Thread: Brittany Spaniel

Some decades back my hunting mate used to bring his Brittany Spaniel when we hunted in the Kaimanawas and Kawekas. It hated possums and if it winded one it went for the kill 24/7.
It was a good pointer if it was onto a deer, just stood there and looked in the direction of the animal.
My mate shot and wounded a stag from our fly camp in the Hinemaia one roar. His methodology was to leave the animal to settle somewhere or other whilst he finished his brew then take the dog to sniff it out. Well the dog did sniff it out and put the animal up on its back legs while he ran around it yapping. I could hear the commotion from across the valley.
Anyhows, the stag escaped. When I got back it was raining with very heavy rain, I tried to track the animal downstream but we gave it away after a while as it was so miserable and cold and wet and went back to camp for a feed. A week or so later we were back and my mate and his spaniel found the animal just a bit further downstream.
He was one of our team of three. A character as well. One time flying into the hills my mate thought we were going to crash as it was a bit dodgy that day for flying. The dog sensed it and I saw him crouching on the floor of the plane looking worried sick. I just made sure I remembered where the axe was in case I needed to hack my way out if I survived the crash.
He didn't like getting out from under my mate's sleeping bag if it was a bit cold and the snow was banked up outside the hut door. But he was an asset as an extra set of ears, eyes and that acute sense of smell that dogs have.