HUNTING TACTIC OF THE CRETAN TRACER
(texts translated in english by: Tsagaraki Athanasia
Greek Public School English teacher Graduate of the English Department of the Aristotle University -Thessaloniki)
The Cretan tracer is a primitive breed with the morphology of a hound that has maintained not only the same external characteristics but also the same character and tactic in hunting. Undoubtedly, we are talking about a tracer, and this occurs not only from its current condition, but also from the testimonies of archaeological discoveries which present it chasing the Chamois (wild goat), as well as from the prompt made by Xenofondas to use it in hunting the wild boar. Of course, what matters is: how the Cretan Tracer hunts today, which its tactic is, which its capabilities are and which its most suitable use is nowadays. These questions occur naturally, as we are, in fact, referring to a new breed whose tactic we do not know of. Moreover, we are aware of the current tracing breeds that have been created “on order”, except for the Greek hound dog, and that all of which, more or less, have the same characteristics at work, so it is difficult for us to comprehend how can a dog with a morphology that does not have any relation with that of the common tracers, is able to trace.
According to my opinion, the Cretan Tracer is a breed of dog that must have been a tracer during ancient times as well, and I say this because I can't imagine how ancient Cretan people would use such a pure coursing hound with success in Crete, in order to hunt - I wonder what? Crete is craggy nowadays and was at that time as well. Hence, I consider as absolutely reasonable Dr St. Mpasoyrakos’statement that the imports of dogs could have included hound dogs but also primitive small-sized hunting hounds and perhaps these two dogs produced the current type of the Cretan Tracer.
What is certain is that after 4 thousand years and more, the Cretan Tracer has completely adapted in the conditions of Crete and this, in my opinion, is what kept the dog as it is up to our days. Its hunting virtues and its use in hunting proved very effective and made it an inseparable companion not only for the hunters but for all Cretan people, even women who would always take the dog to the fields as a companion and guardian. It could always provide food for its owners when capturing prey - many times all by itself. There are many reports of dogs which would go to the mountain alone and return home with a hare in the mouth in order to deliver it to their owner. These reports have nowadays given the wrong impression to many people that it is a hare hound because it can capture the hare, ignoring however that, because of the harsh Cretan terrain, the hare can be arrested but first it must be spotted and this presupposes tracing.
Its existence until today is owned to cattle-breeders but also to villagers in the remote regions of Crete who contributed a lot so as to preserve the breed up to our days. And here we must emphasize the fact that the cattle-breeders that kept it would not use it for herding but for hunting and guarding. Its tendency to protect its space and its master’s possessions rendered it essential for the cattle-breeders as with its insistent barking it would notify for the presence of intruders or thieves any hour of the day and night. Additionally, the dogs that belonged to the cattle-breeders were (and still are) the best hounds, and selling them would bring income and would also help make acquaintances with people who lived in the cities. This tactic (breeding and selling dogs to wealthy hunters for reasons of hunting) continues up to our day, and has led to the expensive price of a good Cretan Tracer (reaching even 5-7.000 Euros). It is, however, a serious motive for the cattle-breeders to continue breeding tens of dogs. This is one more element for the hunting virtues of our dog.
How does the Cretan Tracer behave in hunting? Its tactics are two. The first one is what we call in Crete “Anemistos” (using the wind – sensing the air). The second tactic is tracking- tracing.
The first hunting tactic by the wind (“Anemistos”) is practiced by all dogs and it is owed to the adaptation of our dog in the dry and warm environment that it was forced to live in. In fact, it is performed by the tracing dog because it senses that there is a prey somewhere around it but cannot spot it due to the lack of traces on the dry rocks as well as the high temperatures. There are many dogs that use this tactic (provided that they have learned it at an early age) through the whole of their life. Other dogs use it while tracing but only when they lose the traces of their prey. In both cases, the dog senses the air near the spot where the hare is supposed to be found, so as to locate it by the remnants of the scent that it leaves the moment it makes the slightest movement in the bush where it hides. This is a spectacular tactic which allows the hunter and the dog to chase at midday or in the afternoon and to be successful.
