Stalking with a terrier.

[308tikka]

I

I used to have a patterdale terrier that would accompany me stalking. As long as you put the ground work into basic obedience it is possible to have a great stalking companion.

My terrier would walk by my side, stop when I stopped and follow up on shot deer and was invaluable.

If you fancy training a dog up as a dedicated stalking companion Paul Michaels “Blueprint” has some good advice

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Regards

BP

Wish my patterdale had that ability. Has an excellent nose, will follow trail no problem but can't be trusted to accompany. On sight of any squirrel, rabbit, hedgehog or fox, terrier redmist comes on. Actually steady enough when sighting/sensing deer only but anything small and it's over.

A friend's border terrier is a v good stalking companion. I could be wrong but I think it's just down to the individual dog, even within breeds.

 

[bogtrotter]

Regarding terriers, the first Jack Russell we had as a boy was raised by my Grandpa, he carried her in his Barbour pocket everywhere as a pup, then in his rabbit bag on his bicycle as she grew, she went everywhere from day dot. That little bitch was so calm and sensible and used to anything and everything, by the time she was a couple of years old, she would just fit in, no need for training. She had that magic "common sense" factor. She would go deer stalking / rough shooting / rabbiting / wildfowling / foxing with us all the time, never let the side down, always waited to be sent in after the shot. She would lock up when close to an animal, only problem being in the summer she was too short to see in the grass half the time. She was out and about with us until she was 14 yrs old, before finally succumbing to decrepitude.

The second one we had was the exact opposite. She didn't get the same grounding, kennelled during the day when we were at school, parents at work, etc. Went bat**** crazy when we got home, hurtled off everywhere. Useless dog. Manic ratter though, and prone to getting so stuck in sets and warrens that she needed to be dug out with the backhoe, a delicate operation.

Its all in those first few weeks of life, to my mind. Wean them slowly, leave them with the litter until at least 10 weeks, then constant human company 24x7. Maximum socialising all the time, everything from the pub to the cattle yards, all the stock animals, everyone else's dogs, the cat, public transport, the high street, the car. Don't work them hard when they're young, don't punish violently, encourage quietly, calmly. Shoot around them but not close to them at first, small suppressed .22s rifles, then centrefires, getting closer until you are sure, then shoot over them, suppressed. They are fully ready when the sound of the gun safe keys triggers instant hunting mode. The wee dog's personality can be moulded very young. If you get a terrier of sound temperament from good breeding and make them part of every aspect of your life, they can be remarkably robust and reliable. Maybe not quite as effective as a larger specialist hunting breed, but the flipside is that they are a whole lot more adaptable and suitable to home life. Multipurpose dogs!

Think this approach holds true for any breed not just terriers.

 

[VSS]

Well, I kept the legs and heads of the last 2 pricketts in the freezer, so decided to have a little training session today. Didn't have any blood, so pulverised a bit of liver in the blender with hot water.
Tied a hoof on to a garden cane with a long string, fishing rod style, and dunked it in the livery mush. Started the trail with a dollop of mush, then dragged the hoof about 50m through moderate length grass, walking to one side to keep my own scent off the trail. Just a straight line downhill, ending in a clump of rushes. Kept the dog well out of sight / sound while I laid the trail.
Took him to the start on a long lead, and got him interested in the scent. He was a bit confused where it went through some nettles, but after that he was away no problem, so I let go of the lead and he had found the foot in a few seconds, although he did deviate a few times on route. Plenty of excitement and playing with the hoof for reward.
Next trail was about twice the distance, with a right angle bend in the middle, ending with the hoof hidden behind some fallen branches. This time he clearly understood what was expected of him, and got his nose down straight away, following the trail very closely, including the bend (didn't even cut the corner). No problem locating the hoof, and again I allowed plenty of play as a reward.
Will have another go in a week or so.

