Figured I'd come over here and say hi and let everyone know what I've been up to. As some of you know, J's story affected me very deeply. Life is such a fragile thing. I've never lost a dog in that way, but I did have one beagle killed on the road by a car while I was only 20 yards away. I almost lost a beagle two summers ago when he put his head in a 220 conibear trap. Don't know quite how he survived, but he did. Every day I am thankful for what I have. And even with no unforeseen accidents and mishaps, the truth is that the lifespan of a dog is not all that long and for those of us who have dogs, we will have many in our lifetime.
In 2007, I adopted an adult beagle from our local shelter. I have no idea of her age, but she is still with me today and still running rabbits, but I do see signs of her slowing down just a bit. In 2010, I acquired a young dog from a friend. He is now 3 years old. Then October 2012, I adopted another beagle from the local shelter. Through a twist of fate I actually found out the kennel where she was raised and I know she is 7 years old. She was heartworm positive when I got her so I had to treat her for that. Because of the exercise restriction that is necessary after treatment, I could not take her out running rabbits until the beginning of December. But since that time, I have been running all 3 dogs together all the time. She is an average rabbit dog (and that is probably generous), but she does try and she does have her moments when she outdoes the other two. I feel blessed that she is part of my life none the less.
This is her running second to my 3 year old male.
I will only shoot about a half dozen rabbits per year from my farm so that I leave plenty of rabbits to reproduce and keep the population as high as I can. I am only one or two away from this season's limit. It's been almost 2 months since I last shot a rabbit on the farm, but I run the dogs 2-3 times per week anyway. I just love running the dogs and being outside with them. I've hunted public land a couple times and hunted a friend's farm a couple times. Oh and Thanksgiving was the annual family rabbit hunt on my in-laws farm in southeastern Ohio. Other than that, I've stayed on the home farm.
Of course, my three are all house dogs and today, the three gathered together in the sun coming in through the window and enjoyed an afternoon nap.
Anyway, I've thoroughly enjoyed coming over to this forum this season and reading all the stories about squirrels and rabbits, especially the ones about taking the kids out hunting. So that is my update for now. Less than one month of rabbit season left. But really, the running of the hounds never truly ends.
In 2007, I adopted an adult beagle from our local shelter. I have no idea of her age, but she is still with me today and still running rabbits, but I do see signs of her slowing down just a bit. In 2010, I acquired a young dog from a friend. He is now 3 years old. Then October 2012, I adopted another beagle from the local shelter. Through a twist of fate I actually found out the kennel where she was raised and I know she is 7 years old. She was heartworm positive when I got her so I had to treat her for that. Because of the exercise restriction that is necessary after treatment, I could not take her out running rabbits until the beginning of December. But since that time, I have been running all 3 dogs together all the time. She is an average rabbit dog (and that is probably generous), but she does try and she does have her moments when she outdoes the other two. I feel blessed that she is part of my life none the less.
This is her running second to my 3 year old male.
I will only shoot about a half dozen rabbits per year from my farm so that I leave plenty of rabbits to reproduce and keep the population as high as I can. I am only one or two away from this season's limit. It's been almost 2 months since I last shot a rabbit on the farm, but I run the dogs 2-3 times per week anyway. I just love running the dogs and being outside with them. I've hunted public land a couple times and hunted a friend's farm a couple times. Oh and Thanksgiving was the annual family rabbit hunt on my in-laws farm in southeastern Ohio. Other than that, I've stayed on the home farm.
Of course, my three are all house dogs and today, the three gathered together in the sun coming in through the window and enjoyed an afternoon nap.
Anyway, I've thoroughly enjoyed coming over to this forum this season and reading all the stories about squirrels and rabbits, especially the ones about taking the kids out hunting. So that is my update for now. Less than one month of rabbit season left. But really, the running of the hounds never truly ends.