wild dogs

[teacher]

Has anybody else seen an abundance of wild dogs in the deer woods the past few years? I'm seeing more and more uncollared, wild dogs chasing deer. Saw three yesterday while putting up a late stand. they were chasing a couple of does every which way through the corn. Don't have the heart to do much about them with a bow in my hand. Just wish people that had pets would keep them. Just wondered if anybody else had the same experiences.

 

[mu1147]

I haven't noticed as many this year as in years past. My dad and I took care of a pack of doberman shepard crosses a couple years back after they treed him for an hour. I don't care for shooting dogs, but if they are a threat that is a different matter. Been lucky this year the only problem dog for me has been my beagle and the shock collar has that cured for now

 

[rattle them in]

Teacher trust me kill those dogs.
They probably have never had their shots and can carry diseases that will spread to other forms of wildlife. The other problems you will run into is if these wild dogs mate with a coyote you will have a pack of coyotes in a few years that have been around humans and some might not be afraid of humans and could someday harm a child or any other person. Do yourself, your family and neighbors, and your local wildlife a favor and kill those dogs.

 

[Ghost]

Could not agree more with Rattle Them In.

I always check with the local nieghbors to be sure that none of their dogs are running free. If they are, I let them know that they need to keep their dogs on their own land.

If they go unclaimed, then

them.

If you think fawns have a tough time surviving their first year, add wild dogs.

There is nothing that will spoil a good deer hunt faster than a pack of wild dogs chasing deer all over the place. I know this all to well.

 

[Liv4Rut]

last year during late muzzleloader i had a very interesting morning with wild dogs. i was in stand at first light and from first light until 9:30 those dogs barked all morning and i could tell they were chasing something. i was royally ticked off beyond belief and i was going dog stalking, i snuck down to these two wild dogs, and i looked in the creek and there was a full grown doe standing in water up to her brisket trying to avoid the dogs, which had her bleeding and worn out. the dogs were preoccupied with the doe so i snuck to within 15 yards of them. i never really thought that a couple of coyotes could really kill a full grown deer until now, by seeing those dogs and what they were doing made me realize what they can do. So i raised up my muzzleloader and whacked the meanest looking one, with a stick in the other hand in case the other one attacked. there has been history on the place i hunt of bad encounters with wild dogs, so i was a little nervous. the one dog dropped and the other took off running, i loaded my gun in record speed, and just sat there, and looked at the doe which was only ten yards away, i spooked her out of the creek creating a decoy, she ran up the hill and the second dog saw that and took pursuit, when it was 40 yards away i whacked him too, i would shoot the dogs if they are truly wild.

 

[Auggie]

I am in total agreement with everyone else. If they aren't anyone's pets, that is the best thing to do. Nothing makes me more mad than people taking dogs out to the country and dropping them off. I feel the same way about cats, you can tell if they are pets or wild. We have a huge population of stray cats running around my house and I try to do my best to thin them out every year and I think I'm already seeing results in the pheasant population.
Don't get me wrong I am a huge animal lover and have a dog and two cats for mice control around the house. Sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.

 

[Shredder]

I should be the last person replying to this post (a veterinarian) and saying what I am going to say but here goes. If you can verify that these dogs are indeed ferel, take them out a quick as you can. Like previous posts, check with your neihbors before pulling the trigger. Ferel dogs and cats are not a natural species to us. They have less fear of other animals and humans making them a much higher risk to transmit rabies (pick it up from a skunk or bat or coon and bring it into your yard etc) Some will have no fear of humans making them a risk to children such as bite wounds or even death. Ferel dogs do carry numerous diseases such as parvo, heartworms, and intestinal parasites that can increase the prevalence of these diseases in a particular area. Last but not least, they harrass wildlife by chasing and killing or in a cats case, hunting for pleasure, not food, making the natural creatures of the woods more scarse. If I encounter ferel dogs or cats while afield, I know how I will handle the critters..............

