How to Test and Buy A Squirrel Dog

EDITOR'S NOTE: In years past, you would find squirrel dogs as common as front porch swings, big black pots in the backyard for canning and a smokehouse for preserving meat. You expected to see a squirrel dog in a neighbor's front yard, just like you'd know he had a garden in his back yard. But as the country's population migrated from the farm to the city, a good squirrel dog became as scarce as hen's teeth. This week we'll look at why every outdoorsman should own a squirrel dog.

On the Friday afternoon of our squirrel hunt at White Oak Plantation near Tuskegee, Alabama, (see Day 1), rain came down in sheets. But we had had six young boys cooped up in the lodge for four hours, waiting to go squirrel hunting. They didn't care that:
* squirrels wouldn't move much in the rain,
* they would get soaked to the skin,
* they'd find the woods ankle-deep in water, and
* none of the adults wanted to go.

We heard a constant litany of pleas every few minutes including:
* "we don't have to stay long,"
* "if too much rain starts falling, we can come in,"
* "I promise I won't get wet," and
* "I wanna go huntin!" Finally, Jim Rhea announced he planned to take his dog Ranger and go squirrel hunting. "Any of you boys who want to go with me, come on."

We all realized the youngsters had a bad case of cabin fever and that the only cure would mean getting them into the woods. As the truck rattled through the swamps in search of a ridge that water hadn't covered, I looked at Rhea and asked, "Do you think there's any possibility we'll tree a squirrel in this downpour?"

"With the ground covered in water and the rain pouring down like this, it will be a tough hunt," Rhea concluded. "But the only way to know if you can find a squirrel is to turn the dogs out and let them hunt." Rhea's dog, Limb-Gripper Ranger, won the 1995 and 1996 World Squirrel Dog Championships. Rhea also raised and trained three other world-champion squirrel dogs that won world championships in 1985, 1989, and 1992. Limb-Gripper, Ranger, Buck and Music each had taken a world title, and Limb-Gripper Jack finished second in a world contest. Hunting with a two-time World Champion squirrel dog, I felt we had a chance to tree a bushytail, even in a downpour. And five minutes after we released the dog, he barked tree. When we reached the tree, Rhea jerked a vine. The squirrel jumped out of the tree, hit the ground running and covered 50 yards in less than a heartbeat with Ranger hot on his heels. The squirrel went up a tree and into a hold before we even could get a shot off. We had an unbelievable 45 minutes. We treed six squirrels. Three jumped out, and the dog caught one of those. Finally, the rain came down so hard, and the swamp filled with water so fast, we decided to head back to the lodge.

To get the squirrel dog of your dreams, find the breeder that produces the type of squirrel dog you want. Tell him what you expect from the dog and how much time you plan to spend hunting with it. The more time you want to invest in the dog's training, you may want to buy a younger and less expensive dog. However, plan ahead, because the best breeders have waiting lists for their pups. "I sell my pups for $150 apiece, and my waiting list usually runs three to six months," Williams emphasized.

A started dog will know how to tree but still will need a significant amount of training. These feists sell for about $500 each. "You can take a started dog to the woods, and the dog will tree a squirrel," Williams commented. "That dog won't be consistent and tree every squirrel that comes down, but you'll be able to take squirrels and start hunting with that dog. Treat squirrel dogs just like any other kind of sporting dog -- the more you hunt them, the better they'll be."

An almost-finished dog sells to between $1000 and $1500. You can take plenty of squirrels with a dog this advanced. Hard hunting for a season may finish out this dog. For a finished dog, expect to pay $2000 to $5000. According to Williams, "this dog will mind well, and you should be able to take 10 to 15 squirrels any morning you go in the woods with it. But good finished dogs are hard to find, and that's why they command such high prices."

After you've located the dog you want, try it out with the owner to see what you're getting. "I invite prospective buyers to my house, and we'll take the dog to the woods to tree squirrels," Williams mentioned. "I want my customers satisfied with their dogs before they leave my house." If you don't have the time to train or finish training your started dog to make it a top-notch dog, Williams' son Jay in Harrisburg, Missouri, will train a squirrel dog at a cost of $200 a month.

TOMORROW: How to Train a Squirrel Dog