This research “anemista” is done by the dog with great attention and assiduity. At first, it gives the impression that it wonders aimlessly, smelling the fallen branches of trees, the passages, wagging its tail or not, walking in small circles, returning to the same spots, going in and out of the bushes giving the impression that it is looking for something not particular. In this case, research does not last for long because the dog does not delay by any means on the path that the hare passed through but it directly moves towards the dense vegetation and if the dog is experienced it goes straight to the hare’s nest remembering the points where it had previously sensed it. During this research it is silent and careful, stopping at times and checking the space by sight and smell. If something troubles the dog we hear it groaning (not barking) something like a complaint and it will turn to its owner and will wait for our attention and encouragement.
When it locates the prey and its position allows the dog to charge, it suddenly becomes violent and at this point we can hear it making the first sounds. If the hare hides inside a big bush and it is possible for it to remain unnoticed, then we see our dog moving abruptly around the spot, wagging its tail spasmodically and standing on its hind quarters in order to be in a position of control. If the dog is certain that the hare shall not come out, then the onrush is so violent that many times the noise made by the broken branches is so impressive that one might think that the dog may get seriously wounded. Persecution is eager and the voice of the dog makes penetrating and long sounds; its barking then sounds like a sharp howling. There are a lot of dogs that, at the moment they flush the hare out of its nest, don’t bark but concentrate on seizing the hare. This keeps them silent and they only start to bark when they are certain that the hare is about to escape.
This happens more often with young passionate individuals, which feel that they can catch the hare, and are absolutely devoted in chasing the prey without barking. These animals many times get wounded by timbers or rocks in their effort to catch their prey. Once, one of my dogs, Dora, located a hare hiding in a slot between rocks among the dry branches of an oak and the onrush was so violent that the harsh surface of the rock literally tore the skin apart for about 30cm. Neither the dog realized what had happened nor I; only when I shot the hare and went to get it I realised that my dog would not follow me, but stood behind trembling. I approached her and realised the horrible cut. 20 stitches were needed for the wound to heal.
Following this tactic our dogs are better during the period of hunting: in September, October and many times in November when the temperature is still extreme and the ground has become dry and rocky due to the long period of drought that lasts for several months. Moreover, the dust on the bushes forces the dogs to sneeze continuously, something that complicates them in their attempt to trace. There are some cases of dogs that present serious problems in the nostrils because of this dust. We, therefore, understand how useful this hunting tactic is for the dog but also for us. Without this tactic, it would be almost impossible for the prey to be located as those have adapted in the conditions of Crete as well. Now, it becomes more obvious why a sight hound would have been absolutely useless in Crete.
Afterwards, the dog persecutes the prey with great speed, which, because of the craggy Cretan landscape and in order to escape, is forced to run making big leaps, jumping from rock to rock and forming zigzags, continuously following paths with many obstacles between it and its persecutor. Obviously, the dog is forced to manoeuvre quickly otherwise it will fall. But the Cretan Tracer has adapted well, as it has minimized the length of its body and is equal with its height. That is to say, from being a long bodied hound (if it had been) now it has become square bodied. Thus, its ability in making manoeuvres is impressive. The body lowers and its back is bent and the only thing you hear is the sound of its nails on the rocks in its effort to hang on the rocks. It springs quickly, leaping from rock to rock, instantly changing direction speed and course, so as to capture the hare. But the hare is smart: suddenly, it stops running, it halts in its position, letting the dog pass over it and changes its course, but the dog is behind it once again. This battle doesn’t last long because the hare soon finds an exit, and the dog continues the prosecution as long as it can, depending on the terrain and temperature. If the weather is cool then the prosecution will last for some minutes and if it is winter time then our dog can track the hare while it makes its predetermined circle in order to return back. If the temperature is not proper then the prosecution is suspended and our dog returns to rest for a while and soon it will begin its search for another hare.
