When to feed?

[hog bit]

A good buddy keeps telling me that a dog will hunt better if he hasn't been fed for 12-24 hours before hunting.   I mostly feed in the evening and hunt at night.  If I plan on hunting I just feed when I get home.

How do ya'll feel about feeding time in relation to going hunting?  If I plan on a morning hunt should I feed early the evening before?

Thanks,
David

[JDJP]

I feed in he morning, I wouldn't feed them right before going hunting not a normal serving anyway.

[bignasty]

i hunt atleast 5 days a week mostly at night.feed in the am- hunt at night then feed the dogs i hunted 1/2 a meal when we get home and keep lots of water in front of them.

[Reuben]

I know of some hunters that believe that Dogs will hunt better if hungry because it will make them hunt better. There might be some truth to this. This really makes sense with the predators in the wild. But the predators will eat what they hunt. On the flip side dogs will hunt for hogs but will not eat them in the field. So, I feed my dogs about 1/3 ration several hours before the hunt. This is so that they can have a small amount of hunger yet have enough energy to hunt. I feed them the regular ration after the hunt.

If the dog is a large dog with a barrel chest the dog needs to have a small ration before the hunt and then needs to be rested before feeding after the hunt due to these type of dogs getting bloat.

[de_moon]

i do not feel that my dogs will hunt harder if they are hungry.  I feel that my dogs will hunt hard, because they WANT to hunt and want to catch hogs for me.  I feed in the afternoon.  If I am going hunting that night, I wait until I get home to feed.  I do not want my dogs HUNGRY while hunting, but I do not want them hunting on a full stomach.  This is especially critical during the summer months.  I feel a dog is much more likely to overheat on a full stomach than he is on an empty stomach.

[Outback Catahoulas Austra]

yep, pretty much the same here. It is very hot & humid all year round here.
My dogs are fed once a day in the evening - When hunting at night they get 1/4 of there normal ration at least 4 hrs prior. Then a top up when home.
While camping out for a few days they get 1/2 normal serve at night after hunt!
I too believe they need the energy to hunt....Bit like us not eating for the day then going on a marathon....

[Reuben]

From what I have read a dog that is on a normal diet will not feel hunger for at least 24 hrs. Hard hunting and colder weather changes the amount of food the dog needs.

[hillbilly]

I feed in the evening. If hunting at night after I get home.
Was told not to feed dogs before going hunting that it could make it easier to bust a gut if hit by a hog. which made sence to me.

[sfboarbuster]

Think about it, after you eat a big meal you are gonna be tired and not feel like doing much. I think its the same way with dogs.

I feed in the morning since I normally hunt at night, and don't have to mess with the dogs at 3 in the morning when i'm ready to hit the sack.

[DangerZone]

haven't tried hunting the dogs hungry.... but i feed small feedings twice a day very close to 12 hours apart ...reguardless if i'm hunting or not..  I feel the the small feedings keep the dogs leaner and the stool drier and easier to clean....but it could be just what my dogs are use too..

[hog bit]

Ya'll have definately taught me a few things and reaffirmed some of my beliefs.  I would rather feed in the morning, but my schedule just doesn't allow it right now. 

[So Oklahoma Cur Dogs]

I feed atleast once a day usually evenings and like to give a hand full before a hunt for the energy boost if they haven't eaten all day. I wouldn't want to go hunting on a empty stomach or after a big meal either. Just figure dogs are the same.