 

[Blackfoot]

My views on this topic are quite similar to the preceding posts. If there are wild dogs present in your hunting area, not only do they pose a serious threat to your deer heard, they also pose a threat towards you, and that's reason enough to go to extraordinary lengths to take care of such a crucially problematic situation. By all means, I'm not suggesting that you takeout every dog within a 5 mile radius, but if you see an unfamiliar dog, then I would suggest you be cautious. As the posts above stated, check with the surrounding property owners to see that they keep their dogs on their own properties.

Conserving energy is crucial for deer during the cold winter months, and if there are free-roaming wild dogs on your property there is a good chance that you may be missing a few deer from your heard the following year. Older bucks that are depleted of strength and energy from the rut, and fawns are the two most common victims of wild dogs. And if this continuously occurs, it may potentially unravel any deer management you have done to better the heard. And not only do they pose a physical threat to the deer and the other wildlife in the area, as Shredder mentioned, many of these dogs are rabid and often carry diseases.

Unfortunately, I've experienced the threat that wild dogs possess firsthand. Last year while tracking my deer, I came across a group of wild dogs that had made a den in some thick brush on our property. As I was following the blood trail, I was completely unaware that I was being watched until I heard their low, eerie growls directly in front of me. My first instinct was to hightail it out of their, but as fate would have the brush was much to thick to make a quick get away. So I grabbed a fairly large branch and managed to hit the largest dog across the face, before they dispersed. Further observation revealed that they had been feeding on a doe. Although I wasn't able to get a shot at them, if one does decide to pass my stand this fall, I will surely let an arrow fly.

 

[buckknife]

Wild dogs,show no mercy

Ive shot some of them coydogs before.
When i was a kid there was a pack of wild dogs that roamed the country side for a couple of years,they chased deer all over,and worked hill sides for rabbits,musta been nearly 25 of them or more,over time they were taken care of

 

[muddy]

i have very strong feelings against dogs that run loose. if i'm in my treestand i'm AT LEAST 2 miles from the nearest farm. a dog that far from home is either feral, lost, or up to no good. i shoot without question if there's no collar.

my suggestion is take care of your dog problem quickly. coyotes are generally afraid of humans. feral dogs on the other hand are much bolder and much more unpredictable.

 

[HUSKERBUCK]

I know this is an old post. However you never know when an old topic will provide a little piece of mind. I was feeling a little guilty over my "first ever" bow kill on my hunt this morning but I remembered this old post reread it. Guilt gone. These dogs have been running wild for a few years. Really gotten worse in the last couple of years. Last year they chased a nice 4x4 and a doe right by me. A guys gotta do something about it. I guess that one won't be chasing anymore. Thanks for the "old" advice.

 

[150 Class]

How about free ranging tame dogs? Just as bad as wild ones in my book.

 

[muddy]

tame dogs with collars...that's just the same as a banded duck or goose!! good target practice and you get a souveneir!!

 

[HUSKERBUCK]

I should clarify myself. These are not wild dogs but someones tame dogs that run all over. We know whose they are. We have told the owners about them many times. This time they were about 4 miles from the owners house and they all had collars. They are the same dogs that we have been seeing for the last couple of years. It's just that now there is one less to harrass wildlife.

Muddy, I did not keep the "souveneir".

 

[scout]

I'm glad 150 Class pointed that out! Free roaming pets are often worse! than the "wild" ones.
The old guy that ownes one of my best hunting locations told me he often hears his gloden lab chasing stuff around all night. It makes me cringe, but I don't know how it suggest he keep him tied at night. I've never seen the dog in the woods while hunting.
I had a Brittney and a Beagle chase a nice buck past me a couple years ago. I considered killing them, but they had collars. I found out who they "belonged
to" he said they just took off about a week ago and he could'nt catch them. I told him if they come by again I'd slow them down.

 

[duckaholic]

When I was a child I remember my dad taking me deer hunting and seeing dogs chase a little deer. I also have heard my dad tell me stories anout wild dogs surrounding him when he was walking to his stand one morning. With his luck it was muzzleloader season, one shot one kill. The others ran off. BUT, came back within an hour and he saw them creeping into the corn field.