Treeing is a method of
hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
where
dog
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...
s are used to force animals that naturally climb up into trees, where they can be assessed or shot by hunters. The idiomatic phrase "''
Barking up the wrong tree''" comes from this practice.
Description
The treeing technique uses
dog
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...
s to force naturally climbing animals into trees, where they can be assessed or shot by
hunter
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
s. Treeing enables hunters to see the quarry and decide if the prey should be killed, and if so with a cleaner kill, or spared.
For example, females with youths may be left untouched,
or quarry may be observed or tagged for research.
Use
Hunting
Particularly used with
coonhunting, treeing dogs are selected for the instinct to not cease barking at an animal after it has escaped into a tree.
This method of hunting is also used for
cougar
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...
and
black bear
Black bear or Blackbear may refer to:
Animals
* American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species
* Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species
Music
* Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...
.
The dogs are trained to
bay, not directly attack the quarry; however, it is not unheard of for the quarry to kill some of the dogs or for the dogs to kill the quarry. Usually, the quarry will climb a tree to escape the dogs after a period of chase and harassment.
Blackmouth Cur
The Black Mouth Cur, also known as the Southern Cur, Southern Black Mouth Cur and the Yellow Black Mouth Cur, is a medium to large sized Dog breed, breed of Cur#American curs, cur-type dog from the United States. Originating in the south of the co ...
use this method. Traditionally, the dogs were followed on foot by hunters listening to their barks, although some hunters now use
radio direction finding
Direction finding (DF), or radio direction finding (RDF), isin accordance with International Telecommunication Union (ITU)defined as radio location that uses the reception of radio waves to determine the direction in which a radio station ...
equipment to follow the pack.
Research
Treeing is also sometimes performed without the intention of killing the quarry for scientific purposes (such as
radio-tagging) or recreational purposes. It is especially useful for cougars, which are notoriously stealthy and difficult to capture without the aid of dogs.
Law
Treeing is illegal in several US states, including:
* Oregon
* Washington State
* New Mexico
* Montana
* California, since January 1st 2013, Governor
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...
signed a bill banning hunting of bears,
bobcat
The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...
s with hound.
Natural spaces law enforcement officers urged hunters or outdoor enthusiasts to call police and report any suspicious activity they witness.
References
See also
{{Wiktionary, left=yes
Hunting dogs
*
Hunting methods
Dog training and behavior