Looking for a Puppy

[Big Ed]

Got some great leads here keep them coming. I really like the looks and characteristics of the smaller breeds.

[JoeM]

John Jeanneney is from NY and wrote the book on tracking dogs for wounded deer.  I spoke with him once on the phone.  His book has a wealth of info on trailing and wounds even if you don't use a dog.  I have referred to it a few times through the years.

[Ryan Rothhaar]

Hey, don't get me wrong - our Oskar is 100% a house dog - he's sleeping against me right now, and spends his nights in the bed with us - he's a real sweetheart - but prey drive is a continuum from none to lots, and any hunting breed can come out high on that scale.  I'm just being honest with our situation, and the good versatile Teckels I've been around...the BEST resource is the breeder - if they are worth their salt they will know their bloodlines and the dos/don'ts of that bloodline.  He gets along fantastic with our other dogs - but they aren't prey animals - and our breeder told us this would be the case.

[Panzer]

My next dog will be a "German Shorthaired Pointer." When he or she isn,t bloodtrailing you can be hunting Grouse ,pheasants or any other bird for that matter. They will retrieve waterfowl also. They are a great versatile dog, and are used to hunt just about everything in Germany. They are very loyal and family oriented. A little female averages around 40-45 pounds.

[Ray Hammond]

Like many have said- nearly any dog- Shiloh is my mountain Feist black mouth cur mix and he is as good as they get

Also jack Russell terriers- they're used in Africa and are amazing!!

[Kevin Dill]

Don't know what it is, but almost any hunting breed with a German ancestry/origin can be counted on to hunt...hard. Many breeds will get the job done, if tracking hit deer is the only objective.

I live far out in the country on a farm. I selected the Deutsch Drahthaar because of its versatility in many hunting and tracking applications. I also needed to solve a problem. The problem was too many opossums, skunks, raccoons and other small varmints 'crowding' us and living around our farm. The Drahthaar is one of those breeds which WILL pursue, catch and kill these varmints. They will also chase coyotes and foxes, and can kill them if successful at cornering them. The end result for me is that I've had NO encounters with any of these creatures around the farm for well over a year now. This is not a breed I'd recommend for a suburban or city dweller. My 2 dogs are outrageously athletic and energetic, needing space to run hard. Around 50 pounds each, they're strong as an ox and have healthy appetites. I'm currently spending about $100 per month in dog food.

I considered much smaller dogs initially, but ruled them out as being unsuited for my varmint-control intentions, as well as a rough-and-tumble life on the farm, outdoor kennels, etc.

[Big Ed]

Kevin, do you have any pictures you could send me? If so please send them to [email protected]  Thanks,

ED

[ddauler]

Ha Ryan. I hear ya I had a friend here in GA with a huge redbone named gal. He was a small fella and he would put her on a lead rope similar to horse lead. He had to wear heavy carhart stuff because she would literally drag him through the thickets wide open until she found the deer. I really miss Hobo Huff RIP my friend!

[German Dog]

If you want  a dog that does it all then take Kevin Dills advice and look into the Drahthaars.

My Draht came out of Pennsylvania too but  a different breeder.  I think If I trained mine to drag the deer out he would happily do it      My only word of caution with a Drahtthaar is if you EVER think you will own cats make darn sure you get the cat the same time as the puppy or have one that he can grow up with so he knows it's part of the family and he must leave them alone.

Here's a link for you to look at the Drahthaars.   http://www.vdd-gna.org/

[Tom Leemans]

I have seen every kind of dog do blood trailing. I believe it's all in the training. You have to invest the time though. They need to understand their job.

[Kevin Dill]

Ed....

A while back I started a thread on our PBS forums about my dogs. Like any other forum, guys added their posts and pictures too. This thread will show you some good pics of my two Drahts, along with several other breeds owned and used by PBS members. Take a look...

 http://www.probowsociety.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=126

[RkyMtn Joe]

I have a Rat Terrier, but he is one of the older breed and not this tiny little stuff commercial breeders are selling.  My dog weighs 30 pounds and will tackle anything.  However he is very good natured and my best buddy.  A couple of weeks ago, he tracked a wounded deer for just over a half mile through some rough stuff.

Rowdy was born with the bobbed tail and high straight ears as well as an inborn desire to hunt.  He is an excellent squirrel dog, and will jump rabbits although he doesn't really go after them the way a beagle would do.

Lots of good breeds have been mentioned and I wanted to brag on my dog a bit too.

Joe

[German Dog]

Ed,  when your not bloodtrailing they also make great dogs for chasing bunnys. And birds and...and... yeah they will hunt anything you want them too. Even the littles one will try to ride them. LOL!! (see pic)
 If your interested in the drahthaar my advice is to go to a couple breed tests for the dogs and see them being tested. The info will be on the link I mentioned in my other post for the VDD website. The tests are for breeding purposes so it's NOT a competition thing at all.  The basic test are VJP in the spring for puppies to 14 months, HZP in the fall for the same dogs that tested in the spring, and then the VGP in the fall for the really advanced trained. The blood trailing tests can be done at the same time depending on how the test guy sets it up.  

[Kevin Dill]

That's a great picture! My dogs are exactly that gentle with humans too. After 2 years, mine have never growled at me or nipped me even once.

An additional thought. It's really easy to get excited and buy a puppy on impulse. It took me about 8 months to make it a reality, mainly because I was determined to get the right dog breed from a really good breeder.

[7 Lakes]

Here's my German Shorthair, she's trained as a bird dog but does double duty as a tracker.  

My advice for tracking only is to get a smaller dog.  Lucy is the smallest Shorthair I've ever seen but she will tow you through the briars until you look like you've lost a cat fight.

I also think it worth mentioning, it took awhile to finish up her "Do not fetch the kitty" program.

 

[jeanpaul3006]

I simply have a miniature longhaired daschund. Started training as a pup and the words" find it" get her so excited. So far,only two trails and both were successful. The second trail was 300 yards long with the first 100yards with no visible blood. She saved hours of trailing. Within 10 minutes of starting the trail, deer was found and the shooter, 12 year old with first deer was ecstatic. She 's also a great pet for the family and very compact. Cheap to feed, dog weighs a total of 10 pounds.

[Danny Rowan]

The best blood trailing dog I have ever witnessed was a leapord catahola. She is simply amazing. Never lost an animal as far as I know.

[Panzer]

You see alot of Catahola pups for sale down here in South Florida, they use them to hunt hogs.

[biglegmax]

I'm with Kevin and G. Dog. Check out the DD's. I have a 2.5 year old, and I will never ever have another breed. Depends on what you are doing, just do the math, most folks really don't spend that many days in the field. If you want to expand your horizons these  versatile dogs will offer you more options. My guy will chase chukars at a rate of about 4.5 miles an hour(hes hooked to a gps) for basically all day(6+ hours), gaining and losing thousands of feet in elevation. Tough as nails, gentle as a kitten around the house. I think you could raise them with a cat, but these dogs have a prey drive, they hunt everything.... including Porkies....  so beware kitties...

[Izzy]

He drinks too much beer, farts when people are close enough to smell em without a second thought, humps anything that wont hump back but hes got a nose like a bloodhound. I havent put him on a real bloodtrail yet because I havent killed a deer close enough to home to get him out there in the three years Ive had him but he has followed my man made venison blood trails from defrosted meat without difficulty.  Hes a pit bull cross, we were told weimaraner but not sure. Fiercely protective of my wife and boys but loves all good people like they were his own. A pittie might fill the bill.