Hunters and hunting dogs.

The radio is droning on and just reported something interesting: the
average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42. This concerns
various Fish and Game departments because they rely on hunters to
control over-population of deer and other species.
I've never really known how to feel about hunters. And about their
dogs. Those I knew when I was a kid really treated their dogs like
'tools', taking them out to train or hunt, then returning them to a
kennel where they spent the rest of their lives. It was considered
deleterious to treat them as pets. Has this changed?























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the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive. When I was a kid in rural North Louisiana, we could walk
for miles and miles in just about any direction out of town on dirt roads or
railroad tracks with our pointer working the brush along the sides. There are
probably still places you can do that, and the folks who do are probably still
"Buba"s and my guess would be that they haven't changes a heck of a lot.

But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into camps and
leases. It's a sign of prestige to be in on a really good lease in South
Louisiana. While these clubs and camps still harbor vestiges of the "good ole
boy" image, these guys are more likely to have finely bred dogs and to have put
in a good bit of time (or money with a pro) to train them.

A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives in
the house.

I have to exclude deer, rabbit and squirrel dogs from the above
generalizations. While I don't know a whole lot of people who "run deer"
anymore (where the heck could you turn a pack of dogs out to mauraude for
game?) the kinds of dogs who hunt like that are kept in packs. Beagles are a
dime a dozen around here and it is my understanding that "beaglers" keep them
in a communal pens and don't really socialize them to people too awfully much.

That said, my pointer when I grew up lived outside, roamed free, had a couple
of sire-unknown litters, got very little medical attention, and we took her out
to hunt in the trunk of the car. But she was a cherished member of the family
we felt we treated her royally. It's hard for me to view her in light of the
way I treat my dogs now.



Susan Fraser, owned and trained by
Boog and his Bitches, Shammie and SheBop
http://mypeoplepc.com/members/chinchuba/AuH2OK9s/

the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive. When I was a kid in rural North Louisiana, we could walk
for miles and miles in just about any direction out of town on dirt roads or
railroad tracks with our pointer working the brush along the sides. There are
probably still places you can do that, and the folks who do are probably still
"Buba"s and my guess would be that they haven't changes a heck of a lot.

But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into camps and
leases. It's a sign of prestige to be in on a really good lease in South
Louisiana. While these clubs and camps still harbor vestiges of the "good ole
boy" image, these guys are more likely to have finely bred dogs and to have put
in a good bit of time (or money with a pro) to train them.

A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives in
the house.

I have to exclude deer, rabbit and squirrel dogs from the above
generalizations. While I don't know a whole lot of people who "run deer"
anymore (where the heck could you turn a pack of dogs out to mauraude for
game?) the kinds of dogs who hunt like that are kept in packs. Beagles are a
dime a dozen around here and it is my understanding that "beaglers" keep them
in a communal pens and don't really socialize them to people too awfully much.

That said, my pointer when I grew up lived outside, roamed free, had a couple
of sire-unknown litters, got very little medical attention, and we took her out
to hunt in the trunk of the car. But she was a cherished member of the family
we felt we treated her royally. It's hard for me to view her in light of the
way I treat my dogs now.



Susan Fraser, owned and trained by
Boog and his Bitches, Shammie and SheBop
http://mypeoplepc.com/members/chinchuba/AuH2OK9s/

the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive. When I was a kid in rural North Louisiana, we could walk
for miles and miles in just about any direction out of town on dirt roads or
railroad tracks with our pointer working the brush along the sides. There are
probably still places you can do that, and the folks who do are probably still
"Buba"s and my guess would be that they haven't changes a heck of a lot.

But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into camps and
leases. It's a sign of prestige to be in on a really good lease in South
Louisiana. While these clubs and camps still harbor vestiges of the "good ole
boy" image, these guys are more likely to have finely bred dogs and to have put
in a good bit of time (or money with a pro) to train them.

A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives in
the house.

I have to exclude deer, rabbit and squirrel dogs from the above
generalizations. While I don't know a whole lot of people who "run deer"
anymore (where the heck could you turn a pack of dogs out to mauraude for
game?) the kinds of dogs who hunt like that are kept in packs. Beagles are a
dime a dozen around here and it is my understanding that "beaglers" keep them
in a communal pens and don't really socialize them to people too awfully much.

That said, my pointer when I grew up lived outside, roamed free, had a couple
of sire-unknown litters, got very little medical attention, and we took her out
to hunt in the trunk of the car. But she was a cherished member of the family
we felt we treated her royally. It's hard for me to view her in light of the
way I treat my dogs now.



