Produced by Linda M. Everhart, Blairstown, Missouri
Hunting Dogs
Describes in a Practical Manner
the Training, Handling,
Treatment, Breeds, Etc.,
Best Adapted for Night
Hunting as Well as
Gun Dogs for
Daylight
Sport
BY
OLIVER HARTLEY
Published by
A. R. HARDING PUBLISHING CO.
Columbus, Ohio
Copyright 1909
By A. R. Harding Pub. Co.
CONTENTS.
PART I--HUNTING DOGS.
I. Night Hunting
II. The Night Hunting Dog--His Ancestry
III. Training the Hunting Dog
IV. Training the Coon Dog
V. Training for Skunk, Opossum and Mink
VI. Wolf and Coyote Hunting
VII. Training for Squirrels and Rabbits
VIII. Training the Deer Hound
IX. Training--Specific Things to Teach
X. Training--Random Suggestions from Many Sources
PART II--BREEDING AND CARE OF DOGS.
XI. Selecting the Dog
XII. Care and Breeding
XIII. Breeding (Continued)
XIV. Breeding (Continued)
XV. Peculiarities of Dogs and Practical Hints
XVI. Ailments of the Dog
PART III--DOG LORE.
XVII. Still Trailers vs. Tonguers--Music
XVIII. The Dog on the Trap Line
XIX. Sledge Dogs of the North
PART IV--THE HUNTING DOG FAMILY.
XX. American Fox Hounds
XXI. The Beagle, Dachshund and Basset Hounds
XXII. Pointers and Setters. Spaniels
XXIII. Terriers--Airedales
XXIV. Scotch Collies. House and Watch Dogs
XXV. A Farmer Hunter--His Views
XXVI. Table of Technical Terms
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
The Fruits of Night Hunting
The Court Jester of the Nocturnal Tribe
A Pure and a Cross-bred Coon Dog
Veteran Coon Detectives
Descendants from Jamestown Imported Hounds
A Lover of Good Dogs
"The Fox Hound is a Composite Animal"
Fox Hounds--Graduates From the Training School
Typical Coon Hounds
Capable Cross-bred Cooners
Good Catch in Which the Shepherd Dog Figured Prominently
Opossums are Easily Caught Alive for Training Purposes
North Dakota Wolf Hounds
Typical Western Wolf Hounds
Termination of a Successful Chase
Good Dogs Make Good Luck
The Fair Sex are More and More Becoming Practical Nimrods
The Deer Seeks Refuge in Deep Water
Well Trained Hounds
Good Friends Get Along Best
Co-operation Between the Man and His Dogs Brings Results
Some Ideals
Embryo Trailers
A Versatile Ontario, Canada, Dog Family
One-half English Bloodhound Pups
Fox Hounds
Some Young Hunters
He Was Here a Moment Ago
Here He Is
A Group of Typical Sledge Dogs
Sledge Dog--Photo from Life
Rough and Ready Sledge Dog
Worthy of the Name, Foxhounds
Good Specimens
Bloodhound
"As Pretty As a Picture" (Beagles)
True Dachshund Specimens
A Pure Pointer
Royal Sports--Pointers in Action
Setter
The Fox Terrier--Useful in Many Ways
Airedale
Collie
Shepherd Puppies
Outline Figure Diagram
[Illustration: Oliver Hartley.]
INTRODUCTION.
As if hunting for profit, night hunting for either pleasure or gain
and professional hunting generally had no importance, writers of
books have contented themselves with dwelling on the study and
presentation of matters relating solely to the men who hunt for sport
only. Even then the Fox Chase and Bird Hunting has been the burden of
the greater percent of such books.
It remained for the A. R. Harding Publishing Co. (publishers of the
Hunter-Trader-Trapper magazine and a number of helpful and practical
books on hunting topics), to appreciate the demand for books and
reading matter adapted especially to the tens of thousands of hunters
who make, or partially make, their livelihood from hunting and
trapping, as well as a million casual hunters and farmers of the
United States and Canada.
The keynote of success was struck in this direction by obtaining
articles and letters from these very men themselves, written and
printed in their own language, depending for favor on their
explicitness and practical value, borne of actual experience, rather
than flowing language, high sounding conventionalities and impressive
technicalities so dear to the hearts of the Bench Show enthusiasts.
