Help picking breed and age

[timeo]

I have a small 12lb, 3-5 year old, miniature pincher mix and he seems to some what react to chasing though he just chases bites and leaves the toy there (except for a toy horse that he likes to attack). Could he be taught, or would it be to difficult?

Also, my wife wants to adopt a puppy for me. So what are good hunting dogs? Besides beagles and Jack Russell Terriers (she doesn't like them).I actually wanted an italian greyhound but that would be to hard to get. What would be a good age? Since I am not planning on buying a dog, from what i can tell they are usually between 3 months to a year old. What about chihuahuas? My parents chihuahua mix loves chasing her toys.

[samatney]

I have a min pin that is about a year and a half old. My sponsor wants me to take it hunting next season with his JRT. he said the best training for a new dog is to have a trained dog do it. I will keep everyone posted on it in the fall....

[coops658]

It depends on what you hope to achieve, hunt, what type of hawk you have.....but stick with the traditional hunting dogs for its task, i.e. JRT for rabbits, etc. Also, I would not adopt, you may get lucky, but breeding is everything.

[diane]

I second the vote to buy a dog from good hunting lines. It can make a world of difference. Sometimes you can get a dog a year or so old from a breeder that can still be a good hunter. A breeder had a nice bitch she was planning to use in her breeding program. The dog's bite (mouth structure) was not perfect. So the breeder spayed her and found a good hunting home for the dog. She now hunts rabbits for harris hawks. She sold the dog, but at a reduced price because it was a recommended good hunting home, etc.

Try the Min-pin. I've never seen one hunt, but it might work. Take the dog out without the hawk to likely hunting cover. Let the dog explore and learn about critters. The dog might not have a clue due to lack of experience.

I'm guessing you are a new falconer and will be flying a RT, Correct me if I'm wrong. Try to get your sponsor (or other hunter) to take you where there are rabbits (assuming that is what you will hunt). Let the dog get on some game and see what it does. Get a whole dead rabbit and drag it with a line like a toy - doe the dog get excited?

Just some things to try. Might work - worth a try since you have the dog already but it is certainly not a breed I'd pick for hunting. I'm skeptical of the chihuahua.

Also remember the dog could get hurt (by the hawk, prey, snakes, etc). If your wife is attached to the min-pin you might want to get a different dog for hunting.

Diane

[diane]

All hunting breeds have good points and bad. I've hunted over a variety of dogs.
Below are some general descriptions I've noticed. Your mileage may vary. There are exceptions to any general description.

Mini-dachshunds. Good trackers, train well, can go in small holes (in scrap, brush or under ground) to flush rabbits. Can have trouble with deep snow. They are slower to cover a field.

Beagle. Good trackers. Cover ground faster than the dachshund. Voice on track - good in most cases, howling can bother the neighbors. Tend to be effectively deaf when tracking. Train well with food, but can focus on scent to the exclusion of all else.

JRT: Respond to commands in the field better than the beagle. cover the ground faster than the dachshund, but tend to stay in "gun" range. Tend to sight hunt. Don't track as well as the hounds above. Will flash point, especially upland birds. Can go down many holes, usually bigger than the mini-dachshund, but not always.

Beagle-JRTs: ideally have the scenting/tracking ability of the Beagle, but will respond to commands in the field better than the pure beagle - I've only watched one hunt - it looked and hunted like a beagle as far as I could tell.

Spaniels (cocker, springer) should stay in "gun" range. Might needs some training. Cover the ground at a good pace. Better nose than the JRTs. Air scent more than tracking. Need to be trained to "hup" (sit-stay) if you don't want them to chase - ok most dogs chase if not trained to stop. Need to be clipped or will require work to get briers, foxtails, etc out of the coat. Great for thick cover.

Pointing dogs (Vizsla, pointer, GSP, GWP, Gordon Setter, English Setter, Brittany,etc). Range the furthest and the fastest. Need to be trained to hold point on birds and/or rabbits. Tend to be trainable. Variation in coat by breed. May range too big naturally for smaller fields or thicker cover. Can be trained to stay closer - but may be a life-long battle to keep one closer than its natural hunting range. Too big to go down most holes - but will try.

Labs: Great for duck hunting. They can also be used for flushing upland game (birds or rabbits). Should range like a spaniel, but may need training to stay in range. Tend to train well.

Whippets: Sight hunters, but can be taught to use their nose. Great dogs, but since the hawks and I are both sight hunters I like something with a better nose.
They build for speed with paper thin skin, just enough bone to support the muscle, etc. They tend to break. They can tear muscle by accelerating too hard. kind of like a light wt racing bicycle - just enough frame to support the muscle to make them run fast. Extra strength would weigh more and slow them down - so it is not there. They even have extra big hearts and can tolerate more heat than most dogs.

Italian Greyhound. Ok, I've never hunted with one. They should hunt similar to a whippet. However most IGs lack drive and motivation to hunt/work hard. I've met a very few that have the focus/drive/energy etc to be a good hunting dog. Same draw backs as the whippet.

Think about what you want to hunt and where.

For upland game in big fields one of the pointing breeds is probably the best choice. For ducks its hard to beat a lab. For places with rabbit holes a dachshund or a JRT. Rabbits in briers rather than scrap or ground holes, then a beagle or spaniel might be your pick.

Want to hunt everything everywhere - a Hunter/pointer/retriever is a good choice. The German pointing breeds, the Brittany and the Vizsla were all breed to hunt fur & feather on land or in water. They don't fit down rabbit holes. they don't track as well as a beagle or swim in icy water as well as a lab, but they will hunt anything a falconer might need a dog for.

Good luck picking a dog. I hunted my first few years as a falconer without a dog - I even used a house cat (only in the home field) to help find flush prey before I got a dog. I prefer hunting with a dog, its is much easier. But I also learned hunting without one. Having some hunting experience helped choose the dog that would work for me. A dog will be your hunting partner for 10 or 14 years (if you are lucky). Choose carefully.

Diane

[timeo]

Thanks for all the info Diane. That is the type of info i was looking for. Im still going to adopt, since the dog is mainly as a companion for our min pin. I just wanted to try and find a hunting dog and hope i got lucky. My wife did some research and our dog now seems like a Manchester terrier min pin mix but walks a bit like a IG and has slightly long toes. After thinking and looking at him for 2 weeks i feel like he would be perfect if he only had the drive. I feel like its there I just need to figure out how to jump start it. Im going to buy rabbit scent and spray a bunny plushy to see if that works. Im still a pre-apprentice so i wont have a bird for a while. The only thing that bugs me is that I do have a good hunting dog(but shes the family dog), from our guess a pit bull lab mix and has a prey drive and hunts mice and lizards at our house by smell and sight, but since im moving and its staying at my parents house, she wont be a choice.