Susan Fraser, owned and trained by
Boog and his Bitches, Shammie and SheBop
http://mypeoplepc.com/members/chinchuba/AuH2OK9s/

the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive. When I was a kid in rural North Louisiana, we could walk
for miles and miles in just about any direction out of town on dirt roads or
railroad tracks with our pointer working the brush along the sides. There are
probably still places you can do that, and the folks who do are probably still
"Buba"s and my guess would be that they haven't changes a heck of a lot.

But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into camps and
leases. It's a sign of prestige to be in on a really good lease in South
Louisiana. While these clubs and camps still harbor vestiges of the "good ole
boy" image, these guys are more likely to have finely bred dogs and to have put
in a good bit of time (or money with a pro) to train them.

A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives in
the house.

I have to exclude deer, rabbit and squirrel dogs from the above
generalizations. While I don't know a whole lot of people who "run deer"
anymore (where the heck could you turn a pack of dogs out to mauraude for
game?) the kinds of dogs who hunt like that are kept in packs. Beagles are a
dime a dozen around here and it is my understanding that "beaglers" keep them
in a communal pens and don't really socialize them to people too awfully much.

That said, my pointer when I grew up lived outside, roamed free, had a couple
of sire-unknown litters, got very little medical attention, and we took her out
to hunt in the trunk of the car. But she was a cherished member of the family
we felt we treated her royally. It's hard for me to view her in light of the
way I treat my dogs now.



Susan Fraser, owned and trained by
Boog and his Bitches, Shammie and SheBop
http://mypeoplepc.com/members/chinchuba/AuH2OK9s/

"Susan Fraser" wrote in message
...
the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive.
snip
But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into
camps and
leases.

There is still a fair amount of open hunting land in Oregon, but we're
seeing a lot more of the lodges & camps than before as well. The
biggest groups of hunters here though, I imagine are the deer & elk.
There are upland game, geese & ducks, but it's not as populated.
That said, my father has hunted birds ever since I was a child. And,
while his "hunting dog" had a kennel, they spent the majority of their
time indoors, with the family.


A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than
the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives
in
the house.

hehehehe...as one of those kids, I'd have to agree with you here! My
Dad's dogs have always been part of the family. They were pets
every bit as they were a working partner for him. I can think of
one situation that was just plain nasty (a co-worker of my husband
kept his GSP in a kennel 24/7, always fed, but food would be stolen
by rats also). No human contact, she would literally run the walls &
ceiling of her 6x10 kennel. She wasn't a biter, but she did not
know how to deal with humans anymore. She'd been a playful,
good hunting companion until her human just didn't go hunting anymore.
Then, I think lacking all of the contact she'd been used to, she sort of
just went crazy. Poor, poor girl.
But, most of the hunters I know that keep dogs treat them as part of
the family, pets right along with any other dogs they may have.
Pack hunting is not very common at all in the PacNW, if it is, it is a rare
occasion. I do know of one Black & Tan Coonhound breeder
that has multiple dogs. She *may* hunt occasionally, but I know I've heard
her saying that she doesn't hunt her dogs (or, as it was, a particular
dog) for fear of them getting clawed & bitten. She's also got
several dogs of her breeding in the conformation top ten, so I can
see her point. :-)
Shelly & The Boys

"Susan Fraser" wrote in message
...
the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive.
snip
But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into
camps and
leases.

There is still a fair amount of open hunting land in Oregon, but we're
seeing a lot more of the lodges & camps than before as well. The
biggest groups of hunters here though, I imagine are the deer & elk.
There are upland game, geese & ducks, but it's not as populated.
That said, my father has hunted birds ever since I was a child. And,
while his "hunting dog" had a kennel, they spent the majority of their
time indoors, with the family.


A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than
the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives
in
the house.

hehehehe...as one of those kids, I'd have to agree with you here! My
Dad's dogs have always been part of the family. They were pets
every bit as they were a working partner for him. I can think of
one situation that was just plain nasty (a co-worker of my husband
kept his GSP in a kennel 24/7, always fed, but food would be stolen
by rats also). No human contact, she would literally run the walls &
ceiling of her 6x10 kennel. She wasn't a biter, but she did not
know how to deal with humans anymore. She'd been a playful,
good hunting companion until her human just didn't go hunting anymore.
Then, I think lacking all of the contact she'd been used to, she sort of
just went crazy. Poor, poor girl.
But, most of the hunters I know that keep dogs treat them as part of
the family, pets right along with any other dogs they may have.
Pack hunting is not very common at all in the PacNW, if it is, it is a rare
occasion. I do know of one Black & Tan Coonhound breeder
that has multiple dogs. She *may* hunt occasionally, but I know I've heard
her saying that she doesn't hunt her dogs (or, as it was, a particular
dog) for fear of them getting clawed & bitten. She's also got
several dogs of her breeding in the conformation top ten, so I can
see her point. :-)
Shelly & The Boys

"Susan Fraser" wrote in message
...
the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive.
snip
But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into
camps and
leases.

