The never ending debate.....

[Monteria]

Assuming that everyone can agree on the definition of range being "the distance that a dog hunts out just for the sake of hunting, while in search of track, but before track has been struck", what does everyone consider short, medium or long range?

I'm not trying to start a debate and I don't really think there is a correct or incorrect answer, I just get curious when I hear someone describing their dogs as long range or medium range...... What is the average definition of long range? Medium range?

I consider.....
100 to 200 yards short
300 to 600 yards medium
700 yards or better long

I personally have mostly short and "lower side of medium" range dogs by my own definition but I am striving to build a solid medium range, bordering on long range, pack. My perfect dog right now would spend the majority of its time between 400 and 800 yards deep unless they found one on the way.

How about Y'all?

Steve

[txmaverick]

I dont go by distance, I go by sight and time myself.

A short range dog hardly ever leaves your sight and is never gone from sight for more than a couple mins.
A med range dog is seen every 5-15 mins stays out past the headlights making circles checking back in from time to time.
A long range dog is hardly ever seen staying gone much longer and in many cases doesnt check in at all.

I use this method since I dont have a GPS sytem to tell how far out they actually are.
My dogs are all med range dogs that from time to time think they are long range dogs.

[Mike]

My personal favorite type of dog is one that makes 15 to 45 minute loops... covering all the ground around you. Sometimes those loops maybe a few hundred yards, sometimes out to 1/2 mile. I consider this a medium range dog.


 

[Noah]

Good question, I'm always interested how far out other people's dogs hunt...

Depending on who I pair up, or hunt alone... my longer dogs hunt out a good 1000yds or better when they're fresh.  Once worn down a little, they'll back off to maybe half that, but I can still usually send them deep if need be.

Most of the other pairings tend to be shorter, a few hundred yards out ahead.... some shorter, some longer.

Nice to have both for different situations.

[Monteria]

Oh, and what is your hunting method? Casting, roading, walking?

We road, just drop the dogs out and drive along while they hunt.

Our dogs work loops like you describe too, Mike.

Steve

[sfboarbuster]

My dogs are usually pretty short range until they catch a hog, after that they are usually gone for a while, usually out a quarter mile or check in every half hour. Dont know what it is but they wont get gone until that first hog is down.

[Monteria]

Let me explain why I posed the question and maybe it will spur more discussion......

I spoke with a man a couple of days ago who was selling a "long range" dog. As the man bragged on the dog, it sure didnt sound like what I consider long range. Come to find out, after about 45 minutes of asking questions about the dogs style, the dogs claimed 1000 yard range is only achieved "at least once per month". It sounded like the dog spent most of its time in sight though that was not admitted.

Now folks, a dog that hits 1000 yards "at least once a month" is not a long range dog. Its a short range dog who won't track more than 1000 yards before giving up!

Now if that dog hit 700 yards OR BETTER on every loop, or at least the vast majority of them, that would constitute a long range dog to me. If every loop were 300 to 600 yards, that would be a solid medium range dog. A dog that spends most of its time under feet or 200 yards out and takes track 1000 yards once every 4 to 8 huints........ THAT IS A SHORT DOG!

Am I right here or does my definition of "long range" not jive with the rest of the world?

Steve

[ETHHunters]

You are right. Hunting range has nothining to do with how far a dog will take a track. Range is how far out he will go to find the track.

[Eric]

I road my dogs, have seen them go 800 yds trying to find some thing on a Garmin... don't know how often or any thing because I have only had them on a Garmin a hand full of times.

[USHOG]

This is only my opinion of a dog before they are hitting a track.

Short range dogs    = under 500 yards
medium range dogs  = under a 1/2 mile
long range dogs      = over a 1/2 mile

Most of my dogs are medium range. I dont normally see them until I call them in or I meet them at a bay. They do sometimes check in exspecially the young dogs if they are by themselves.

[southtexasff]

I think the defintion of range is how far my a** has to run to get to the bay.

