If you have only one or two dogs, you can
easily prepared dog food soup in the comfort of your kitchen
and carry it out to the kennel or dog house. If you have a kennel,
as I do, I carry a bucket of at least luke-warm water out to
the kennel, lay the feed pans out on the table, give each dog
a measured rationed and then go down line slopping the water
on the food. Brimming with floating food dishes are then place
before each dog and they dive in, half chomping, half flapping
their soup suppers. Or you can work out your own system.
This should not be interpreted to mean that if you slop your
dogs you won't have to water them. This supplement water is insurance
that your dog won't suffer or dehydrate if you occasionally neglect
to water twice a day, it freezes up before he can get at it or
something untoward happens that shorts his water supply. Use
of warm, not hot, water seems to increased palatability (probably
by increasing the odor) and in sub-zero weather will prevent
a dog's nose or tongue from sticking to a metal feed dish.
Although freeze-up doesn't plague sportsmen who live and hunt
milder climates, servings of dog soup will do a great deal for
the performance and stamina of their dogs on extended hunting
trips when dogs are confined to travel crates or trailer compartments
when not afield.
No matter where a hunter finds his upland game hunting, a great
deal of the early season is going to be hot and dry. This takes
a toll on dogs along with stresses of travel and close a confinement.
At home, even a kennel or tied out, a gun dog has room in time
to recuperate after a hard day field, |
moving about it will, lazing around, drinking when thirsty,
eating when the mood is on him. By the next day, he's pretty
well replenished physically and mentally. Two, maybe three days
in a row is probably maximum duty time without a day or two's
rest and recreation.
But on a trip, neither hunter nor gun dog gets any R&R if
they are at all serious about the sport. It costs money to travel
when game is available that is scarce around home, it hurts to
waste an hour or two. So gun dogs are stressed for that period
to much the same degree as competitive dogs on the field trial
circuit when not afield and probably more so when actually hunting.
There are no limits on the time between dawn and dusk that hunting
dogs are asked to perform and, except for pros, semi-pros and
crazy people, no hunter has more than one or two dogs to expend.
So even if standing or running water is available in which a
dog can refresh himself and keep going, hunted hard dogs lose
a great deal of moisture.
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At home the water bucket was available on off-duty time.
It isn't on a trip.
Water left in a trailer compartment or travel crate is sure to
be spilled and dry comfortable bedding is due a dog being worked
hard just as much as the right food and water. Regardless of
where a dog is hunted, a container of water should be carried
along. Water should be made available to dog before he is cast
off. When he returns to base (usually in the vehicle a trailer
when traveling) water should be waiting for him and he should
be given time to drink. Put a water container down next to the
vehicle when you leave on foot and dump it when you're ready
to drive off.
Few passersby are going to steal plastic ice cream bucket or
an enamel wash pan. If something like that does get swiped. You
ought to be able to shrug it off as long as there's a spare available.
If not, pull off a hubcap or make a dish of your hat.
But when you feed in the evening, be sure to slop your dog. Whether
you are staying at a friend's, in a motel or in a camp, water
will be available. Use it to float your dog's food. Not only
will you replenish some of the moisture wicked away while he
was exerting himself, you will stimulate his appetite. Bone-tired
dogs are often reluctant to eat as much as they ought to. On
a hunting trip you might even have to tempt them by mixing in
some canned food, cheap hamburger or steak trimmings from your
meal. But chances are a tired dog will more readily consume a
better smelling, better tasting, meal afloat then any he will
struggle to choke some dry chunks down a dry throat.
Dave Duffey hails from Bowler, WI
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