 

[Sonicdmb73]

Well, I kept the legs and heads of the last 2 pricketts in the freezer, so decided to have a little training session today. Didn't have any blood, so pulverised a bit of liver in the blender with hot water.
Tied a hoof on to a garden cane with a long string, fishing rod style, and dunked it in the livery mush. Started the trail with a dollop of mush, then dragged the hoof about 50m through moderate length grass, walking to one side to keep my own scent off the trail. Just a straight line downhill, ending in a clump of rushes. Kept the dog well out of sight / sound while I laid the trail.
Took him to the start on a long lead, and got him interested in the scent. He was a bit confused where it went through some nettles, but after that he was away no problem, so I let go of the lead and he had found the foot in a few seconds, although he did deviate a few times on route. Plenty of excitement and playing with the hoof for reward.
Next trail was about twice the distance, with a right angle bend in the middle, ending with the hoof hidden behind some fallen branches. This time he clearly understood what was expected of him, and got his nose down straight away, following the trail very closely, including the bend (didn't even cut the corner). No problem locating the hoof, and again I allowed plenty of play as a reward.
Will have another go in a week or so.

Sounds like a promising start.

 

[phillips321]

I have an 11 month old patterdale x jag'd terrier.... she found her first deer at 6 months old..... purely from scent and not blood trail..
She'll point and sniff when there's deer about but she's a sod for pulling on the lead! She will sit and curl up at the bottom of the highseat but has to well tethered!
The headstalker at glencalvie has a patterdale that stalks with him....it lays down when he does and also scents deer for him.

Terriers can make good deer dogs.

I have a three month old Jagd X Patterdale and she's coming along lovely as well. I also use her for wildfowling and she's getting pretty steady.

 

[reloader54]

imo,, a well cared for dog of any breed given suitable encouragement and praise will learn to please his/her master, some breeds are easier/more suited to deer work, but that in itself is made easier by starting with a blank canvas, a dog trying to please a new master by using the often differing and temperaments skills of a previous one could take a little longer [then again if the result is the same it could quickly occur to dog and trainer] but will undoubtedly give both dog and owners old and new a great sense of achievement.

 

[norma 308]

Had a few terriers over the yrs never again great dogs but always in trouble I’m firmly a lab man

 

[griff]

Irish terrier doing what it does best

 

[camodog]

+1 for the Labrador. My eight year old seems to sense what's going on - stays right at heel and never a peep out of her. She will 'point' in her own fashion, and is invaluable to me when recovering deer, especially in very rough clear fell areas. And, like VSS above, she knows which game she's on....take the rifle out, she knows it's a stalking day. Shotgun and cartridge bag....different dog.

My lab x gsd is the same. A different dog depending upon what we a doing. Whether that be stalking, wildfowling, game shooting, sitting in a pigeon-hide all day....the list goes on. Good guard- dog, family dog, gets along famously with our 14 yr old border x lakeland. Not sure how they 'do this' ? fascinating and very rewarding all the same ! I have done all the training myself, and he makes the transition seamless from one 'discipline' to the next.
Regards,
'Camodog'.

 

[camodog]

Forgot to add.....was only tempted to take the border x lakeland shooting when my lab x gsd was 'out of action'. The terrier was 'a brilliant' hunter/killer (as others have mentioned) but just TOO keen ! If I could have 'bottled' all that enthusiasm I and sold it I'd be very well-off by now !
Regards 'Camodog'.

 

[VSS]

Just an update:
My attempts to develop his enthusiasm for fallow deer have been a bit too successful. My attempts to develop his obedience have been somewhat less than successful!

After a few more sessions with me laying trails he's bang onto it every time.
I took him out with me the other day when I went to look at a new piece of ground. Left him in the pickup initially, while I had a mooch around. Disappointed at seeing no evidence of there being any deer in the area. Back to the pickup to let the dog out for a leg stretch. After we'd walked about 100 yards his nose went down and he was off like a train! Ignoring me completely, and it took me a while to catch the little blighter. Carried on with the dog on a lead and getting keener by the minute (but staying quiet, thankfully). Sure enough, within about 50m a fallow doe jumped up in front of me. Proceeding with more caution now, and watching the dog, I spotted a small group of fallow just within the treeline of a very dense plantation. Without the dog I'd have walked right past and not seen them. Keeping him on the lead we stalked in to about 30m from the deer and just sat and watched them for about 20 minutes. Eventually they drifted away, totally undisturbed.
All in all an interesting experience. Just got to work on the obedience side of things now....

 

[Sonicdmb73]

Just an update:
My attempts to develop his enthusiasm for fallow deer have been a bit too successful. My attempts to develop his obedience have been somewhat less than successful!