[parker]

you perty much have  to  check  a  dogs  range  by  himself  several hunts ..... also  you have  dogs  that naturally  range  like  that  and  some  that  range according  to  the  way they been hunted .....you  can't  make a  dog hunt  if  its  not  in em  ....but  i  can  take  one  that  has  some  hunt  and  make  him  learn  to  stretch  out ......thats  where  people  loose sight  on the  breeding  end .....some  of  its  man  made  when  you  see a  dog  act a  certain  way ...... my  old  blaze  dog  would  hunt  out  about a  quarter  i  guess  in  loop  around  you ......if  there  was sign  he  could  run  he'd  go on .... or  if  there  was  another  dog  down  he'd  roll farther ..... but  if  i turned  him loose  and  when  he started  off  i  said  soooeee  you  better  get a head  ....he  wasn't  comeing  back he'd  drift  until  he  hit  hog  sign  or  i  tracked him  up  and  called  him  to  me ....ohh  how  he  got  that way  was foot  on  head  and  limb  on  rear ........ he was  one  good  hogdog ,,,,he'd find  hogs  when  the rest  couldn't....but  i  never  bred  to  him but  one  time  and  it  was a  mistake ......the  pups  did  good ....there  is  one  of  em  called  ED they  hunt a round  hemphill  texas ...... myself  i likea  dog that w ill make a  45  minute  loop  i f there  is  no  sign  come  back .....

[duece24]

i agree with ushog on definitions of range. i also think that age plays a part as well. lots of times we stamp a range on a dog before they are fully mature and have figured out what it is that we want from them consistantly. when the dog figures that out i think we can put a range on them. like my two for instance. my bmc, sunny, at this point she has shown to be very short range. she won't leave your sight unless she hits smoking a smoking hot track, then she will leave sight and show you a hog. i would classify her as very short ranged AT THIS POINT, but she also has completely figured out what it is that i want from her either. i think she will get further out the more she figures out what it is that i want from her. my other pup is just that a pup(8mos), she goes as far as my other gyp and they pack up together no matter what dogs are around they follow each other. she has no range cause she's too young for me to give her a range. now ushog has some youngs also that at night they are short ranged but when they go during the day they are easily medium ranged. so the next thing you have to factor in is time of day. some dogs just won't hunt far at night others it doesn't matter. i guess i just think that we stamp ranges on dogs way too early...jmo

[coach]

Then help me My dog might only hunt out to the headlights. Yet when she hits a track she is gone untill she catches up to it and that has been up to 1mile and a half away. What would you consider her.

[Noah]

Then help me My dog might only hunt out to the headlights. Yet when she hits a track she is gone untill she catches up to it and that has been up to 1mile and a half away. What would you consider her.

Short range, good bottom

[duece24]

agree with noah..i would say short range..excellent bottom...not a lot of dogs will stick a hog for 1.5miles.

[coach]

For the most part all of our dogs will hunt like that. We road hunt them and the ranches are fairly large 10 to 20k. I would like to get a couple of dogs that hunted way out and had lots of bottom to them.

[ETHHunters]

My best dog and furthest ranging dog which I consider long range would only hunt a hundred or two hundred yards out till he was about 2 1/2 yrs old. Now he will hunt out to 1000 yards and sometimes further but I liked the dog so I kept him and now I wouldnt sell him. So I think age has alot to do with how a dog ranges out. I think alot of people give up on young dogs way too early and I have done it myself.

[craig]

good topic..

i think alot of people are basing their dogs range on how far it has gone with a hog,,but like others have said i would consider that to be "bottom".

as far as range i would agree with most everyone on their distance,, seems to me most of them are close to the same..

[duece24]

oh yeah i my dogs have only been walked hunted until here recently. i roaded them once and my close ranging bmc picked it up pretty quick. stayed in front of the truck and was checking the wind every so often...we strictly walk hunt, the terrian i normally hunt in just isn't condusive to any other way of hunting. sucks when you get a good hog. you got to drag it to the nearest cutover so you can drive the truck or atv to it...lol..