The American Beagler Forum

Yesterday while hunting with my dad (dare I say "old timer") we had an interesting situation we were debating.

The situation....conditions....2-3" of wet snow

The 3 dogs come through on the line, my two in front running with their heads up. His dog comes through with his nose buried in the snow (I call it snowplowing). At that time my dad says "there is no way they are able to smell that rabbit with their heads up like that, they are just looking at the tracks in the snow".

At the loss all three are searching for scent at the point of loss but can't figure it out. My female picks her head up and is looking around at the point of loss (not at the other dogs, at the ground). My dad asked what she is doing and I say "she is looking for the rabbits tracks"...he laughs. She runs over to the fresh tracks, sticks her nose in the snow, barks, and then sort of sight chases the tracks out from the point of loss and my male follows suit. His male runs over buries his nose and is snowplowing the track by scent but is pretty far behind at this point.

In my mind his dogs inability to adapt to the conditions and use his eyes to move out quicker than the pack put him at the bottom of 3. His arguement is that a beagle should only be using scent to find and maintain the track thus because mine were using sight to track the rabbit they would be considered "faulty".

Thoughts??

I like that my dogs will check a track for scent. Some times it results in them finding the rabbit and getting it going. I considered it an advantage when I heard dogs could do this and was glad to see mine doing if after a few seasons on the snow, but I am just a lowly rabbit hunter not a trialer. Would site chasing also be a fault? I wouldn't think so but maybe some would.

In my opinion, a dog that uses their eyes to look for tracks in the snow has one thing over a dog that doesnt ..............Brains!!! Sean

Faulty.....NO
Ability to adapt to the conditions..........Yes!

IMO, the dogs were using there noses.....you and your dad just had something visual to confirm what they were doing. In the same situation without the snow I don't think the dogs would have run any differently. I've seen many dogs run tracks with their heads up (some higher than others), and I've seen several that will keep plowing even on the hottest tracks.....it's just how they run. So, IMO They weren't using sight to track the rabbit, they were using their noses to see where it went.

Househounds wrote:I like that my dogs will check a track for scent. Some times it results in them finding the rabbit and getting it going. I considered it an advantage when I heard dogs could do this and was glad to see mine doing if after a few seasons on the snow, but I am just a lowly rabbit hunter not a trialer. Would site chasing also be a fault? I wouldn't think so but maybe some would.

I guess that is what surprised me....he only hunts and I figured he would enjoy a dog being able to use other senses to bring the rabbit back to the gun in any conditions. I also think his opinion might change if his dog had more experience on snow because he may or may not end up doing the same thing.

This same female was scratching at icy snow last year to presumably get scent. She was the only one that could run that day, albeit very slow, so maybe there was something to the scratch and sniff theory that day...it made for good entertainment anyhow. Of course nobody believes me on that one though.

I doubt he would consider sight chasing a fault because the dogs are physically looking at the rabbit and not tracking.

IMO, the dogs were using there noses.....you and your dad just had something visual to confirm what they were doing. In the same situation without the snow I don't think the dogs would have run any differently. I've seen many dogs run tracks with their heads up (some higher than others), and I've seen several that will keep plowing even on the hottest tracks.....it's just how they run. So, IMO They weren't using sight to track the rabbit, they were using their noses to see where it went.

I dont think they were using their noses first. Mine will check a track that i can see is old and leave it and go on hunting. This indicates to me that they see it, stick their nose in it and try to smell the rabbit in it, and then leave it unless the scent is still there. If the scent is there they follow it and eventually will open on it. Sometimes they follow them a ways (3 or 4 tracks) and then give up. Its the same reason they go in the brush. Every once in a while they do this they are rewarded with a rabbit to chase. We may be teaching them this indirectly by putting them on what look like hot tracks to us while hunting.

I like my dogs to do this too. I look at it no different than what I do and that is to use all available options at the time to do the best job I can. I think it shows brains and the ability to adapt just like these other guys have said.

Now if the dog is dumb enough to keep looking for tracks when the snow is gone then you may have a problem!!


On the other side of that one thing that also irritates me is a dog that does NOT learn to associate tracks with scent. I have had dogs that after 2 seasons can't seem to put together that print in the snow with the smell of a bunny and it drives me nuts!! A smart dog will do it when it can and/or has do but will leave it alone when it's not needed. I have yet to see a dog that would track only by sight and not use it's nose.

I think a dog that has ran in the snow enough , has half a brain, and desire to keep running , will eventually learn this. My 71/2 yr. old female does this well. I noticed this weekend her son ( just turned 2 in Oct.) was also doing this. This is his 2 running season on snow. I'm glad to see this in a dog and especially in a young one. To me it's all about adapting to the situation to keep the race moving.

foothills wrote:In my opinion, a dog that uses their eyes to look for tracks in the snow has one thing over a dog that doesnt ..............Brains!!! Sean

I will take this dog over a hound that has to use only his nose...