Hunting in the West usually requires a rifle, camouflage clothing and an all-terrain vehicle – not red coats, horses and a pack of dogs. This scenario brings to mind the green hills of England or the fields and forests of the Eastern United States. But that changed in Montana over 20 years ago when the owners of the Red Rock Hounds of Reno, Nevada contacted Renee Daniels and her then-husband Kail Mantle about leasing horses and bringing a traditional “fox hunt” to Montana. The couple owned Montana Horses, which still supplies quality horses to guest ranches, camps and outfitters.
During that pivotal year, Red Rock Hounds owners and hunt leaders Lynn Lloyd and Angela Murray stayed at the historic Sacajawea Hotel in Three Forks. At the time, the hotel was owned by one of Red Rock’s members.
Daniels recalls sitting at a table with Lloyd and Murray one evening after a week-long coyote hunt, talking about the hunt. “We drank my share of scotch and a little more to make up for what those who didn’t like the stuff liked.”
“They asked me if I wanted to keep some dogs on our ranch,” Daniels said. “I said that was a great idea. The next day I had a cat and two dogs.”
The foundation for fox hunting in Montana was laid, a mixture of traditional English hunting and Montana’s cowboy heritage.
Big Sky Hounds was founded in 2012. “When we started coyote hunting, we had four dogs and 45 people,” said Daniels, who still serves as hunt master. A hunt master is responsible for maintaining the financial integrity of the hunt, overseeing the dog breeding program, planning locations for hunt meetings and obtaining hunting permits from landowners.
Initially, Big Sky Hounds refrained from holding a formal hunt because they feared it would discourage ranchers from participating.
“I was wrong about my first impression of fox hunters and ranchers. The ranchers embraced it. It’s not hard to see why ‘fiercely individual and pragmatic’ Montanans have embraced fox hunting so much,” Daniels said. “It’s inherently Western with pride, achievement, excitement, camaraderie, challenge and respect. It’s about revering the beautiful land we live on, our great Western horses that are ideally suited to push the other brave souls in our tribe and ourselves a little further than we thought we could. It’s exhilarating.”
Although the hunt originally began in the Three Forks area, the Big Sky Hounds expanded their territory to the more open country around Miles City, Montana.
“This happened when Kail and I were delivering hay to a ranch northeast of Miles City. We thought, ‘What a fantastic hunting area.’ We talked to the rancher who bought our hay and he told us he owned 62 sections and his extended family owned even more,” Daniels said.
The family agreed to let Big Sky Hounds hunt the coyotes – as did other neighbors – and now they had hundreds of thousands of acres of land to call hunting ground. When people learned Big Sky Hounds hunted there, it became so popular that they moved their hunting dates before the Miles City Bucking Horse Sale. It has become a can’t-miss, multi-purpose event that brings fox hunters from all over the United States to Eastern Montana in May.
Big Sky Hounds was registered with the Master of Foxhounds in 2015 and recognized in 2018. The Master of Foxhounds Association (MFHA) Association of North America is the umbrella organization for organized mounted hound hunts in the United States and Canada. The club recognizes 135 member hunts. To be recognized, the hunt must have approved kennels, adherence to rules, and sportsmanship.
The Masters of Big Sky Hounds always ask permission to hunt on their land. “Our relationship with the landowners is sacred,” Daniels said. “The most wonderful ranching families have invited us to ride on their property. We honor them by dressing well, bringing clean horses and showing respect. We’re not a wild bunch of people going crazy.”
The hunting association also holds landowner appreciation days where members help with various tasks on the ranch, such as repairing fences or working with the cows.
Big Sky Hounds members and guests include men and women, youth and seniors, ranchers, cowboys, writers and bankers.
“Our hunt empowers women. They come to us from all over the country and from all walks of life,” said Daniels. “Hunting has given many women confidence and I am proud that we have a wonderful tribe of women who we have empowered.”
Big Sky Hounds primarily hunt coyotes, which run faster and straighter than the traditional foxes of the East. There is also a difference between the dogs needed to hunt on the smaller cattle ranches and farmlands around the Gallatin Valley and the vast tracts of land and open space in eastern Montana. This requires breeding a faster dog with a good nose that also hunts by sight.
“We breed the Western Coyote Hound,” explains Angela Murray, master hunter at Big Sky Hounds. “We have American Walker Hound bloodlines that are 50 years old. We’ve started crossing them with some greyhounds to make them faster. These dogs can catch coyotes in the great west. They run on scent and sight.”
Murray grew up hunting and was able to participate in many hunts across the country. She was with Red Rock Hounds for 20 years and served as Master and Hunter for the last 10 years. She and Master Richard Pye of Red Rock joined as Masters of Big Sky Hounds in 2023, along with Lori Dooley and founding Master Renee Daniels.
Since then, Big Sky Hounds has built a kennel in central Tennessee to winter the pack and has added a travel component to the home club to provide exercise to Montana residents and people from across the country. They have territories in Georgia, Alabama, Texas and Mississippi. This keeps horses, dogs and people in top shape and ready to head to Montana in May.
Currently, Big Sky Hounds consists of 13.5 pairs – a pair is two dogs – which means there are 27 dogs. When they travel, the entourage consists of dogs in the dog carrier, horses, horse trailers and others who come along for the fun.
“When we’re on tour, we’re like a traveling circus,” Murray notes, but says the road trips are half the fun.
She explains the differences between foxhounds and other hunting dogs. “Foxhounds live in a community, unlike lionhounds or hunting dogs, which live alone. The kennels in Montana have four large runs and several huts so the dogs can get out of the weather, and there are also smaller runs for young or injured dogs. The dogs eat together, sleep together and live together, which helps them develop the cohesion they need to work as a pack.”
As for the horses, the staff (hunters, collectors who keep an eye on the dogs as they follow a scent, and field staff who lead the riders behind them) prefer purebred horses, but Murray is quick to add that almost any other breed with a sound mind will do.
“We are a welcoming hunt. You can ride western or English, and we have members who help riders who are new to hunting,” Murray said. “If you don’t have a horse, we have horses you can rent. We want to keep the tradition and show good sportsmanship.”
Big Sky Hounds will begin hunting in the Gallatin Valley in mid-September and would love to have guests. For more information about Big Sky Hounds, visit bigskyhounds.com.
