How Many Days can you hunt a Dog

shwagy357 · Post by **shwagy357** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 7:21 pm

I am planning on grouse hunting this whole up coming week. I have a Brittany and was planning on hunting the dog a full day monday, full day wednesday, full friday and full saturday. I typically hunt the dog all day every saturday. I was wondering how much is too much for the dog. What do you guys think? I was also wondering if I could squeeze in a half day hunt on tuesday.

natetnc · Post by **natetnc** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 7:51 pm

how does the dog recover after the full sat hunt? i would feed extra to supply the energy needed.

Post by **Greg Jennings** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 8:27 pm

I think you're short on dog power. You're talking about going from 7 days of rest down to 1 day of rest and leading up to zero days of rest.

Just MHO, Greg.

ohiogsp · Post by **ohiogsp** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 9:07 pm

I would be willing to bet your dog will be very tired come friday and if you take it out sat. it will walk, not hunt. Oh, and the tues. afternoon will put it out even sooner. JMO

Birddog 307 · Post by **Birddog 307** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 8:29 am

With out knowing what type of shape your dog is in this is pretty hard to answer. My britts are tough as nails and I could hunt them everyday. They would be tired at night but ready to go in the morning. I would hunt the dog.
Birddog 307

natetnc · Post by **natetnc** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 9:40 am

before an upcoming trip i plan the cost of a month at the trainer into the package. i do not have the time to get my dog into the shape she needs to be in for a week long hunt. i do keep her in descent shape so she can be a weekend warrior, but asking her to pull a full week of hard hunting right now would be too much. i know its a little late for this now, just a thought it may be helpful in the future

ThunderHawk · Post by **ThunderHawk** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 10:15 am

I have a 3 year old GSP. I did a bunch of field work this summer as well as water work for a couple hours in the evenings when the days were too hot. The most I have hunted Grady this year was 4 days straight for around 5-6 hours each day. He did well....and was actually angry when we could not go out Sunday. Kinda funny trying to figure out what he was mad about....Anyway, I degress, I agree with the others...Hunting all day, that many days, in a 7 day time period, unless you have a bunch of preparation as far as "extra calories", and field work goes etc...will be pretty hard on your dog. Especially if you get into a bunch of birds. Unless, you put out a large number of birds in training, I think its hard to simulate "the intensity" that your dog shows when its gets birdy. At least in my case, Grady gets right on the edge of out of control whens this happens, and it does take alot out of him after a 5-6 hour hunt.
I would consider shorter days if you plan on hunting the week. If you are traveling do some sight seeing, if you are on vacation, work on a honey do list for a few days of rest.....grrrrrrr I hate those lists too.
Anyway, just an opinion...

Best of Luck and have fun...

Hawk

RoundRiver Setters · Post by **RoundRiver Setters** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 10:44 am

Feet would be another concern for me....Keep an eye on those..Our guy sometimes is pretty sore the next day after a long hunt. Especially if hes hunting in alot of snow. I doubt it would stop him from wanting to go out the next day again, but I wouldnt want him to be in pain.

mtjim · Post by **mtjim** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 4:38 am

This is why I keep three dogs.

gonehuntin' · Post by **gonehuntin'** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 6:19 am

I am down to one dog now, first time in well over 30 years. I love it. That dog hunts all day every day I hunt. In SD, she hunts 10 days in a row. I keep the dog in excellent condition all summer, free running and dragging 50# of logging chain. I also give her glycoharge at the end of each hunting day.

When you're hunting a dog in good condition multiple days, it's not the conditioning, it's the injuries and wear and tear. Watch the feet for cuts and boot immediately it you see them. Mine wear a skid plate and orange vest for body protection. If I see the front legs getting torn up, I wrap them in vet wrap and duct tape over that. Keep a close eye on the dogs, doctor when needed, and if you have the dog in peak condition, they'll hunt virtually every day. Mine now hunts four days a week, every week.

It also depends on where you live and hunt. Grouse hunting, all you ever need is one dog. Pheasant hunting or hunting the West, it takes more than one if you're hunting all day.

Grange · Post by **Grange** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:42 am

For grouse hunting my lab can and will hunt all day every day for a week or longer. I give her extra food and she sleeps well in the evenings.

For pheasant by the third day my dog will start to get beat up. She still has energy to hunt but her pads, nose, and around the eyes are showing wear. By the fith day she needs some rest to heal up.

The longest consecutive hunting streak I've have with her is 9 full days of grouse hunting and 8 out of 9 days pheasant hunting. She gets beat up a lot more with pheasant hunting than grouse.

Post by **ezzy333** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 1:30 pm

I find that my dogs can last longer than I can so its not a big issue anymore. Would be nice to think that a person would limit out before wearing the dog out.

Ezzy