What is a Layser Hound?

Born of necessity, at a time when hound hunting was not only a sport but profession that was charged with the management of wildlife, protection of livestock and defense of human safety; Layser hounds and their foundation blood lines have answered the call for generations. A true working hound for the tracking of large predators for all purposes, in all conditions, when success means more than a job well done; professionals have relied on the physical performance, cold nose, honesty and courage of the Layser Hound. While giving credit where due to those that came before us, we have continued to breed and improve the qualities that make our hounds the choice of elite professionals.

There seems to be a number of ideas out there about our hounds, what they are and what they are capable of. In fact, this is largely the reason this website has been built. We appreciate the interest and wish to allow those that would seek to learn more, the opportunity to do so from the source kennel and the people that operate it. Rather than from rumors, theories or from someone who says "Yeah I hunted with one once" or "yes my dogs have some Layser dog in them".

So what is a Layser Hound? The origins of this line of dogs, as stated, can be very simply traced back to the hounds of Jim Dewer in British Columbia as well as the Lee brothers and Slash Ranch dogs of Arizona in the 1940s and 1950s. With that said, the base breeds that have contributed both from the beginning and along the way include Redbone, Black and Tan, Bluetick and Bloodhound. To date there is no Walker, Plott or Majestic hound included. Over the years we have seen authentic registration papers signed by different association's officials trying to lay claim to the breeding pedigree of a hound that was born in our kennels. Although not uncommon, it does get tiresome.

To explain what our hounds are, it helps to understand WHY they are the way they are. These hounds were developed from a time when not only did GPS tracking collars not exist, but no tracking collars existed. A time when a houndsman was a man with a pair of boots, maybe a horse or snow shoes, a rifle and a pack of hounds that could be handled by a single handler. A time when those that were trying to develop a line of hunting hounds did not have the various opinions that exist today of what a good hound should be. Instead, had only the examples to follow of getting the job done by the dogs that were successful in all climates and conditions with the nose to take the coldest tracks and the voice loud enough to push the worst predators (both cats and bears) and reach the houndsman who was following by ear. With only nature to look to for guidance physically; their only example to follow was a wolf. Designed for and utilized on all of the various species of predators including lynx, bobcat, cougar, jaguar, Black Bear and Grizzly Bear.

So the result is:

A hound that is taller than the average today with long legs and a deep chest
A deep chest, but a narrow chest for mobility while maintaining the necessary lung capacity and an overall larger frame with a proportioned length of body that is capable of covering the miles
A hound with wolf type feet
A traditional hound appearance: large head, long low set ears and a long muzzle to support an advanced sense of smell.
Superior tracking ability
Males average approx. 90-110 lbs.
Females average approx. 60-80 lbs.

Note the physical build

Why a wolf?

No predator or other animal in North America can compete with a wolf. As individuals no animal can travel as far as fast and as consistently over every type of terrain as a wolf. As a pack, no other animal can compete for territory, food or power. If a pack of wolves wants to eat a Grizzly Bear they can. If they want to push any predator off of it's kill they can. The only threat to a pack of wolves is a larger pack of wolves. So why not have a tracking hound with similar physical traits allowing for as much performance on the ground as possible, the ability to work as a pack in order to do so but with excessively large voices that wolves cannot compete with.

Temperament and Voice

With a basic framework for guidance physically, the mentality and handling of the dogs had to be developed to cater to the working professional. Originating from a time when a hound hunter spent the vast majority of their time on foot or saddle (as some still do today) the Layser Hound was developed to be an easier handling dog than most of today's hounds. Walking a ridge or a cut line with a pack of hounds healed in at your feet today is a small reward compared to those that would spend a week on snowshoes with the same pack heeled in as they went years ago. Easy handling, mild manners and being broke from off game were important features in working dogs. A man would typically work alone with a pack of dogs and could not rely on leashes to maintain control of the dogs while covering the amount of country required.

Created from a time when tracking collars were only an idea, the true working hounds had to have a voice that would carry across the land to the hunter so that while hunting on bare ground he was able to locate the dogs, as well as be able to tell what was going on based on the voice of the hound. Few hunters today recognize the importance of the voice in a working hound. Though the need for the voice to locate the hounds is important, it takes second place to the role that the voice plays when dealing with difficult large cats and bears; but also in regions with wolves.

Our hounds have been utilized in regions of British Columbia with the highest density wolf populations and although packs of wolves have been observed following the hounds (in one case two different packs within the same day) we have never lost a dog to wolves. The closest wolves have come has been within 100 yards of the where the hounds had a cougar treed for 4-5 hours; spread out in a semicircle, the wolves would not commit to a conflict with the hounds.

The hounds of the past needed a cold nose to do the work, size to cover the ground (be it in snow, dust or rock) a voice to stay alive and keep the hunter informed, and a temperament that made for easy handling. These traits continue to be maintained. A large loud voiced, mild mannered dog that takes a light hand to manage while working, but that has the heart to push hard on a scent trail and catches the predator in all conditions for the working professional; these hounds were built to work where others do not.

What makes them Different?