The title of this book quotes its object. To tell something of night
hunting, and especially to suggest how the ever necessary dog can
best be selected, trained, maintained and utilized, is the
consideration of first importance. To round out the subject all forms
of hunting will receive some notice, and the various breeds of dogs
will be so far dealt with, that their value and usefulness in their
given fields may be determined. Best of all, the contents of this
volume are based on the opinions and declarations of men who have had
years of experience in the matters on which they presume to write.
The Compiler does not assume authorship, the matter herein being very
largely from articles which have appeared in Hunter-Trader-Trapper
and elsewhere. Credit is hereby extended and our thanks offered to
all writers whose efforts contribute to the sum total of this volume.
If this book contributes to the success in handling of dogs or opens
new avenues of recreation, sport and profit for any of its readers,
we shall consider its mission has been fulfilled.
Oliver Hartley.
[Illustration: The Fruits of Night Hunting.]
HUNTING DOGS.
CHAPTER I.
NIGHT HUNTING.
Night hunting is a favorite form of hunting sport the continent over.
Prime factor of the joyous, though strenuous night quest is the
'coon, the court jester and wit of the nocturnal tribe of small fur
bearers.
Owing to the scarcity of other game and general distribution of
raccoon the country over, 'coon hunting is gaining in popular favor,
winning over many of the wealthy, city-dwelling red-bloods who
formerly were content with more or less pleasant and successful
sallies to the fields in the day-time.
Consequently there is an increased demand for properly bred and
trained dogs to afford the maximum of success and pleasure in this
pursuit. With the ownership of dogs go the care, maintenance and
proper methods of handling these willing helpers. Surprising is the
meagerness of the information available to the average hunter, though
night hunting is an institution as old as the settlement of
Jamestown.
The craft of developing dogs and using them to the best advantage in
this connection, has been by precept and example handed down from
generation to generation. Much has been lost in this way and not so
much accomplished as might have been attained by aid of the printed
and pictured methods of today. Most certainly more attention will
hereafter be paid to night hunting, and more painstaking records made
and kept for the up-growing practical sportsmen, in which direction
the present volume is a long and definite step.
[Illustration: The Court Jester of the Nocturnal Tribe.]
Our task is to offer guidance and advice as to the dogs. Yet to do
this clearly, the reader must know something of the nature and habits
of the animals to be hunted and the effort involved.
A southern gentleman of experience and training has the following to
say about 'coon hunting:
The 'coon is a wily little animal, and his habits are very
interesting to note. He is a veritable trickster, compared with which
the proverbial cunning fox must take a back seat. One of the 'coon's
most common tricks employed to fool the hound is known among hunters
as "tapping the tree," and which he accomplishes in this way: When he
hears the hound's first note baying on trail, he climbs up a large
tree, runs to the furthest extremity of one of the largest branches
and doubling himself up into a ball, leaps as far as possible out
from the tree. This he repeats several times on different trees, then
makes a long run, only to go thru the same performances in another
place. Onward comes the hound, till he reaches the first tree the
'coon went up, and if it is a young and inexperienced hound, he will
give the "tree bark" until the hunters reach the tree, fell it, and
find the game not there.
[Illustration: A Pure and A Cross Bred Coon Dog.]
All this time Mr. 'Coon is quietly fishing and laughing in his
sleeve, perhaps a mile away. But not so with the wise old coon hound.
The old, experienced cooner, with seemingly human intelligence, no
sooner reaches the tree Mr. 'Coon has "tapped" than he begins
circling around the tree, never opening his mouth--circling wider and
wider until he strikes the trail again. This he repeats every time
the 'coon takes a tree, until finally, when he has to take a tree to
keep from being caught on the ground, the hound circles as before
and, finding no trail leading away, he goes back to the tree, and
with a triumphant cry proclaims the fact that he is victorious. He is
not the least bit doubtful. He knows the coon went up the tree and he
knows he has never come down so he reasons (?) that the coon is
there, and with every breath he calls his master to come and bag his
game. When the tree is felled the fun begins. The 'coon is game to
death. He dies fighting--and such a magnificent fight it is! The
uninformed might suppose there would not be much of a fight between a
50-pound 'coon hound and a 20-pound 'coon. Well, there is not, if the
'coon hound is experienced and knows his business. Of course, the
'coon will put up a masterly fight, and some time is required to put
him out of business; but the old 'coon dog will finally kill any
'coon. But if the fight is between a young or inexperienced dog and a
full grown 'coon the chances are that you will suffer the
mortification of seeing your dog tuck his tail between his legs and
make for home at a very rapid and unbecoming rate of speed.
