Beagle dog hunting can be productive

It's getting a little difficult to find a dinner of cottontails in recent years. Good fields of brush, briers, and thick grasses are becoming scarce, and those nice broad fencerows of yesteryear have been mostly replaced by clean farming methods. I live in northcentral Ohio and I've heard a number of farmers say such things as "Years ago I could combine a field and flush a dozen rabbits or more. These days I seldom harvest my corn and jump more than one or two." Hunters often have the same problems. Unless they're working prime cover, a rabbit or two is good success for a long days hunting.But there's one group who traditionally does well in any situation or farm, and that's the group or individual who hunts with a hard working little beagle. I've hunted with beagles all my life, mostly in southern and southeastern Ohio, and it was great fun.My uncles and I didn't work at it, usually just lining up on a hillside and walking along,laughing and joking while our dogs hurried here and there until they picked up a fresh scent. Shortly the cottontail would jump out of its patch of brush or green briers and one or more of us would get a shot.When I came north, it was the same, though this time I hunted with a fine little 13 inch female I named Ketchum. Hunting after school or on Saturdays I pretty much decided whether I wanted to take home two bunnies or four, and almost invariably what I wanted I got, thanks to the dog. She was definitely worth her Purina. If you're having trouble bagging dinner when the seasons come in, maybe you should have a dog, too, and if there's a question, it's what kind do you want?At this late date you'd best buy a started dog, one already at least partially trained, so that all you'll need to do is work the animal and smooth out its rough points. Getting a pup is fine in the spring when you can train it all summer and early fall, but not now.Everybody has their own opinion on what makes a good dog, and I have mine, too. I like a female because (without any proof) I think they hunt harder than males, and I like a 13 inch dog rather than a 15 or more, because they can weasel into brush piles or dense thickets and run hiding animals out. But suit yourself. Ketchum was the offspring of field trial parents, which means she was slow as molasses, sticking her nose into every track.Many hunters don't like that, but I did because animals she jumped quickly outran her and with no worries about being caught, they made short circles and often came back at a walk. I made many a head shot that spoiled no meat with my little hound. Where to get a dog is an easy question. Just Google up "Hunting beagles for sale in Ohio" and you'll find lots of places to buy one. Checking out hunting dog magazines like The American Beagler or Hounds and Hunting will produce plenty of ads and phone numbers, too. Or maybe a friend has a dog with a nearly grown litter and would be willing to sell you one.Be careful here, though, because not all beagles are worth having. When Ketchum finally passed away, I bought four pups one after another over a five year period. All came from good parents that I'd hunted with and all four were worthless.That's why started animals are a good idea. It adds up to little work for a truly worthwhile hunting companion. If you like fried rabbit and lots of it, the choice is easy. Dick Martin is a free-lance writer from Shelby. Reach him at richmart@neo.rr.com. You can also visit his blog at outdoorswithmartin.com.