Something to howl about
Newly-formed Uniontown Beagle Club revives sport of beagling locally A sport many local individuals actively participated in for years that has been in rapid decline over the past two decades to the point where it was almost non-existent is field trial beagling.
Old hound men became frustrated with the politics and judging standards of the old sport, which led to its decline and eventually, the disappearance of most area beagle clubs.
However, the sport received a new breath of life several years back when clubs began switching from the time-worn American Kennel Club brace trial standards to new rules and procedures that favored gun-type dogs that kept a rabbit moving in the manner the dogs were originally bred for.
Gun dog pack trials came to the area a few years back with a trial here and there, but the sport really became entrenched in this area last spring when Larry Russman of Uniontown and a handful of other rabbit hunting enthusiasts moved to organize local rabbit hunters and beagle fanciers.
The end result was a club now known as the Uniontown Beagle Club.
It all began last April when the group applied for and was granted a charter by the American Rabbit Hunters Association.
Under ARHA rules dogs can be run under progressive pack, gun dog pack and little pack standards.
Other area ARHA affiliated clubs include Turkeyfoot in Confluence, Dark Shade at Stoystown, the Western Maryland Gun Dog Association and the Eastern Panhandle Beagle Club.
The local club runs it trials under little pack rules, which pit groups of five hounds against one another.
Any hound under 15-inches high at the shoulder is eligible regardless of sex, unlike the old brace trials, where hounds were judges by size and sex.
Hounds do not have to be AKC registered, but all must be ARHA registered, which can be done the day of a trial.
Rules of the hunt favor a faster, gun dog type of hound.
Amend Gun Club has graciously hosted the new club since its inception.
All field trials originate at Amend, but during field trials, packs are run on the Amend club grounds and on public and donated private properties.
Dogs are drawn in casts of five hounds. Four casts are usually drawn for most trials.
The dogs are released and most chases last about an hour after which the judges score the hounds from first to fifth.
Back at the clubhouse, the top dogs from each pack are matched head-to-head to decide the first four places. The remaining places are picked from the other casts, and a total of 10 trophies awarded.
The club held a series of field trials its first year, including club trials, fun trials and youth hunts.
The season culminated with the inaugural sanctioned hunt on Dec. 16, which drew 38 entries.
Russman said, “The sanctioned trial was very successful. Guys were really excited about the number of rabbits we had.
Our problem is landowners. We just can’t persuade enough of them to allow us to use their property. We were running next to some posted property and a woman came down and said, ‘No hunting.’ I tried to explain to her that we were just training dogs and we had no firearms.”
Youth hunts are one of the most popular activities of the club.
In a youth hunt youngsters do all the dog handling afield.
Youngsters do not have to own a beagle, nor does any member of his family have to own one in order for him to participate.
All a youngster has to do is show up for the youth hunt and make his intentions known by signing up.
If they do not have a dog to handle, one of the members will offer one of his hounds for the day.
“No kid will be without a dog,” Russman said. “If they don’t have a dog, we have a dog for them.”
Russman explained that the parent or whomever accompanied the youngster to the trail stays back and allows the youngster to do all the handling. “The only time they (adults) get involved is if the youngster has a problem handling a dog, such as catching it or getting it off another trail such as a cat or deer. Then the adults back off again. The kids love it.
“On the biggest youth hunt we had, we had 15 youngsters in one day. We invite area Boy Scout and Cub Scout troops to come out and participate.”
Russman said that you would even be surprised to see how many youngsters come out and participate even in open trails. He counted 16 actively taking part at this year’s sectioned trial, which drew beaglers from the Pittsburgh area and as far away as Ohio and New Jersey.
“I was amazed at how many kids were involved in the sanctioned trial,” Russman said. “And some kids even handled dogs at the sanctioned trial.”
Russman said he couldn’t thank Amend Gun Club enough for the support it gave the club during its infancy.
During the trials, breakfast and lunch were served at the clubhouse.
At the present time, 32 members have paid their dues for 2008, but Russman stressed, “Right now I need property – land to hunt on. We need more property owners to come forward and offer us land to hunt on.”
The club can also help urban property owners with their nuisance rabbit problems by trapping their pesky bunnies and relocating them to more suitable habitat in the wild.
Property owners with rabbit problems can feel free to contact Russman to discuss the problem.
Russman noted that the ARHA “is not about hunting. It’s about running the dogs. But we have hunters and non-hunters in the club, so it serves both communities.
“Our hunts are growing in popularity, and they are now talking about Uniontown Beagle Club all over the eastern United States.
“I’m especially enthusiastic by the response we’ve gotten from the kids. I thought we would have a guy’s sport with a lot of old fellows. Many of the participants are much younger than I thought they would be, and there are even single mothers who bring their children.”
One thing about the youth hunts is that no youngster goes home empty handed as each participant is awarded a ribbon.
ARHA honors go beyond the local competition as dogs earn points in sanctioned trials that can lead to Hound of The Year honors.
There is also a World Hunt in Indiana each March, where a national champion is crowned.
Another tradition revived by the ARHA is the bench trail, where hounds are judged on breed standards.
Some hounds can also become ARHA bench and field champions. Bench trials are judged by certified breed inspectors.
In order to compete in the bench show, all dogs over one year old must also compete in the field. However, dogs under one year old are eligible to participate in the bench show without competing in the field.
The purpose of the bench show is to try to preserve the quality of the beagle. In the bench show, awards are give to the best male, female and puppy. Then one is declared the overall winner.
The club is always looking for new members.
Russman welcomes calls from interested hunters, old beaglers, property owners and parents who have youngsters who may want to get involved in the sport.
He can be reached at 724-439-9083.