The purposes of a diary are many. Some use it to record personal reflections, a place where it is safe to express ourselves without intrusion. Others manage their schedules, bills, meetings and appointments. For some it’s a tool to build knowledge and improve success in the pursuit of chosen pastimes like hunting and fishing.
My situation is a commercial need. As a beef producer, the protection of newborn calves is an economic necessity. Losing calves to feral dogs has a resultant economic and emotional impact (a dismembered newborn calf is confronting). With a reluctance to utilise indiscriminate baiting techniques, I had to get better at controlling the local population.
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The first half of 2023 would best be described as a series of classic bloopers punctuated by near misses — “nearly got a shot today” or “15 minutes earlier!”
Re-evaluating, it became apparent that it wasn’t bad luck but bad preparation and planning. Thereafter, I collated each experience or encounter with wild dogs into an electronic diary, detailing the nature of the encounter, location, date, time, moon phase, weather conditions and outcome. Most importantly, I recorded my actions, either right or wrong. An encounter was anything from tracks and scat to sightings (including trail cam footage). Thus I built a resource of local dog movements, regular pathways, favoured hunting times etc.
Blooper-worthy examples of less than perfect technique included seeing a dog dragging a calf towards the rainforest, but on aiming the target was an indistinguishable blur due to moisture from the damp and foggy conditions. Diary: Keep scope cover on in these conditions. Or the time I arrived ‘early’ at a recent kill to sit and wait, and thinking I’ll inspect the carcass while leaving my rifle at the stand, only to meet a dog halfway. Diary: Always expect a dog when you least expect it. Do not repeat!
July 2023. Score: me, 0; dogs, 4 calves. Change of strategy needed. Fortunately, by year’s end: me, 9, dogs, 5.
Following this morning’s walk: Dear Dog Diary, tracks on newly slashed track. Suspect due to ‘wet’ season and high grass, young dog patrolling for prey. Overcast, no moonlight, best hunt time: early morning/late evening. Use wounded rabbit sound on caller?
— Scott McCahon
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