There is still a fair amount of open hunting land in Oregon, but we're
seeing a lot more of the lodges & camps than before as well. The
biggest groups of hunters here though, I imagine are the deer & elk.
There are upland game, geese & ducks, but it's not as populated.
That said, my father has hunted birds ever since I was a child. And,
while his "hunting dog" had a kennel, they spent the majority of their
time indoors, with the family.


A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than
the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives
in
the house.

hehehehe...as one of those kids, I'd have to agree with you here! My
Dad's dogs have always been part of the family. They were pets
every bit as they were a working partner for him. I can think of
one situation that was just plain nasty (a co-worker of my husband
kept his GSP in a kennel 24/7, always fed, but food would be stolen
by rats also). No human contact, she would literally run the walls &
ceiling of her 6x10 kennel. She wasn't a biter, but she did not
know how to deal with humans anymore. She'd been a playful,
good hunting companion until her human just didn't go hunting anymore.
Then, I think lacking all of the contact she'd been used to, she sort of
just went crazy. Poor, poor girl.
But, most of the hunters I know that keep dogs treat them as part of
the family, pets right along with any other dogs they may have.
Pack hunting is not very common at all in the PacNW, if it is, it is a rare
occasion. I do know of one Black & Tan Coonhound breeder
that has multiple dogs. She *may* hunt occasionally, but I know I've heard
her saying that she doesn't hunt her dogs (or, as it was, a particular
dog) for fear of them getting clawed & bitten. She's also got
several dogs of her breeding in the conformation top ten, so I can
see her point. :-)
Shelly & The Boys

"Susan Fraser" wrote in message
...
the average age of hunters in 1980 was 35; now. it's 42.

It's gotten expensive.
snip
But there is also a large class of more affluent hunters who buy into
camps and
leases.

There is still a fair amount of open hunting land in Oregon, but we're
seeing a lot more of the lodges & camps than before as well. The
biggest groups of hunters here though, I imagine are the deer & elk.
There are upland game, geese & ducks, but it's not as populated.
That said, my father has hunted birds ever since I was a child. And,
while his "hunting dog" had a kennel, they spent the majority of their
time indoors, with the family.


A lot of these dogs do live outdoors in a kennel, but I find the working
rettrievers I know do get a good bit of attention - sometimes more than
the
kids if truth be told. And I'm never surprised to hear that the dog lives
in
the house.

hehehehe...as one of those kids, I'd have to agree with you here! My
Dad's dogs have always been part of the family. They were pets
every bit as they were a working partner for him. I can think of
one situation that was just plain nasty (a co-worker of my husband
kept his GSP in a kennel 24/7, always fed, but food would be stolen
by rats also). No human contact, she would literally run the walls &
ceiling of her 6x10 kennel. She wasn't a biter, but she did not
know how to deal with humans anymore. She'd been a playful,
good hunting companion until her human just didn't go hunting anymore.
Then, I think lacking all of the contact she'd been used to, she sort of
just went crazy. Poor, poor girl.
But, most of the hunters I know that keep dogs treat them as part of
the family, pets right along with any other dogs they may have.
Pack hunting is not very common at all in the PacNW, if it is, it is a rare
occasion. I do know of one Black & Tan Coonhound breeder
that has multiple dogs. She *may* hunt occasionally, but I know I've heard
her saying that she doesn't hunt her dogs (or, as it was, a particular
dog) for fear of them getting clawed & bitten. She's also got
several dogs of her breeding in the conformation top ten, so I can
see her point. :-)
Shelly & The Boys

Susan wrote:

While I don't know a whole lot of people who "run deer"
anymore (where the heck could you turn a pack of dogs out to mauraude for
game?)

It is very common east of the Blue Ridge in Va. Most of the hunters are
responsible but there are just enough that will sit by their pick'emtrucks
drinking and shoot anything that moves. And then if the hounds aren't good
hunters they'll dump them at the end of the season. I used to work with a
woman that had 17 beagles that she got in that manner. they all had names and
lived in the house and she could show you pictures of them and know who was who
with no trouble.

Beth