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Hunting Dogs
There are multiple breeds of dogs that are used for hunting. This section will focus on two, the German shorthaired pointer and the American foxhound. Some of the uses of hunting dogs are that they fetch the prey, they kill the prey, or they track bigger prey. The German shorthaired pointer is known as America's bird dog. And given the American foxhounds name, one can conclude that they hunt foxes.
The German shorthaired pointers are chosen as gun dogs because they are easy to train, versatile, excellent retrievers, and fairly easy to find from breeders. These dogs can find their hunter's dead prey in tall grass, dense tree cover, and thick food plots. These dogs are also incredible swimmers and can retrieve the dead or injured birds from ponds and lakes. These dogs are used to gunfire. When their owner shoots a bird, the dog is then released to go find where it landed and to bring it back to the owner. This breed's primary job is to retrieve the shot birds.
American foxhounds do a lot more of the tracking and hunting aspect rather than retrieving. They hunt by scent, and when they catch one, they can run forever. They only stop when they catch the fox or when they lose the scent. This breed is good for chasing foxes, but can also be used to hunt deer. These dogs like the chase more than they enjoy the kill itself. The animals chase the prey and howl to let their owners know they have found one. Then the hunters move in for the kill.
These are only some of the many hunting dogs out there. There is pretty much a different breed for every type of prey one might want to hunt.
Davis, Tom. "The 21 Greatest Gun Dogs." Field & Stream. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 May 2017. http://www.fieldandstream.com/features/gun-dogs/
Lynn, Brian. "Hunting Dogs: Best Dog Breeds for Every Game Animal." Outdoor Life. N.p., 18 Mar. 2013. Web. 01 May 2017. http://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/gun-dogs/2013/03/hunting-dogs-best-dog-breeds-every-game-species
Thoms, Jerry. "Breed Profile: German Shorthaired Pointer." Gun Dog Magazine. N.p., 09 Oct. 2012. Web. 01 May 2017. http://www.gundogmag.com/breeds/breed-profile-german-shorthaired-pointer/
The German shorthaired pointers are chosen as gun dogs because they are easy to train, versatile, excellent retrievers, and fairly easy to find from breeders. These dogs can find their hunter's dead prey in tall grass, dense tree cover, and thick food plots. These dogs are also incredible swimmers and can retrieve the dead or injured birds from ponds and lakes. These dogs are used to gunfire. When their owner shoots a bird, the dog is then released to go find where it landed and to bring it back to the owner. This breed's primary job is to retrieve the shot birds.
American foxhounds do a lot more of the tracking and hunting aspect rather than retrieving. They hunt by scent, and when they catch one, they can run forever. They only stop when they catch the fox or when they lose the scent. This breed is good for chasing foxes, but can also be used to hunt deer. These dogs like the chase more than they enjoy the kill itself. The animals chase the prey and howl to let their owners know they have found one. Then the hunters move in for the kill.
These are only some of the many hunting dogs out there. There is pretty much a different breed for every type of prey one might want to hunt.
Davis, Tom. "The 21 Greatest Gun Dogs." Field & Stream. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 May 2017. http://www.fieldandstream.com/features/gun-dogs/
Lynn, Brian. "Hunting Dogs: Best Dog Breeds for Every Game Animal." Outdoor Life. N.p., 18 Mar. 2013. Web. 01 May 2017. http://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/gun-dogs/2013/03/hunting-dogs-best-dog-breeds-every-game-species
Thoms, Jerry. "Breed Profile: German Shorthaired Pointer." Gun Dog Magazine. N.p., 09 Oct. 2012. Web. 01 May 2017. http://www.gundogmag.com/breeds/breed-profile-german-shorthaired-pointer/