So what's different about Layser Hounds? Simply put, they are larger than the average hound today, they are mild mannered, are easier to handle than most and possess superior tracking and predator catching abilities. They have a nose for taking cold tracks on bare ground and in poor tracking conditions, yet move a good track with speed in order to cover the ground. This is due to the fact that the origin and continued purpose for the blood lines has been to respond to problem wildlife situations where catching the offending predator is paramount. These dog were developed since the 1940s and continue today in order to respond to all calls ranging from livestock and pet predation (including the killing of other types of cougar hounds) to responding to several people killed or mauled between the 1940s and 1990s without fail.

Layser's Kennel & Contracting has never lost a hound to wolves, cougar or bear. They will fight like a pack of wolves if a predator forces them to, yet are not dog aggressive and live without conflict with each other.

Our expectations of a Layser Hound

The following is the basic outline of standards that we expect from our hounds including what can be expected of our hounds by clients.

Layser Hounds are larger hounds than today's average. We typically hunt our hounds until the ages of 10-11 years old and then consider them retired to a lifestyle with less work. The average life expectancy is up to 13 years.

Pups:

Pups are weaned at 7 weeks of age
All pups are to trail and tree between 12 to 14 weeks of age (approx. 3 months old) on a cougar hide drag
Pups out of proven crosses are sold from the ages of 7 weeks, however will only be sold to repeat and/or highly experienced clients.

Started Dogs:

Typically between the ages of 10 months to 1 ½ years of age.
Have hunted and treed between 2-4 cougar and/or bear depending on the clients request.
A client that receives a started dog can expect to familiarize the dog with its new surroundings, owner, other dogs etc. At that point they can expect to take their Layser Hound out, put it on a track of a cougar or bear (as ordered) and expect that predator to be captured. The difference between a started dog and a finished dog will simply be the level of experience over all and the need to work the dog on old difficult tracking conditions simply to develop the tracking ability to its full potential.

Finished Dogs:

Approx. 1 ½ -3 years old
Have successfully hunted numerous cougar on both bare ground and snow, typically from -25 C (-13F) to +35 C (95F) in response to livestock and pet losses in all environments, including rural developments and backcountry conditions ranging from the west coast rainforest to Arizona and New Mexico.

Provided photo of Layser Hounds in Arizona.

Please note that we are not here to tell anyone what type of hunting hound is best for them. Opinions like this will vary greatly based on individual needs and points of view. Including the fact that the average hunter does not require a hound of this caliber when considering their needs and wants when hunting their region. With that said, the following is a discussion of what characteristics we prefer in our line of dogs.

During the era that the Layser Hounds were developed it was determined that there is more than one reason to have a hound that will readily "open" or bark when it has scent. In the past it was a necessity to have a hound that would open when it has scent, on even the oldest tracks, in order for the handler to maintain a location on the dogs, to keep up with them when hunting on bare ground, to let the handler know what is going on (i.e. Cold trailing, jumped, bayed up or treed) and most importantly to keep the dogs alive. These remain among the top priorities today. Many hound hunters today don't feel that the hounds’ voice is as crucial as we believe it is, in the capture of predators.

At Layser's Kennel if a dog is cold trailing an old track it is fine to have it stay right on the track. However, as soon as that track begins to freshen up we prefer our hounds to run with their head up and their nose in the scent in order to gain ground and catch up to the predator. In cases with snow where it’s easy to see, we often have a cougar track without a dog track on it for lengths of hundreds of yards, while off to the side where the scent settled there is a swath of dog tracks running with their noses in the scent, not going from foot print to foot print. While working old tracks Layser Hounds will open (bark) when they have scent and will not open without scent.

When it comes to treeing the cat or bear the hounds have to locate and tree by scent first and by vision if possible. The objective of the work is to capture the animal, typically by having it climb a tree. Once in the tree the prey can feel safe and therefore be more inclined to stay treed. The hounds at the bottom of the tree are safe and the situation can remain that way. We would rather a dog tree with a large, loud and long voice for as many hours as is necessary. In rare cases this has been days. These dogs do not climb the tree where there is a risk of injury or possibility of jumping the predator out. In most cases, if the prey is not visible our hounds will be found approximately 5-10 feet back from the tree, sitting in the down draft of the scent.

Ground work and "Bay up" - In cases where a cat or bear is not inclined to flee or tree we want a pack of hounds that will hold a predator at bay without initiating a fight. If and when the cougar or bear happens to get a hold of one of the dogs, then obviously every dog should take its own piece in the fight in order that they all go unscathed.

On a daily basis we feed as many as twenty or more hounds in one trough without a fight or a growl. We feed raw meat and bones to all the dogs at the same time with no growling or fighting; yet still catch the game that these dogs do, from large bears to livestock and dog killing cougar.

Moreover Layser Hounds have been developed to respond to calls of conflict with cougar in and around populated areas and at times even schools. If at any point a pack of hounds comes in contact with people they must not only be well socialized but friendly to even the youngest of children.

These hounds have been successfully called upon to track and capture cougar in conditions where other dogs have failed. While responding to a location of an attack where a domestic sheep or other pet, a guardian dog, or even a child has been attacked, the authorities and family members have no tolerance for excuses that there was too much pollen, too much sheep lanolin, it was too hot or too cold of weather in order for the hounds to work. Often a day or two after the attack these hounds have had to respond by vehicle, boat, plane and helicopter in order to reach more remote areas.

Late 1940s early 1950s

2021

Approximately 1979

2020