Essential Gear For Traveling With Your Bird Dog

“A trio of dog crates; a couple big bags of dog food, and two five-gallon cans of water along with a half dozen bottles, flasks, jugs, and dishes; leads, leashes, and check cords; tie-out stakes and stake-out chains; dog training collars and bark collars; dog vests and dog boots; a canine first aid kit; dog bells and beeper collars; identification collars in several colors; plastic dog training bumpers; chewing devices; and a bag marked ‘Miscellaneous Dog Gear.’ -- All this stuff looks like you’re starting your own gun dog supply catalog instead of going on a five-day pheasant and waterfowl hunt, “My hunting partner decided after a quick inventory of the dog gear we were loading into the back of his pickup.”

Actually, the list of various items wasn’t all that long and the pile of equipment was a simple collection several other dog owning hunting buddies and I have come to see as always necessary and sometimes essential when on short or long road trips with our gun dogs. Though may not use all this “stuff” every time we go hunting with our dogs, we do manage to use most of the many items at least once during a given season. And, those who go with us but don’t carry all these supplies themselves do end up being glad that the rest of us have this gear when they need something for their dogs …

So here is a description of what we carry to be used as sort of a guide to the well-equipped traveling gun dog owner. Subtract whatever doesn’t apply for your purpose and add whatever else you think is needed. And, if you think of some essential piece of gear that isn’t here, let me know about it.

	When traveling with a gun dog, a portable compact dog crate is essential.

Dog crates, as most hunters now days know, are essential when traveling with any kind of canine. A dog running loose in a vehicle can be a hazard to equipment, people, and to itself. Let a dog loose in your suburban or the back of your pickup and you can count on anything from nose prints on the windows and paw tracks on the upholstery to teeth marks on your gun stock, lunch box, or hunting jacket.

Likewise, a dog unconfined inside a vehicle can make a surprise jump into the front seat while you’re in the middle of a traffic crisis. And many dogs outside the security of crate confinement can have anxiety attacks that will increase the stress of traveling. Generally, dogs “in” a sturdy, familiar and comfortable crate will be happier, more secure, and less likely to get into trouble.

What crate to choose? Plastic, fiberglass, all metal, wood and metal, wood and wire, or all wire are all proven materials for dog crates which can be found in sizes to fit most any canine from 20 to 100 pounds. When deciding on a crate for inside a vehicle, whether in a suburban, van, or station wagon or under a pickup topper, go as small as possible. If a dog can enter a crate, easily and comfortably stand up, turn around, and lie down, that crate is ideal in size. Most often anything larger is just a waste of space and resources.

Include some type of dog bedding for your hard-hunting, joint-aching, muscle-sore pooch to rest and sleep on after a long day in the field or on the water. A carpet sample, some soft cedar ribbons, or a specially made water-resistant, cushioned pad can keep a traveling gun dog in good working condition.

Food and water are two obvious but worth-mentioning essentials for all gun dogs when they are traveling. Provide the standard dog kibbles your dog is accustomed to at home, but consider some other food items to stimulate a canine appetite when your bird-getter is too tired to eat much or sometimes anything. A meat-based canned dog food or some savory chicken noodle soup full of fat and carbohydrates poured over kibbles will usually make the dog crackers irresistible.
Many traveling hunters with dogs will bring water from home if there is a suspicion that local water sources might cause canine digestive disturbances. Though dogs running in the field or swimming in a slough can sometimes drink all sorts of nasty-looking bad-smelling water without any significant ill effects, “treated” municipal water supplies can sometimes throw them for a real loop. So, give them water from home when possible.

Hauling food for a gun dog can be a problem if you carry dry kibbles in a paper sack or canned food in a cardboard box. Keeping all this food together in a neat, compact, and convenient dog food travel bag is a better idea when at the end of the day you’re in a hurry to feed your hardworking gun dog. And the weather is cold and windy and darkness is closing in, and you’re looking forward to your own supper. Consequently, consider putting all your dog’s nutrition requirements in a store-bought duffel bag or a specially made dog gear bag so that all the food items, feeding and dog watering dishes, can openers, special supplements, and other essentials are in one easy-to-find, easy-to-transport, easy-to-work-out-of container. Include a flashlight to make feeding your dog in the dark much easier.

