$#@%^& Barb wire fences

[Lights]

Well I just got back from a short pheasent walk. My kids start playing with my golden. the oldest one yells dad Sunny's bleeding. Go and check her out and sure enough big old puncher wound in her leg.

If this is the way my pheasent season is going to go my vet is going to get rich off me.

Lights

[LABS4ME]

That stinks, not a great way to begin pheasant season...

I once had a buddy hold a young dog that I was working with when my older dog and I went into a corn field to try and pick up a cripple that got knocked down. Well she started sqirming and he figured he'd just let go of her... she tried to clear a brand new 4 strand fence and ended up hanging up on the top strand. She "pulled" herself off and in the process "peeled" off all the skin on her inner rear leg..... it was all hanging there when she caught up to me, looked like her pants were down around her ankles. 50 some stitches later and a hard lesson was learned. She never had another fence related issue. She'd either sneak under or clear them by timing it to push off the top strand with her paws.

It really stinks when you find old barbed wire on public land where you least expect it. Even worse found it in the woods once when grouse hunting... You don't really expect to find it there.

Good Luck!

Ken

[poutpro]

Had the same problem this weekend. It was my labs first pheasant hunt and he scared up a group of six and tore off after them not noticing the barbed wire fence that he ran right through. Luckily it only left a minor gash on his chest, but the rest of the day, he was weary of fences. I think he learned his lesson.

[BDR]

Thats a bummer. My GSP hit one real hard this weekend but fortunately no damage. It really sucks on some of the WPA's and WMA's that there is still wire in some very unlikely spots.

Maybe the DNR would allow removal on a voluteer basis. I may have to check into that. A couple days in the summer could have a lot of unsafe wire eliminated.

[mitch]

A couple years ago my dog ran into a barbed wire fence with her mouth open. It went right in her mouth. Luckily she just had a few minor scratches, could have been a lot worse.

[Lights]

Well the vet said no stitches. But it still cost me 56 bucks to hunt for one Hour. This was her first pheasent hunt ever. She did get up one rooster for me. I hope she learned something. My GSP has yet to learn about fences and she is 9 years old.

Hey Ken how is it going. Is Hunter Bowling this year? If so we will see you down there.

Mitch's Dad,

Lights

[Blaze]

Sunday afternoon in SD my Draht took after a low flying hen that was running in open dirt patch in front of him. He hit the wire goin' full bore. 16 stitches and $230 later, the vet says he'll be ready for action in 10-12 days.

This is the 3rd time in 6 years I've had run-ins with the wire, with 2 different dogs. I hate that dump.

Be smart and watch the changes in cover, field edges, ditches, etc. to save your 4-legged friend (and yourself) some pain and hassle.

Hunt safe,

Blaze

[LABS4ME]

Hey Lights, Doing pretty good... can't wait for the snow to fly, this work thing is way over rated! I think Hunter is going to bowl... See you there.

Also I recommend carrying a staple gun with to do a quick fix on your dog until you get to a vet. I couldn't find a vet who'd come in to work on my dog on a Sunday afternoon when the Vikings were playing. I didn't end up get her sutured till the next morning at my vet back home and he had a harder time due to the delay in getting it done. A doggy first aid kit will be used more than a couple times throughout your dogs life.

Good Luck!

Ken

[Hossienda]

I hear you on the fences. Duck Opener my lab went after a crippled goose that sailed into a field behind us. She came back with the goose, but we were off to the vet. A total of 22 stiches and 18 staples later, all 4 cuts were taken care of. Unfortunately, she did not hunt again till Pheasant Opener. The "emergency" visits to the on call vets are spendy.

-Hossienda

[311Hemi]

Labs...what kind of staple gun do you carry (I assume some sort of specific skin stapler?) and/or where would you recommend getting one?

[Eric Wettschreck]

I know this is gonna sound weird, but I duct taped my dog together last fall.

I couldn't get a vet on Sunday, and low and behold I had a roll of duct tape in the truck. Looked terrible but it worked.

[LABS4ME]

I got my original one from my vet... They will sell you one and show you how to use it. The next one I got in my first aid kit I bought from Cabela's. Pretty good kit! I always carry it in the truck when I have my dogs in the field. On a side note, would anybody be interested in a kit if I have my vet put them together? If there is enough interest in this I will post a price here and in the for sale section... I will have to talk to him about a price, just looking for rough numbers of guys who'd be interested. I paid I think around 50 dollars for the one in Cabelas.

Boilerguy, great minds think alike. That is how I held her skin up till the following morning, ugly as sin, but got her through the night, had to sleep next to her to keep her from licking/pulling it off.

