I am an avid rabbit hunter and the proud owner of six beagles. You can't beat the thrill of listening to a pack of hounds bringing a hare/cottontail to the gun. Then you have only a split second to take the shot as he runs for his life. In addition, to the UKC hunting championships this past weekend in Ohio. The American Kennel Club also held their hunting championships in Kentucky, where 311 of the finest hounds in the country were present.

I'm an avid bear hunter from Maine. Ive been bear hunting with hounds since I was five years old. My father and I use Plotts and Walkers for the most part, but we are not shy about adding other hound breeds to the pack.We just like good hounds who can run and tree,regardless of their color. We hunt to have a good time with friends and enjoy the outdoors. I'm also and avid upland hunter and own an English Setter, so I see both sides of the spectrum. Very good blog btw! Great articles.

I'd hunted rabbits a handful of times as just a pair of guys kicking bushes. It's a nice walk. I intentionally took in a rescue beagle for the purpose. (Not from the official beagle rescue folks, they apparently have illusions regarding the purpose of a beagle, not to mention the source of one's joy in life. You sign a contract that you will not hunt over dogs obtained through them.) The first time he opened up on a hot track I thought the ecollar had shorted out on him. Soon those pained sounding yips went to a full bugle as he spotted his quarry. Rabbit hunting suddenly became about watching and listening to your dog work a rabbit, not necessarily so much about hunting rabbits or even just getting out. There is something in the sound of a beagle giving voice that stirs the blood. It is both as simple as that and more complicated than I have the words to express. I still don't get him out enough for either of our tastes, but I think I'll own one or two of those little hounds until the day I die.

On the side of a dedicated blog. Training a beagle? I have a lot to learn and a good hound guy could teach me and my dog a lot. I think hounds are a lot more instinct driven due to the independent nature of thier methods than the bird dogs. Training is still necessary, but it seems to be a lot less intense. For now I'm still trying to learn what he can teach me. What has suprised me more than anything is how often the open woods holds rabbits when I want to hunt and work brushy edge and transition cover. It only takes one walk "back to the car" after an unproductive day when your hound jumps a large cottontail from under a small stump surrounded by relatively bare ground in a large hardwood stand to teach you that you need to be taught.

what about the houndmen? nothing beats the sound of hounds on tree! sitting there waiting for them to tree talking with your buddies about life and then once the dog trees you shine the coon with your light and shoot em out! no thats fun! yall should try it some time!

Very well-written, Chad. One of the best posts I have ever seen on this forum. Delightful read. Thanks.

Private, posted property. No Trespassing....gentlemen that is what happened to America and why beagles are now considered niche hunting. As a kid I could go out into the woods after school behind the old beagle and hunt for hours by merely crossing the barbed wired fences while Barney the beagle whoofed behind the cotton-tails. You can't do that anymore. At least here in the east we still have vast acreage of USFS lands that the environmentalist haven't totally taken over so that there are some grouse to hunt...but cotton-tails need overgrown fields and they are posted to keep the antler fiends away. Rotary dial phones and rabbit hunting, history.

i once was able to go coon hunting with a pack of blueticks n what an experience.i thought it was incredible the way those dogs would change there bark from trail to tree.if you check out websites such as coondawgs.com check out the galleries look i know labs and pointers have it rough when the waters cold but bayin a mtn loin at the edge of a cliff for nothing but a scratch on the ears and some cheap dog food that whole breed derserves alot more credit then they get imo

Great observation, Chad. I'm a longtime GSP man, but I also hunt squirrels and 'coons with a mountain cur. There's a world of hunting with dogs out there that rarely gets mentioned outside of specialty mags like Full Cry. Hunting with treeing dogs or beagles isn't seen as classy as grouse shooting or quail hunting over pointing dogs, and I suspect there may be less money to be made selling products to coon hunters.

beagles are great dogs but there hell to train. Lot of people say you don't train them they train you. i know alot of guys who use beagles for hunting rabbits.

"shooting a deer with a lever-action .30-30"

WAY too many haven't done that these days. Too much hypermagnum elevated box beanfield long rangering going on now.

Ive owned 2 30-30 rifles one Winchester and one Marlin 30as and many Vebco 33.Recently my wife brought home a Dashound who I think should have been a Lab.Right now he is buisy treeing our cat on the couch.Ive been working Magnum my Springer on lining drills and retrieving with all the decoys out 18 at this time 6 GHG and 12 Flambeau.Still have plans for 6 Wood duck decoys.Its still cold enough to put the vest on him to give him more time to get used to it but cant wait for the water temp.to come up.Planing a trip to pick up some pheasant and looking for some ducks.I will keep my bean field rifle at this time over any 30-30 though.

I too am a hound owner and hunter, a little bit of coon but mostly bear with a plott and a redtick. Before our rabbits thinned out I also had a brace of beagles. If you'll look at my profile pics you'll see some friends of mine who have top notch beagles and invite me along after bear season. Anyone who doesn't feel something when they hear a hot rabbit chase or hounds trailing has never truly lived the outdoors.

My beagle/Husky mix Prowler is just about as happy to chase rabbits as to tree a coon, and on one occasion, a black bear cub(that was a treat). Only thing he don't do is birds. Even though his lack of focus makes hunting a particular species difficult(blame it on his then 10yr old trainer) Thats where im considering an English Setter/Britt/Lab for grouse and the occasional pheasant.

I had a stepdad that decided to take me rabbit huntin' back in 1962. He took his 4-legged companion, Ringo, along for the ride. I didn't know what I was in for until he told Ringo to, "get 'em up!"

Ringo was hot on a trail, soon after the door of the truck was opened. I was still lookin' for my gloves when my stepdad disappeared into the brush nearly a city block away.

I gave up the search for my gloves, as I hustled off into the cold morning air.I caught up with him as fast as I could, when he told me to stay behind him. I could hear Ringo "talkin'" to us as he seemed to be runnin' in a wide circle.

I saw him runnin' across a field when his howlin' stopped. I looked up at my stepdad to try and tell what he was thinkin' when all of a sudden, he quickly looked to his right and lowered the boom on a runnin' rabbit. As soon as I heard the shotgun go off, he swung the double-barrel to his left, and shot a second rabbit tryin' to escape.

I tried to fathom the scenario in my young mind and concluded that he was almost as good as Davy Crockett, 'cept different. Mr. Crockett didn't have a dog like Ringo.

Ringo, the beagle, was a family favorite, and was right up there with Rin Tin Tin. I'll never forget the day my stepdad called for Ringo, and he never responded. He walked out to the mail box and found Ringo laying along side the road.

I heard my mom tell someone on the phone later that night," I've never saw him cry before, until now."

RIP Ringo!