Thread: Kaimanawa Forest Park.

Post from NZ hunters FB PAGE

Sika Hunters 🦌
There have been several reports of two uncontrolled dogs in the Kaimanawa Forest Park.
It’s believed they could be lost hunting dogs and pose a significant risk to wildlife as they can kill quickly and travel vast distances in a day. It is conceivable that they can travel to the eastern side, so Kaweka hunters keep an eye out too.
One of the dogs is a black & white heading dog & the other a light sandy/tan terrier-built dog. Neither have collars. They have been sighted chasing deer and many dead deer have been reported.
Sightings have been around the Cascade/Boyd/Upper Oamaru area, with most recently dead deer in the Kaipo.
Within these catchments the Sika Foundation maintain an extensive trapping network to protect vulnerable threatened species such as Whio (Blue Duck).
The Department of Conservation, Helisika and Sika Foundation have been working closely to try and obtain these dogs and currently have live capture traps out at the last known sighting but they need your help.
If you are out hunting in the Kaimanawa or surrounds and spot any dead deer, see dogs, or if you hear dogs barking in the area, please report it as soon as you can.
If you see the dogs, if possible please get,
- GPS coordinates of location/photos
- Details of the dogs including colour/sex
- GPS coordinates/photos of any deceased deer
The contact details are turangi@doc.govt.nz or phone 027 483 1368.
Photo attached is a live capture trap at the last known sighting, upper Oamaru flats.

Someone needs to blast them, they will be tearing through there killing for fun. Few guys dog deer in the Boyd so probably got lost up there and left behind.

Originally Posted by superdiver

Someone needs to blast them, they will be tearing through there killing for fun. Few guys dog deer in the Boyd so probably got lost up there and left behind.

You'll probably find that pretty much all of the people that dog deer in the Kaimanawa and Kaweka areas wouldn't go near the bush without tracking gear. Especially people prepared to go that far. Deer often run further than pigs and you simply wouldn't find your dogs without tracking gear. These dogs have no collars as stated above.

They’d be pig dogs from Lake Taupo Forest.

Yeah that's a big call saying they are "deer dogs". Most deer dogs are trained to stay within 10-20m of their owners, and definitely not bolt after deer. I guess there are some that use dogs to chase deer down, so it's feasible. I was down there about two months ago and a guy from Helisika kindly drove me and the pup from the stone gate literally to the fence line. He said there were two pig dogs that had made their way down from Taupo and to shoot them if I saw them. A bit uncomfortable with this - but strange that neither would have a collar on? My two other mates that use their dogs deer hunting use collars, mine's got a garmin e-collar on. He did mention a black and white dog.

A few mates were in the Kaipo a week ago and found four dead deer with no obvious wound marks, and found one other a trip a few weeks prior. They met some other hunters that had found 8. Not good. Not good.

I have never hunted here but its going to be hard work getting the dogs. Its all good saying just shoot them but they will be getting pretty cunning by now. You are only going get a split second to shoot, so in that second you have to decide if there is a hunter 10m behind that dog.
poison or trapping.
if using poison you want a quick kill like cyanide so you know you have killed it.
I know in the Motu years ago the run big shark hooks with meat on them on a trap line along the bush edge of a farm trying to catch some wild dogs Some were shoot and the last was caught on the hook, pretty horrible death but these were killing stock

Originally Posted by Snoppernator

Yeah that's a big call saying they are "deer dogs". Most deer dogs are trained to stay within 10-20m of their owners, and definitely not bolt after deer. I guess there are some that use dogs to chase deer down, so it's feasible. I was down there about two months ago and a guy from Helisika kindly drove me and the pup from the stone gate literally to the fence line. He said there were two pig dogs that had made their way down from Taupo and to shoot them if I saw them. A bit uncomfortable with this - but strange that neither would have a collar on? My two other mates that use their dogs deer hunting use collars, mine's got a garmin e-collar on. He did mention a black and white dog.

A few mates were in the Kaipo a week ago and found four dead deer with no obvious wound marks, and found one other a trip a few weeks prior. They met some other hunters that had found 8. Not good. Not good.

There are plenty of deer dogs that aren't used as indicators. Seen a few people online that go to the Boyd with greyhound crosses and dog plenty of sika.
Hadn't thought of pig dogs from lake taupo forest but that would make sense. Let's hope they aren't capable of breeding

Originally Posted by Snoppernator

A few mates were in the Kaipo a week ago and found four dead deer with no obvious wound marks, and found one other a trip a few weeks prior. They met some other hunters that had found 8. Not good. Not good.

What does that suggest?

Originally Posted by Maxx

What does that suggest?

Can be stress from an altercation or being chased relentlessly

Originally Posted by Maxx

What does that suggest?

Yeh, Its a thing, seen it frequently in other forest parks, dead deer with little physical damage, deer are very anxious animals and there hearts just give out from the stress of constant harassment.
Feral dogs in the bush aren't like a pack of wolves pulling an animal down and ripping them apart.

Sort of like a domestic cat play with a mouse, and once its dead they just move on, not even interested in feeding.

Originally Posted by Snoppernator

Yeah that's a big call saying they are "deer dogs". Most deer dogs are trained to stay within 10-20m of their owners, and definitely not bolt after deer. I guess there are some that use dogs to chase deer down, so it's feasible. I was down there about two months ago and a guy from Helisika kindly drove me and the pup from the stone gate literally to the fence line. He said there were two pig dogs that had made their way down from Taupo and to shoot them if I saw them. A bit uncomfortable with this - but strange that neither would have a collar on? My two other mates that use their dogs deer hunting use collars, mine's got a garmin e-collar on. He did mention a black and white dog.

A few mates were in the Kaipo a week ago and found four dead deer with no obvious wound marks, and found one other a trip a few weeks prior. They met some other hunters that had found 8. Not good. Not good.

Why's it's strange for deer dogs not to have collars on for. On my dogs I don't run collars if I need tie then up iv got rope in pack but been indicatoring dogs they always close. Are yours dogs used for indicatoring & are you running the Garmin e-collar on then when hunting

Ah Mate that's am opinion of mine based on the guys I know that run indicating dogs. Just that. Yup mine is an indicating dog. Use an ecollar as he is a family pet so wanted the security. Not really needed for control but the occasional vibration helps if he's out of sight just in front

They are bloody tough to hunt and go feral surprisingly quick. We had one terrorising the back of our farm for many months, many years ago. He would become aware of us from a good 200 meters and start growling and barking before disappearing. We worked out that He had a territory up on a limestone ridge and one day when conditions were perfect my old man told me to "go kill that bloody dog!" It had just stopped raining and was a bit windy with wind blowing from bush out to farm. I got really lucky and picked up his prints straight away and over the next 4 hours worked my way a K along the ridge, where I got ultra lucky and unknowingly cornered him against a limestone bluff. It was too this day one of the most exciting hunts I have done as for 20 minutes he growled at me from less than 40 meters and I could not see him as I inched forward. Finally I spotted him in the fern at about 15 meters and got him and received a dose of the shakes afterwards.

I was hunting in kaimanawa Rd Thursday to Saturday.
I bumped into a family coming down the track Thursday afternoon who had been doing a family tramp/hunt, the Father mentioned finding some whole dead deer which he thought was unusual. I didn't think anything of it really until Friday night when my Wife messaged me the Doc update about the feral dogs.
I didn't hear any dogs or find any unusual dead deer myself but I didn't go very far. Just the two sika I shot.

if they are DOGS.... a bitch in heat may bring them out..but if they are bitches...will be hard job to bring them in,lets hope they arent in pup.