Snake Avoidance

If you are a chukar hunter and you like to get out when the season opens, you are aware of the chance of running into snakes. And once in a while, they may be rattlers. They are out and about now, and it’s a good time to consider snake avoidance. Now might be the time to take advantage of the snake avoidance programs going on.

My new pup, Layne, is more ready for avoidance training than any pup I have ever had. Anything moving on the ground she is interested in and picks up to bring to me. No hesitation. She is one week from being four months old and is always looking for trouble. She loves pointing at any bird and slowly making a stalk, but if something moves along the way, she pounces. She hasn’t really learned how to use her nose in searching for birds yet. If I hide a chukar and tell her dead bird, then she’ll use her nose to find it, but she still hunts by sight. That’s a very easy problem to solve. Wild birds after wild birds after wild birds.

Back to snake avoidance. Most classes say the dog should be five months old before they will take them. My personal opinion is that it depends on the dog’s boldness. Layne is very bold, and we are in snake country quite often. I usually do the avoidance myself and would like to get with it on Layne, but the collar is still too loose for her. So, if she doesn’t grow into the collar by the end of June, there is a class in Jerome that might have a collar that fits, and I’ll be there.

People have asked my opinion about the avoidance class and if I believe it works. My past five GSPs have all been trained to avoid snakes, and every one of them has shown at one time or another that they are very aware of snake-like things and avoid them. That still doesn’t take away the situation where it happens before the dog can react, but the dog doesn’t go looking for it. Snakes aren’t looking for dogs to bite, so if the dog doesn’t provoke it, there is less chance of getting bitten.

I do hunt the early season, and to my knowledge, I have never had a close call. I just limit my hunts to early mornings and on the northern slopes that stay shaded a little longer. Evening hunts at rock outcroppings are where the snakes warm up before nightfall. Good luck with the snakes.

There are lots of good things going on out there now. The Spring has been exceptionally good. Grasses are taller than I can remember, and the feed is there for the big game animals as well as bugs for the upland game. I found a hen turkey with young ones in tow. They are usually the first to hatch.

My opinion is that in about three weeks, the Hungarian partridge and Chukars will be hatching. I’m sure that should be a very strong success with the Spring we have had. Now, if we just don’t have a long, hot, and dry summer, the season may bounce back to better than normal. Fingers crossed.

Meanwhile, Grady, Layne, and I are enjoying just finding the baby big game animals.

Grady doesn’t believe that baby deer leave no scent and is teaching Layne how to find them.

We’re also finding lots of elk with calves running to keep up.

Enjoy your summer with your dogs.