11/08/2024
THE PACK
Most of you know my family and I are pro hunting, knowing the source of our food, which we are so lucky to have, I was also brought up like this with meat in all shapes and forms. For sometime during my teenage years we had and bred pig dogs.
To say they taught me a lot is an understatement.
It’s amazing seeing dogs from different litters merg to create one pack and work so in sync with each other is mind blowing. These dogs taught me a lot about pack mentality, which came in handy and made a lot more sense when I was working amongst a doggy daycare, as being surrounded with people who were more experienced in the area were able to teach me.
Our main dogs were Spook, Honk and Tig.
We were lucky enough to have a couple of beautiful litters from Spook and Tig. Spook being a mum was magical to watch. They were outside dogs with their own kennels, but Spook was a mum that needed a break, I would sneak her into my room so she could sleep in peace away from her babies and when she was ready she would return to them. Majority of my childhood was spent growing up rurally so we were able to have our own pigs, as the pups got older you could find Spook taking the pups down to the pig pen to teach them what it was all about, what their future held, through the fence. When they were old enough and the time was right the pups would disperse to their new homes where they were loved and owners were pleased with their work.
During this time we were living in Rerewhakaaitu, it sits snuggly under Mt Tarawera. There is where the heart of my mums family beats, as my granddad settled there, bringing up 6 kids who then at some point in their lives raised their children on land in that community. On the mountain and surrounding forestry there was / is plenty of pests that could feed both yourself and your dogs, but the risk of losing a dog is high, most are found where they make their way out or a fellow hunter comes across them while out and about. Tig went missing one day, he caught wind of a scent and he was off. The girls came back but unfortunately he didn’t. My mums partner at the time spent a great deal of time out looking for him but it came time to call it a night. He put out a swandri at the main entrance, so if Tig remembered the way out he would come across it and either camp there the night or know he was on the right track. We found him the next morning on the jumper.
Honk was Tigs mum and these two taught me a lot about grief for dogs. During an unfortunate event Honk was run over, watching Tig grieve for his mum is something I will never forget. He crawled under the truck and refused to leave, he wouldn’t even come out for food. He mourned for his mum just like us and the same way we do for our loved ones.
Sometimes it’s forgotten that dogs were once pack animals, big or small, even the Maltese can show tendencies of their long blood lines where they were once undomesticated. Some breeds and lifestyles bring them out more than others. I’m truely blessed to have seen it both in working packs and also in a controlled environment like a doggy daycare.
These are just a couple of my most memorable times with these dogs. They will always hold a special place in my heart ♥️
