Training a dog for rabbit bowhunting

[Old York]

We have a small 44 pound Labrador + Heinz something. The Vet says she's a field-type lab; her head is sleeker than a typical Labrador. She’s about 3-4 years old and knows the basic commands.

We go search for mice & rabbits nearby and she constantly has her nose to the ground. I have seen a rabbit bolt from cover mere feet from the dog's head and she's oblivious to it. Weird!

I thought she might be near-sighted, but then I've seen her spot and chase rabbits in the backyard in the dark.

So, dog-owner-hunters, are some dogs just sniffers and others just "sighters"? How can I teach her to use her eyes more? How can I teach her to really run after the rabbits? I get the feeling they’re just play-toys to her.

[Marvin M.]

I'll bow to others experience here, but unless the Heinz is bringing it in, Labs aren't much for rabbits.  Mine basically watches the ones in my yard and would probably welcome them into the garden with open paws.

If you want a rabbit dog, you need a different dog.

With that being said, does anybody out there have a lab that trails rabbits?

[Brian Krebs]

What kind of bow is the dog shooting?  

The ideal rabbit dog follows the rabbit slowly because when not frantic; the rabbit will circle and come back to where it was jumped from. So; the hunters either try to shoot the rabbit while its running; which with a fast rabbit chased by a fast dog is kinda dangerous ( which is why they use slow short legged dogs like beagles); or they stand still until the rabbit circles back in.

Your dog might be doing the second best thing; which is to scare the rabbit up- but not chase it.
 This way you get a shot without the dog running into the arrows path. And the rabbit; not feeling its being chased; might sit to evaluate the situation: providing a shot.

 You might have a great dog for bowhunting rabbits; the key is to hunt more and see what develops. Such a sacrifice- to hunt more  

[DarkeGreen]

I had a two month old pup that was perfect. I took him out just to be out and was shocked when he lifted this head up in the air and yelped. I about laughed my head off. That little pup was so slow the rabbit would move about 5 feet and wait on him to catch up. Funny stuff. I agree with finding a slow dog.

[JEFF B]

i think you need to get a springer spaniel LOL!!!they just love hunting in fact they will even stalk flys.how do i know this well mine hunts any thing that has fur- feathers. she is a cool dog.    and flys as well.

[crashcastle]

what about a min pin i have a squirell killing bitch she has racked up more of them than i have in twenty years of hunting them

[Old York]

After reading your replies, I get a feeling like maybe I should learn how SHE hunts. When she does find a rabbit holed up in some thick evergreen bushes, her body does something subtle, which I've learned means, "HEY, THERE'S A RABBIT IN HERE, SEE?"

Now I understand her wisdom of why she isn't hot on the heels of these critters...she doesn't want to be the target. Thanks for the great feed-back. This is very new to me, and I do not want an injured dog.

[tamure]

One way to bowhunt rabbits with a lab is this: teach the dog to heel - a REALLY solid heel. Build up to incredible levels of temptation, so that the dog will not break heel to chase a rabbit that runs out right in front of him. LOL with your dog, this might be easy. I've been working with my mom's 9-years-old-yet-hyper nutty lab, and it is really difficult. Teach the dog to sit automatically when you stop also.

Anyway, the idea is that you stalk the rabbits (cottontails) with the dog at heel, just like how you would bowhunt rabbits without a dog. You need the dog to stay close and be quiet. No whining or jingling tags on the collar. As soon as you shoot a rabbit, and are sure you made contact, you release the dog with Fetch! and the lab gets to do what it does best. Very exciting retrieve for the dog, and you're not likely to lose the bunny if the shot is less than stellar. Of course, you can do this with probably any dog with enough obedience training. I am trying with my mom's lab instead of my Clumber spaniel because I don't want to hamper my spaniel's natural quartering / hunting style. The lab has little obedience training, and really needs some heeling training to rein her in. My spaniel, on the other hand, needs to range a little more if anything.  

Running rabbits doesn't seem to work here, because they always find a pile of rocks to hide in. And if you don't make a good shot, they can disappear down one of these rocky holes before you can grab 'em. That's why I'm working with the lab to retrieve the bunnies, but for bowhunting I don't want her to be hunting them up because she's too fast.

[tamure]

Originally posted by Old York:
After reading your replies, I get a feeling like maybe I should learn how SHE hunts. When she does find a rabbit holed up in some thick evergreen bushes, her body does something subtle, which I've learned means, "HEY, THERE'S A RABBIT IN HERE, SEE?"

As strange as it may sound, there's actually a whole bunch of people who swear by "pointing labs." I'm not sure if they breed specifically for pointing instinct, or if they train the labs to point. Your dog might be demonstrating some pointing instinct. Check out  www.versatiledogs.com  and do a search for "pointing lab."