A gun dog first-aid kit will be necessary sooner or later for anyone traveling with a hunting dog which requires in-the-field-first-aid-treatment. Whether home-made or commercially manufactured, a gun dog first-aid kit should have three basic components: (1) Bandages to include several types of gauze and pads in various sizes and shapes with “tape” and “elastic wrap” to hold them in place, (2) Tools such as “tweezers” to pick out weed seeds from dog eyes or to pull out junk from open wounds (have a magnifying glass to make this more efficient), “clamping type forceps” to remove porcupine quills for example, and “scissors” to cut everything from adhesive tape to fur-wrapped cockle burrs, and (3) Medications ranging from simple buffered aspirin and over-the-counter salves to prescription steroids and antibiotics.

Make your own kit based on a list of essential ingredients and a trip to a pharmacy (take $25 to $50 to cover the cost for a “basic” to an “advanced” collection of emergency medical supplies). Or buy a “canine first aid kit” put together by professionals with veterinarian-recommended and hunter-tested bandages, tools, and medicines.

Get a hunting dog first-aid book and buy a video on the same subject. Watch the video with the purpose of getting a general over-view and understanding of common canine in-the-field medical emergencies and for specific advice on using a first- aid kit to deal with these situations. Read the book and take it with you for practical instructions on treating problems ranging from such things as minor cuts or torn toenails to snakebite and broken bones. The best books will have an “index” listing particular types of emergencies and where to quickly find information in the text for handling them.

	Leather dog collar with engraved name plate can be valuable in the event your dog gets lost.

Dog Leads, leashes, check-cords and chains with tie-out stakes can all be important gear items for traveling with a gun dog. One person walking a hunting dog across a busy highway can have a nightmare without a lead to maintain control. Likewise, a long leash or a sturdy check cord are important for airing a dog at a busy highway rest stop or in the night outside a motel room. An easy-to-install tie-out stake and an unchewable, unbreakable chain with solid swivel snaps are good for securing a dog out in the open in the field or at a hunting camp.

Dog Collars for “control” and “identification” of your canine are very important when traveling with a gun dog whether close to home or 1,000 miles away. The all-metal “choke” and “claw” type are good ways to control a rambunctious hunting dog in a wide variety of situations. Leather Collars or nylon collars with bright, reflective, easy-to-see colors can make a gun dog much more visible in heavy cover both up close and at a distance. Add an “identification plate” to a leather or fabric collar for the distinct advantage of finding a “lost” dog more quickly and efficiently. Your name, address, and phone number (cell number if you have one) on the Dog ID tag can relieve a lot of anxiety when searching for a dog lost in a familiar or a strange place when you’re traveling either close to or far from home.

Bark collars and remote training collars are good canine behavior insurance when traveling with a gun dog. A bark collar can control the racket that some excited or anxious dogs will make the first night at a motel or in a hunting camp prior to the next day’s hunt. Remote training collars can be left at a home by those hunters absolutely convinced their gun dogs don’t ever need any correction, reinforcement, or training tune-up in the field. Those who don’t have this certainty about their own dogs or the dogs of their hunting partners should always bring a remote training collar when traveling with any gun dog. Bring two in case one fails to function or your hunting buddy forgets to bring his.

	Dog Training Dummies

Dog Training dummies made from canvas fabric or plastic are always useful when traveling with a gun dog. Toss a retrieving bumper to give a travel weary dog some quick and familiar exercise. Or lob any kind of dummy into water as a reliable way to get a hot dog wet or a dirty dog clean when next to a pond, a lake, or river where the water is clean enough for swimming. And, don’t forget a dummy in a goose pit or duck boat as a necessary tool for exercise and training during major lulls in a waterfowl hunt.

Dog boots, made from foot-fitting rubber or durable nylon, are another form of dog gear that can save a hunt when canine feet are threatened by cuts or abrasions. Or to protect dog feet already sliced, abraded, or punctured by sharp rocks, crusted snow, or prickly vegetation. Take along a supply of adhesive tape to insure a secure fit for any type of dog boot. And have a couple extra boots to replace the one or two your dog might lose or wear out during hard hunting in dog-foot-unfriendly places. Consider including specific salves and medications for a wide variety of common canine foot problems. Ordinary “Super-Glue” can be a good product for quickly covering and sealing many types of minor pad wounds or broken toenails.