To prove this, get a good 'coon hound and let him tree a 'coon; have
along your Bull-dogs, Bull Terriers, Pointers, Setters, Collies, or
any other breed you believe can kill a 'coon; tie your 'coon hound,
cut the tree, and let your fighters on to the 'coon, one at a time or
in a bunch, and see them clay him. You will see the old 'coon slap
the faces off your dogs, and the shortest route home will be all too
long for them.
Killing a 'coon appears to be an art with a dog, and, of course, much
more easily acquired by a natural born 'coon hound than by a dog of
any other breed. A year-old hound of good breeding and from good
'coon hound parents, can kill a 'coon with less ado about it than
half a dozen of any other breed. It is in swimming that the 'coon is
most difficult to handle. I have known several hounds to be drowned
by 'coons in deep water. The dog goes for the 'coon, and the 'coon
gets on top of the dog's head. Down they both go, and, of course, the
dog and 'coon both let go their hold on each other. Again the dog
grabs the 'coon, and under the water they both go. This is repeated,
until the dog becomes exhausted, his lungs fill with water, and old
Mr. 'Coon seems to understand the situation exactly and seats himself
firmly on top of the dog's head, holding him under the water, till
outside assistance is all that will save him from a watery grave.
As there is but little chance--practically none--to kill a 'coon
while he is swimming, the wise old 'cooner, on to his job, will seize
the 'coon, strike a bee line to the bank, and kill him on terra
firma.
I once saw a big old boar 'coon completely outdo and nearly drown a
half dozen young hounds in Hatchie River, when an old crippled hound,
with not a tooth in his head, arrived on the scene, plunged into the
river and brought Mr. 'Coon to the bank, where the young hounds soon
killed him.
Another of the tricks Mr. 'Coon uses to advantage when closely
followed by the hounds, is to follow the meanderings of a stream
until he comes to a log reaching across to the other bank; then he
runs to the middle of the log and leaps as far as he can out into the
water, usually swimming down stream, as if he is not making for a den
or a tree in some other direction. This ruse invariably delays even
the best of 'coon hounds, as, being at about full speed, they will
run on across the log, and if the dogs know their job they will
circle out until they again find the trail; but during this momentary
bother, the 'coon is not waiting to see what they are going to do
about it. He keeps moving and I want to say that a 'coon is a much
swifter traveler than many persons suppose. He delays no time, but
keeps everlastingly at it, and it takes a speedy hound to force him
up a tree.
The 'coon may be defined as being a dwarf bear. They have many points
in common. The 'coon can lie up in his den for weeks at a time during
severely cold weather, without food or water. The only difference
between the foot prints of the 'coon and those of the bear is the
size. In shape and appearance they are exactly alike. The flesh, when
cooked, tastes similar, and not one in a thousand could tell any
difference between cooked 'coon and cooked bear, if served in same
size pieces.
By nature the 'coon is a very selfish individual. He deserts Mrs.
'Coon when his children are a day old and lets her provide for them
as best she can. The young 'coons grow rapidly, and at the tender age
of from six to eight weeks old they begin to accompany their faithful
mother in search of food. Fishes, birds, rabbits, nuts, acorns,
berries and green corn are the principal dishes on the 'coon family's
bill of fare.
At first the little 'coons stay close to their mother's heels, but
they grow more venturesome as they grow older, and soon begin to make
little journeys on their own account. This often proves their undoing
when dogs are about. Any sort of an old dog can tree or catch on the
ground a baby 'coon, but this is an advantage no true sportsman will
knowingly take.
That a mother 'coon will even brave death herself to save her babies
is evident to one who has studied the habits of the 'coon. When
closely pursued by the hounds and she and her young are all compelled
to go up the same tree, as soon as the hounds begin to bark fiercely
and the hunters arrive and begin to chop on the tree or to try to
shine their eyes, old mother 'coon picks an opening and jumps out of
the tree and is usually caught, or run up another tree close by and
then caught. But she has again saved her young, as in all likelihood
the hunters will not go back to the tree where the little coons are
serenely sitting on the leafy boughs, or never think of there being
any more coons there.
There are many reasons why the 'coon hunt is fast becoming one of the
most popular of the manly sports. The 'coon is found in many sections
of the United States. Other game is becoming very scarce. The wealthy
business man, the man of affairs who is tied to his desk six days out
of the week, can own a 'coon hound and in the stilly hours of the
night, after the day's turmoil of business, can enjoy a few hours of
the most strenuous sport now left to us and witness a battle royal
between his faithful hound and the monarch of the forest, the wily
'coon. Nothing that I can contemplate is more exhilarating or more
soothing to the nerves than the excitement of the 'coon hunt. From
the first long drawn note when the trail is struck until the hound's
victorious cry at the tree, it is one round of excitement and
anticipation. What or whose hound is leading? What direction will Mr.