The second tactic that the dog follows, which is tracking, is spectacular too but also very difficult for familiar reasons. It should be pointed that the dogs which trace are more popular, because they allow the hunter to follow-up and to get prepared. However, there are many hunters who have dogs that follow both tactics. The tracing tactic of our dog is the same as that of all tracers with the difference that our dog does not begin tracking at the point where the hare was found the previous night, but after making a fast regional search within the limits of the open region, it searches for the point from which the hare came out from the open area and started reaching its nest. Of course, we must point out that here in Crete open regions and big meadows are non-existent and if there is one, our dogs are not directed to hunt there but in dense vegetation or on the rocks. Thus, tracing begins at 100 metres maximum from the point of the nest. Moreover, because of their large number, our hares do not cover big distances at night (excepted is the reproductive period) and thus we know that the hare is found somewhere around the point where our dog began tracing.
Initially, the research is fast and the dog is almost trotting, but as soon as the traces become more intense then the dog stops and by almost leaning its nose on the ground it starts sniffing intensely, without making the typical noise that we hear by other tracers. Instead, it seems that it blows the air outwards. It begins to wag its tail, slowly at first, and it never barks over the traces. It continues towards the direction that the hare followed and with slow and careful movements it passes between the thorny bushes trying to stay as noiseless as possible. As it approaches the point, its attention becomes more and more intense, the wag of its tail increases and observation of the region becomes more accurate. At times, it turns its head to us to see if we are watching it. If there is a clump of bushes in its course, it lifts its nose in the air to check all smells coming from far, then it continues 3-4metres before the hare’s nest, so tracking is almost interrupted, and it senses that somewhere ahead there is its prey; with fast movements and with its nose on the surface of the ground it approaches the nest, with its tail tightly curled. The attack is sudden, abrupt and forceful.
Both the hare and the dog suddenly spring and for a moment one thinks that the dog has captured it in its mouth, the hare however with small leaps and changes in its course tries to escape and is successful, either by entering the bushes or by changing its course continuously. The voice of the dog is long, penetrating, resembling a cry or a complaint as if it wants to say ‘it is leaviiiiing!’ Here attention and calmness is needed because our dog might lose the prey for a moment but many times by limiting the hare’s movement to a restricted area it can once again find itself close to it. This lasts for a little while and as long as there is optical contact with the prey. If it loses it from its sight, it continues tracking silently once again but more speedily now than before. If the dog is experienced and the time suitable, there is a big probability to re-discover it and suddenly one can see the dog bringing it back many times onto the same path. If the weather is very hot, then it is quite possible for the dog to abandon the effort after 500-1000 metres. This happens, in my opinion, because the dog knows that it is difficult to reach the hare again but also because it knows that soon it will find another one. Still, I consider that by adapting in the certain environment, the dog has learned to manage its energy and does not waste it pointlessly. Also, we must say that our dogs use an amount of energy at localizing and persecuting that is practically impossible to persecute the hare for hours as other tracers do (Youra, Greek Hound dog), so they are limited, as we said before, to the extent that their environment allows them.
The same tactic is also followed by other tracers which are found in Crete and have adapted their tracing tactic and persecution to our warm and dry climate but also their barking over the traces as they were compelled to lessen it due to the dry surface of the ground, thus becoming less noisy and more careful. Many of these animals have learned to search for hares on the rocks and in the holes as if they were Cretan Tracers and this is impressing, but after a careful study we realize that the environment and the climate determine a dog’s behaviour. This certainly does not only happen with dogs but also with preys and people. Whichever tactic our dog follows we should get to know it and enjoy it, because they have absolutely adapted to our environment and our hunting tactics. Moreover, we are dealing with a primitive tracer which has lived with people for thousands of years and has given the better results.
Certainly, we will also have failures, however, these must not discourage us and lead us to abandon all efforts, on the contrary they must be the cause for a new beginning. Moreover, it is not right for a hunter to just go on the mountain and hunt various types of prey. Hunting is a dream, an effort, anguish, stories, experience, failures, success, it’s the upbringing of our puppy, our relation with it, its success and its failure. All these and much more compose our love for nature that is summarised in the combination nature-dog-hunting-recollections. We should not forget that dogs and hunting are the gifts of gods to people which they first offered to centaur Cheironas and after having tought him how to use them, gave him the command to teach it to the people. Hence, we in turn, have learned it by some other people, and we shall pass our knowledge improved, for our own contentment.