Dog vests may seem like canine protection over-kill until the time your pooch comes out of a Northwoods briar patch with bloody skin scratches that get rawer and more painful as the hunt progresses. Or, your gun dog emerges from a field of wheat or corn stubble stabbed by sharp plant parts. A protective vest, manufactured from nylon or neoprene, can prevent these mishaps or stop them from getting worse once they have already happened.

For hunters who use dogs in wet and cold conditions, a neoprene vest can also be an effective way to maintain vital body heat. And, for a dog in water, a neoprene vest will keep a dog’s temperature at a healthy level and will provide buoyancy as insurance against drowning. In a variety of camouflage patterns, dog vests can also be used as a good way to hide a dog in field or marsh environments. Or, in a blaze orange color, a vest can be the best way to make a gun dog highly visible in a variety of hunting habitats where seeing your canine is a great convenience and a possible life-saver.

Other gear to take when traveling with a hunting dog comes under a “miscellaneous” but still an “essential” heading. A “multi-use tool” carried on a belt holster is really useful for such things as pulling cactus spines from dog feet or porcupine quills from canine faces. Or cutting a dog loose from a wire snare trap. Or prying the top off a dog food can when a can opener isn’t handy.

A “de-skunking” kit made up of a quart of hydrogen peroxide, a box of baking soda and a small jug of hand soap is a concoction that can be a hunt saver used to control the putrid, eye-burning, gut-wrenching stench on a dog after a close encounter with a black and white “field pussy.” The hydrogen peroxide-baking soda-soap mixture may not take all the stink out of a well-skunked dog but will make the offending pooch more tolerable. Apply the ingredients as a paste rubbed on by hands covered with latex gloves. Include some strong shampoo and a big bath towel as part of the post-de-skunking clean up procedure. Consider a “feminine hygiene” deodorant as a final bad smell eliminator.

Any dog on a long road trip can get bored on the way to a hunting destination and could appreciate a “chewing device” (called “chew toys” in the dog supply catalogs) to wile away the hours. Made from “ingestible” plastic, “digestible” vegetables, or “edible” animal parts, these chewable anxiety-relieving products can keep a young or old dog occupied when waiting for a hunt to start.

“Lighting” is often the last thing a hunter thinks of when preparing to travel with a gun dog. But some source of hand-held illumination is the first thing that comes to mind when feeding a dog in the dark or when trying to pick a weed seed out from under a canine eyelid. A “head mounted” light that leaves both hands free also works well for these purposes. A heavy-duty, multi-D-cell flashlight or a six-volt lantern is also handy when searching for a lost dog at midnight. A super bright light will work well to activate the “Reflexite” on a dog’s reflective collar. And a strobe light attached to a collar can make a dog very visible up to mile away in low-light or no-light conditions.

Other miscellaneous items to put into a dog-care-traveling-kit might include: grooming tools such as combs or brushes for long-haired breeds; flea and tick collars which can be especially valuable where these disease-carrying bugs can make dogs sick or maybe even kill them; blankets and tarps for covering dog crates left in a vehicle or unheated out-buildings during cold weather; and plastic bags for picking up dog poop off motel lawns where you don’t want to wear out your welcome.

When traveling anywhere with your gun dog, do make a point to locate a local veterinarian in case of emergencies. Get his or her exact clinic or hospital address as well as home-phone and cell-phone numbers along with office hours.

What of all this stuff is absolutely essential? Dog crates, food and water, and emergency medical kits are all obviously at the top of the list. But, I’m not ready to be caught in the middle of a duck and pheasant hunt without a “de-skunking” kit. Though I usually have one with me wherever my dogs and I go, the one time I forgot the hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, all three of my dogs had an up-close and personal encounter with a black and white-striped field pussy along the edge of a cattail slough. Did driving 25 miles into the nearest town to pick up these de-skunking supplies ruin the day’s hunt? You can guess the answer.

I have pulled porky quills with my teeth once when a half dozen of the damned things were deeply stuck in a dog’s nose and I had no handy pliers or hemostat to more effectively and conveniently extract them. I now regard these as “essential tools” always to be carried in my pocket or in my hunting vest. The same “essential” answer applies to a light-weight leash which I didn’t have on one occasion when leading two rambunctious young German shorthairs across a busy highway. Using my pants belt as a makeshift lead worked okay until my pants started to fall down. Funny now in retrospect but not so amusing then with semi-trucks roaring by at 70 miles per hour.