Please help......

S

seahawks_ia_fan

New member
I have a few questions. I have about a 9 month old beagle and wanna get her to pheasant hunt with me. She does a real good job just chasing things and picking up on scents. I'm affraid when I take her hunting she will just run and run and I will lose her since she likes to just chase things. What can I do to train her? She is getting better at listening but if she likes something she wants it and is running after it. Also what is the best way to get her to pick up pheasant scent?

Also where is the best places to hunt around the Cedar Rapids, IA area? I'm looking for public land but what roads are good for road hunitng?

Thanks
 
Training a Beagle...

Beagle training...this will be a big challenge due to their "chase" trait.

There's a wealth o f training information on line as well as books you can buy to help you with training. Keeping a dog in range is a continual challenge due to the strong prey drive and chase mentality.

One of the tools you will probably need is an electric collar...properly used, they are invaluable.

Good Luck!

Jon
 
welcome aboard! Sorry Im not going to be much help training a beagle to pheasant hunt but wish you well. Im sure its been done before.
 
Beagle training...

One suggestion I forgot to mention: before you go on a formal hunt with your Beagle, you might try a game farm. This will help create a pheasant hunt situation for the dog - one that can be staged with either chuckers or pheasants.

How will you introduce the dog to birds? This is an important step in the dog's development.

Running your dog on both rabbits and pheasants can/will be confusing for the dog due to the "chase aspects" of a rabbit hunt.

Jon
 
You can buy pheasant scent at WalMart and put on a dummy. Drag the dummy and then let the dog trail and find it. You can buy an Iowa Sportsman Atlas and it will show you the public hunting areas. As for road hunting with a dog is not the best idea unless your dog is extremely trained. In Iowa, you can only shoot a pheasant in the ROW. As soon as the bird crosses the fence it is illegal to shoot.
 
I remember reading a story in the late 60's or early 70's about a bunch of guys who used beagles to rout pheasants out of impossibly thick cover. They liked the controlled range and ground scent tracking which the beagles excelled at to work birds into the air for good shots. I'd say that what you are planning is well within the capabilty of beagles. Exsposure to the game will do more than anything else, can't make lemonade without lemons or pheasant dogs without pheasants.
 
I used to hunt pheasants with a Beagle and probably killed more birds than most people. As far as I know there is no way to stop a hound dog from running, that's what they are bread for. People hunt with hound dogs, other types of dogs hunt with people. Keep her in thick cover so you can stay with her. Leave a long leash on so you can catch her. Take her to a bird farm, let her trail a bird to flush, then make sure you kill the bird so she can mouth it and taste the blood. At 60 I just can't keep up with a hound anymore, but when I could it was a blast. We used to put her on cripples that the pointers couldn't find and she never failed. Beagles have an unbelievable nose. Good luck.
 
Do Not, I repeat DO NOT, leave a leash on a dog that is going in/through thick brush. It can get hung-up and you might not be able to get to it. It could also choke itself to death or break it's neck. I have beagles and have had beagles since the mid 80's. I use them for rabbits mainly, but also for pheasants (released) on state game lands in PA. Yes they will flush birds, but a lot of times out of range because the birds will run if they can. Unless you are in real good shape and can run AHEAD of the dogs when they are on a running bird, chances are you will not get a shot in range.
 
One of the best all around natural hunting dogs I've ever hunted over was a beagle. He could find and flush pheasants, quail and grouse and was an awesome rabbit dog...he even retrieved birds and rabbits to hand. He just naturally seemed to know how to handle the different types of game.
 
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