Coon take? What dog will be first to tree? And then the fight! It is
simply great! And then showing the hide to the boys who didn't go,
and telling them about it for days to come.
The 'coon hunt calls for manhood. Tender weaklings cannot endure the
exertions necessary to enjoy this sport. It is too strenuous for the
lazy man or the effeminate man to enjoy. They shudder at the thoughts
of donning a pair of heavy hip boots and tramping thru swamps and
slashes, crossing creeks and barbed wire fences, thru briars and
thickets, maybe for several miles, and the probability of getting
lost and having to stay all night. But to the man with nerve and
backbone this is one of the enjoyable features. It affords great fun
to get a tenderfoot to go out for the first time and initiate him
into the "'coon hunters' club." The tenderfoot will use every cuss
word ever invented and will coin new ones when the supply of old ones
becomes worn out and ineffective. He will cuss the briars, cuss the
ditches, cuss the creek, cuss the fences, cuss the swamps, cuss the
slashes, cuss the man who persuaded him to go, and finally cuss
himself for going. But when the excitement of the chase is on and
when the fight commences he becomes reconciled; and if good luck is
had he is very likely to be the next man to propose another "'coon
hunt."
A half dozen hunts will make an enthusiastic 'coon hunter of any able
bodied man--and I might suggest that a half a thousand 'coon hunts
will make an able bodied man out of any man. It will throw off the
waste matter and dead tissues of the body, cause deep breathing,
arouse torpid and sluggish livers, promote digestion, and is a
general panacea for all human ailments of both mind and body.
(The foregoing contains much of value but is overdrawn even tho from
the pen of a "Southern Gentleman" who should be well versed in 'coon
hunting. Now and then a 'coon will go up a tree and come down or even
run out on a limb and jump off or may leap from a log across a stream
into the water. Such instances, however, are rarely done to fool the
dog. Generally when such happens, the 'coon has been feeding, going
up and down trees, etc. When a 'coon does go up a tree, jump to
another and similar tricks to fool a dog, that animal has been
trailed before and is apt to be an "old timer.")
[Illustration: Veteran Coon Detectives.]
Added to this is the promise of other game, if the hunter is desirous
of combining sport and profit. The skunk and opossum are common to
many sections of this country. They are less resourceful and gritty
than the 'coon, and their taking is simply a matter of choice and
method, rather than concern for opportunities. A dog trained to hunt
'coon will have no trouble attending to opossum and skunk, if his
owner desires it. Very frequently the trainer does not desire that
his dog pay attention to anything save 'coon.
Still another profitable animal taken by night hunters is the mink.
There is not so much sport in this branch, however, as the dogs
simply trail or locate them in their dens, and are captured by
digging or frightening them out, when they are dispatched by the
dogs.
A good mink dog will often locate a mink in the den during the day.
If the den has more than one entrance, is not very deep in the
ground, the animal will often run out by stamping or striking a few
licks with a mattock. The mink generally comes out at the entrance
nearest the water (quite often under water) when it can be shot, if
you are quick enough, or if the dog is an active one, caught.
When hunting at night along streams, or places frequented by both
mink and 'coon, it is sometimes difficult to tell, at first, which
your dog is after. These two animals travel about the same along
streams. Some dogs will not run mink unless especially trained while
others take naturally to mink hunting. Unless a dog is not afraid of
water, he will never make a good mink dog (or 'coon dog either for
that matter), as mink go into a great many dens both on the bank and
in the water.
Where the hunting is done in woods, considerable distance from
streams or ponds and mink seldom travel, your dog may "pass them by"
but if you should catch one in a trap and let him kill it, the
chances are that you will have a mink dog.
Again by hunting certain stretches of creek where mink frequent, your
dog will soon learn that you wish him to hunt these animals. A mink
holed is far from caught, especially after night. If holed in the
creek bank, the chances are that the animal will dart out into the
water and escape to another den.
The most successful mink hunting is done during the day by having
your dog along and following the banks of creeks, lakes, ponds, etc.
The dog locates the game and the animal is gotten out by methods
already described.
[Illustration: Descendants From Jamestown Imported Hounds.]