and the younger guys don't run dogs anymore.

Ours stopped using dogs due to low numbers of hunters and the area is now too over grown to be able to see the deer when there are on a run.

There are only two left now, thankfully one is next to my property and runs beagles, so I still get to hear them tongue from my stand.