Three Ways to Prepare Your Dog for Hunting

A cool, crisp morning. A calmness in the air. A feeling of connection and gratitude to the nature surrounding you and your dog. Perhaps the most anticipated season of the year, hunting is a sport like no other.

It also has a way of deepening the bond between you and your dog as you both need to be prepared and in sync. This takes work. And preparation for hunting season happens long before opening day.

Although a day of hunting can look different for everyone, it usually requires long periods of sustained energy, attention, and focus. This doesn’t come natural for any of us, particularly our canine hunting partners. So depending on the amount of strength and stamina you want for your pup, training is necessary.

Here are three things you can do to set your dog up for hunting success.

Get what you want by giving your dog what they need. Having a high performing dog for hunting season won’t happen overnight. And a dog that hasn’t been through the rigor of a day of hunting since last season is not likely going to perform to the best of its ability in the upcoming season.

Off-season workouts are essential for keeping a dog in shape and helping them prepare for the long stretches a hunting day will require from them.

Also keep in mind, one hour trainings will not translate to being able to work at a high level for a full day. That’s why training that gradually increases in time is necessary to build the endurance they will need.

Train for the terrain. The best way to prepare your pup for what to expect is to give them time in the environment they will be working. Hunting in water sources, in heavy canary grass or across big fields of woodcock cover is not the same. Each condition demands a different intensity.

Speed and range will naturally decrease over the course of a hunting day but the better you prepare them in the desired conditions, the better they will respond over the course of the day.

This goes for the weather conditions as well. And although this might not be as easy to replicate, keep in mind that humidity and temperature will have an effect on your dog too. The more you can practice in the environment you want them to perform in, the better they will respond when it’s game time.

Top condition plus the right fuel equals high performance. The daily input of food your dog will need is directly related to their output of energy in a day. Hunting is hard work. And if you are wanting your dog to perform all day for 4-5 days of the week, their bodies will need to be fueled for it.

Also note, as you are increasing their training and daily activity level prior to hunting season, their bodies will need more calories. When you get into the long hours in particular, dogs will need additional protein and fat.

Choosing the Super Performance Formula will give your dog the right balance of nutrition for increased effort and endurance. It also supports healthy joints with natural sources of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate. Black Gold Formulas helps you build your dog’s strength while building stamina.

Get your dog ready long before the sun comes up on that first hunt so you can #UnleashAdventure all season long.