Good Luck!

Ken

[LMITOUT]

Another GSP meets fence meets vet story here unfortunately.

First time out with my 9mo old last fall and she was just too excited. We had just left the truck and she had barreled out in front of us stretching her legs and then came right back only to find an old, one-wire fence/gate. She got hung up on her flank and then pulled off. Luckily it didn't tear all the way through and just got one side of the flap. Since this is only skin there was no blood loss, so after she shook it off she appeared to not even know it was there, so we continued on while I monitored her closely. For a 45lb female GSP not even one year old, she was one tough hombre!

There isn't a lot of barbed wire in this area of MN so she's not very accustomed to it, but when getting back to ND that's all you encounter and it's tough to keep the dog's ambition and drive in check. After that episode she's come to notice fenceposts and gets real cautious.

The posts here in this thread are a testament to the importance of the "whoa" command. Many train with the intention of only using "whoa" to keep the dog from flushing birds, but more importantly it should be used any time danger is around. When the command is executed properly the dog should stop in its tracks and not move a muscle, regardless if there are a half-dozen roosters or a medium-rare T-bone steak five feet in front of it's nose. This is also effective when in close proximity to heavily traveled roads. I'm well aware that it's hard to curb the enthusiasm and drive, but it's a very important command for the dog to know. Who knows, instead of flushing birds before you are ready, the whoa command could save your dogs life.

[mamohr686]

Last year I was hunting some public land for pheasants in MN with good success. I come home and start unloading and then notice my Vizsla has a chunk of skin hanging right on the inside of her elbow. I have no idea when this happened, and she never slowed down during the hunt. Usually if you don't suture a wound right away it's not worth it anyway, so I packed it with some antibiotic ointment. Next morning I see the wound draining and she won't stop licking it so I knew it was time for a vet visit. Of course it was infected and the DVM had to cut the wound and stitch it up. I come home with a nasty bill (the emergy weekend bill would've been about the same) and also an anti-biotic similar to augmentin used in people. About the second day my wife who was in charge of giving the drugs leaves them way back on our counter top. My vizsla somehow decides to climb up on the counter and eat the entire box foil and all. Later that day we find that there is blood in her stool and know that she has some internal bleeding from eating the sharp packaging. The x-ray was ugly and was put on 3 different medications, 2 to heal her stomach/intestines and another antibiotic to prevent another infection. When it was all done we had over $700 in bills and about 2 weeks out of our hunting season. Sometimes it's amazing how one vet trip leads to another, but I'm glad she is still happy and healthy. It's amazing how dogs become part of the family. Good luck this season and stay away from the barbed wire!

[CHUBBYDARTER]

Had the same thing happen to me this weekend. My 7 1/2 month old lab had a run in with a fence. 5 stitches and 111 bucks later. This was her first hunt. The wierd thing is, i didn't notice until we got back to the truck. What a trooper. She got 6 birds for us to. I would be interested in that kit you guys were talking about. Safe huntin' boys.

[R Buker]

I've encountered fences galore. In my prime, I've run as many as six and seven dogs together. Between dog fights and fences, I've experienced a lot of stitches and staples.

Toward the end, I learned to make sutures on my own. It's not difficult and can save both a hunting trip and several hundred dollars. I get a supply of anti biotics from my vet each year before hunting season. I carry my suture kit with me on each hunt. If my dog meets a fence, I can stitch them up and start them on Anti biotics. My entire stock, each year, costs about 35 bucks. It's saved me many times.

[fishnhooks]

Labs,

I would be interested in finding out more about that kit.

"hooks"

[Hossienda]

Labs,

I would also be interested in the kit.

-Hossienda

[Dbl]

Kit for me also.

[Harmonica Bear]

I'd be interested the kit as well.

HB

[Kodiak]

will it include suture?

[Mudflap]

Sutures interest me also....

My Setter got cut on Saturday and I Super Glued her cut shut and gauzed and taped her up. I thought I was so smart

I spent the saved Vet money on an Ipod.

I've come home the last three nights to her with the bandages ripped off and wound re-open.It seems like it is starting to get puffy around the wound also. Last night I did the routine again and added duct tape to the outside cover.The dog is starting to hate me also.

Anyone had any luck with Super Glue?

[kjgmh]

Ken,

I would be very interested in the first aid kit.

[311Hemi]

I would possibly be interested....would like to know price and content before giving a for sure.

[LABS4ME]

O.K. looks like we got some interest. I need to go to the vet next week and I will have him put together a list of what would be included and a price. Watch for it here and on the for sale forum...

Good Luck!

Ken