Pack Dogs

See what Tavis Molnar of Arctic Red River Outfitters has to say about using pack dogs.


Hi TJ,


We have used pack dogs routinely in the north Mackenzie Mountains, NWT for the past 20 years in the course of our backpack hunting operations. We've found a well trained dog to be invaluable for this type of hunting, as we do extended, self sufficient backpack trips of 10-16 days long, which involve many miles of travel. The use of pack dogs makes a big difference to many of our clients, who find carrying extremely heavy loads more than challenging. It also makes a big difference to our guides, as they put in a 90 day season, and often travel 500 miles or more on foot in that time. Particularly as you get older, reducing your pack load is imperative to preventing physical deterioration in the course of such an intense field season.
I truly believe that the use of pack dogs in many cases reduces the potential loss of game meat as well to scavengers, particularly on the larger animals (caribou, moose), as a large, strong dog can pack loads approaching 50 lbs of meat from a carcass, enabling the hunters to remove the edible meat from the site more expeditiously. As well, when the hunters are returning for subsequent loads of meat from the carcass, a dog is able to detect the presence of bears in the vicinity of the carcass, particularly in heavy bush where the hunters cannot see very far ahead of them. I have personally had my own pack dog warn me on several occasions when I have been about to stumble into a grizzly either on a carcass that I was purposefully approaching, or on bear kills that I was not aware of.
I have also had several cases where I have surprised or been surprised by a grizzly, and my dog has been able to run the bear off. In one case, myself, client and pack dog had stopped to rest in late afternoon near a riverbank after a long pack, and the hunter and I had dozed off in the shade. About 20 minutes later, my dog jumped up and started going nuts, and when I opened my eyes there was a large boar about 25m away. He had evidently either stumbled onto us, or had purposefully approached us while we slept. As soon as my dog charged the bear, he spun around and took off. It's difficult for me to say what would have happened had the dog not been there, but I'm sure that the bear would have ended up significantly closer before I would have detected him, and we may have either ended up in a serious way, or had to kill the bear to prevent possible injury.
Over the past 20 years, I have had to kill a number of grizzlies in self defense, and I can think of at least three of those that I'm sure could have been prevented had I had a pack dog with me at the time. It has in fact been pretty rare that any of our guides have had to kill a bear this way while using a dog, and I'm positive that there is a strong correlation, and not just coincidence. I know that personally ALL of my defense kills of bears came prior to my use of a pack dog, and that after I started using one I noticed my close and surprise encounters with bears declined sharply.
There also should be little concern with pack dogs harassing or chasing wildlife. Generally, anyone that I've known that uses a pack dog has invested a great deal of time in it's training, since it is not only a pet but a valuable working animal. They are usually selected for specific traits, including calm personalities, loyalty, and a desire to please. As well, even a young dog in the midst of his training finds that most of his desire to roam and/or chase wildlife goes right out of him when he's got a load on, or after a hard days pack. With all the various pack dogs we've had in our camp, of different ages and breeds, we've never encountered a problem with this.
Individual dogs also have their own unique abilities and traits that can provide additional safety benefits in the context of the close relationship between themselves and their owner, and which most owners of pack dogs would be able to relate. In my case, I can say that my dog is very good at detecting approaching thunderstorms (he's terrified of lightning). Over the years I've learned to listen to him when he's got that "lightning's coming, boss!" look on his face, and get myself and my client down from an exposed ridge or peak.
Anyone with young children that also uses a pack dog will also tell you that having the dog along improves your families ability to get out in the mountains greatly, not only for the weight that the dog will pack, but the peace of mind that comes knowing that the dog is looking out for the kids, and is always alert for bears. If I ever encountered a grizzly with my kids along, I'd feel good knowing that the bear will be distracted by the dog, and either think twice about the situation, or if nothing else be preoccupied long enough for me to insure my kid's safety.

Overall, my opinion is that it's completely nonsensical to disallow the use of pack dogs in the mountains, as there are numerous positive benefits to this activity, and to my mind no negative consequences.

Regards,

Tavis.


Tavis Molnar
Arctic Red River Outfitters Ltd
PH: (867) 633-4934
info@arcticred-nwt.com