Dog Deaths

[Zimm]

Wow- I just looked at the front page of the Star and Tribune (10-24-03) and saw the article about all the dogs that died over the weekend in South Dakota. They guessed it at over 100 dogs. I don't know how to put the article up here so if someone can help me out it would be appreciated. I don't know what I would do without my hunting partner. Keep your dogs cool, take breaks often, and make sure they don't stay in a hot kennel in the back of vehicles for an extended period of time. I think the weather will help us out by the looks of the forcast. Bring on the cold. It is fun to relax in the field for a few minutes and tell stories, B.S., and remind your hunting partners about the one they just missed. Good luck this weekend and take care of your partner. Zimm

[Mr. Nailz]

You're right. This is a tragedy. We all have to remember that the dogs won't stop hunting themselves so we have to stop them. Take breaks often and bring lots of water. I know I would be devastated if something happened to my dog.

[BDR]

I just read that article. Some of you may have my post about when I took my son to the S.D. youth pheasant hunt.It was hot,he drank a gallon of water, and after a few hours hunting the second day I noticed my dog Peeing blood. I immediately came home and he has been fine ever since. After reading that article I relize how lucky I,and he were.Blackjack hit it on the head dehydration! I will be far more aware from now on.

[Guest]

Very sad article!! We all most take time to keep a eye out for our best friends.
Ryan Hale

[MNice]

Here's a link to the article.

http://www.startribune.com/stories/533/4172442.html

[fishnutbob]

Water tip, I take a 16oz empty craft salad bottle plastic with a small hole in the top. I carry two with water in my game bag, works great. Last Sat. I did not hunt my two setters way too hot. Bob A

[Redlantern]

What a sad story. It also seems that when a dog overheats once, it's more likely to do it again. Do many of you bird dog owners make sure your dog has had plenty to drink before the hunt or training? With my dogs, I bait their water with some kibble or anything flavorful to make them drink before we run. I do this at least an hour before running them. When the water is flavored, the dogs drink up easily and you can be sure they have enough water in them to start with.

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Erik

[Tritt22]

RedLantern: Great idea to get dogs to drink water. Obviously you can't reason with them or force them to drink water before you go out.

I hunted South Dakota that weekend. Both of my dogs are in pretty good shape and could only go for about 10-15 minutes at a time. We took it real slow and only hunted for a total of two hours. We had a total of four dogs to rotate.

One of the first signs to look for when a dog is overheating is the appearance that they are drunk and staggering. They also start losing control of their bowels. The best thing to do, while rushing them to the vet, is to rub cool water on their stomach and work it into the coat.

It does not take much at all for heatstroke to set in. Hopefully the cooler weather will diminish this concern.

[BLACKJACK]

I was also out there on the opening weekend. It was 86 degrees on Sunday at 2 pm. We kept going from cow pond dugout to dugout and letting the dogs swim as long as they wanted, then we'd only hunt them for short stretches, 15 - 20 minutes, then back to a pond. Plus we had water in each truck and gave them canned dogfood in the evening to ensure they'd eat. Plus all of our dogs were in good shape.

[Capt'nJosh]

Had a golden retreiver start staggering and then 30 seconds later his hind legs went on him. He was trying to pull himself around with his front paws. We got a truck over there and loaded him up, kept him wet in the shade and got him drinking right away. He pulled out of it thank god! We always carry 20 oz bottles of water for the dogs (and us!) plus keep a large cooler full of water in the back of the truck for all the dogs to drink. We learned not to hunt so hard in the heat. Almost learned it the hard way...

[superfish2]

I try and carry a camel back for my dog. The hold a hold a lot of water and are more comfortable to carry water in then water bottles.