After a few more sessions with me laying trails he's bang onto it every time.
I took him out with me the other day when I went to look at a new piece of ground. Left him in the pickup initially, while I had a mooch around. Disappointed at seeing no evidence of there being any deer in the area. Back to the pickup to let the dog out for a leg stretch. After we'd walked about 100 yards his nose went down and he was off like a train! Ignoring me completely, and it took me a while to catch the little blighter. Carried on with the dog on a lead and getting keener by the minute (but staying quiet, thankfully). Sure enough, within about 50m a fallow doe jumped up in front of me. Proceeding with more caution now, and watching the dog, I spotted a small group of fallow just within the treeline of a very dense plantation. Without the dog I'd have walked right past and not seen them. Keeping him on the lead we stalked in to about 30m from the deer and just sat and watched them for about 20 minutes. Eventually they drifted away, totally undisturbed.
All in all an interesting experience. Just got to work on the obedience side of things now....

With dogs with a strong prey drive. I prefer to work on the obedience first. Some people say they can end up sticky if you’re too strict. However my opinion is that if the dog has a good nose for game. It soon gets over stickiness, I would prefer it to stay close rather than range to far (made that mistake before ).
I have my springer pup at the stage where out with the rifle when I stop to glass the area. She comes back and sits on my feet. Not a word or whistle given either.
Hopefully it is a habit she keeps.

 

[VSS]

With dogs with a strong prey drive. I prefer to work on the obedience first. Some people say they can end up sticky if you’re too strict. However my opinion is that if the dog has a good nose for game. It soon gets over stickiness, I would prefer it to stay close rather than range to far (made that mistake before ).
I have my springer pup at the stage where out with the rifle when I stop to glass the area. She comes back and sits on my feet. Not a word or whistle given either.
Hopefully it is a habit she keeps.

Obedience was pretty good, for a terrier. I worked on that first, to the extent that he would stay close, stop when I stopped, etc etc. However, his new-found enthusiasm for the scent of fallow has overridden all that!
Going to go back to basics for a bit.

 

[Sonicdmb73]

Obedience was pretty good, for a terrier. I worked on that first, to the extent that he would stay close, stop when I stopped, etc etc. However, his new-found enthusiasm for the scent of fallow has overridden all that!
Going to go back to basics for a bit.

I don’t think it matters what breed it is. Temptation can get the better of them.
Hopefully you can overcome his enthusiasm and instil enough steadiness. To make him a good stalking companion.

 

[Leupsak]

I have a Border Terrier who is great in a high seat or on a stalk as he starts trembling when he sees a deer, good alarm call for me
He is also great at locating deer and is not a squeaky noisy dog, I agree with the comments , its more about the individual dog than the breed as I know of a Teckle that won't come out in the rain!!!

 

[TokaS]

My Plummer... Great all round companion and worker. A big part of her role will be deer scenting/tracking and so far she's doing well. 14 months old now and will indicate if there are any deer about. Will also follow a trail to a dead deer over a short distance. She does pick up on old trails for example of a few roe have been together, one shot and grassed the others run she's as likely to go after one that ran first but will return and find the right scent to the grassed one. Think this is just experience and getting used to not only deer scent but also blood. I'm happy with her so far!

 

[shearstu]

I had a jack russell and she was unreal. Came with me from a very young age and even would point deer in undergrowth
She never ran at the shot
Biggest mistake I made was taking her ratting
After that she got the blood lust and that ****ed it lol doesn’t matter as she has way more fun killing rats anyway
Now my collie is older and steadier I take him from time to time. He is slightly gun shy but he loves the kill lol so puts up with it for the stalk and will just lay flat to the floor wen I raise the rifle.
Just handy to now I got the dogs there in case I need to get them for a bad shoot etc and wen I do they understand wot is going on

 

[glasshalffull]

Mine will track and has found a sika that disappeared literally where I shot it the following day buried on near enough where I shot it :+)&&
She however is totally gun shy so only used for back up. At least I have that option if needed

 

[Brittany boy]

Nice plumber terrier , looked at getting one before we got the Russell but struggled to find a litter, there was a lot of politics going on at the time between the different groups involved in breeding. Interested to keep in touch see how she gets on as she gets older could be a good option for some people who lack space.