Hunting Jargon

In order to prevent a hobby hunter from being overcome by emotion at the sight of animal suffering, the primitive hunters' language — also known as idiotic German or hunting jargon — developed over the course of the past centuries.

The aim of this hunters' language is to express a profound distance between animal and human in order to trivialise the act of killing during the hunt.

For example, a female roe deer is “appraised” (assessed with regard to age, sex and health), and the bullet is “offered” to her. A “last bite” is placed in the “muzzle” of the killed game, which is then “broken open” (gutted). Foxes have no young, but a “brood.” Blood is “sweat,” a wounded animal is “blooded” and “sick-shot.” A belly shot of a roe deer with entrails hanging out is a “paunch-wounded piece of game.” The skin of wild animals is called a “cover.” Hobby hunters do not kill animals — they “bag” a “piece” of game. Ravens, cats, etc. are “vermin,” and so on and so forth in hunting jargon.

It is clear to every person that behind this hunters' language lies a degradation and mockery of living beings. Sentient and pain-sensitive creatures are thus stripped not only of their lives but also of their last dignity. The hunters' language is irrelevant both for everyday use and in a scientific context. It is a disfigurement of the German language.

Humans have hunted wild animals for thousands of years, primarily during times of climatic hardship. Over time, however, the justification for hunting has changed considerably. Hunting activities formerly served as a means for food, clothing, economic necessity, pleasure and as a ritual.

Today, hunting serves the hobby hunter as a means of releasing aggression and slowing down in nature.

The killing of animals by today's modern hobby hunters results primarily from greed, acquisitiveness, stupidity, pleasure, indifference, anger, envy, self-importance, ostentation, boastfulness, jealousy, tradition, arrogance, ignorance, cupidity, presumption, egotism, resentment, and a general disregard for living beings.

In the modern environment, largely shaped and defined by humans, it is, according to renowned scientists, researchers, wildlife biologists and case studies, entirely possible and ethically responsible to leave wildlife populations to their own devices. The canton of Geneva has practiced this modern wildlife management for over 40 years. What hundreds of hobby hunters used to do poorly there is today handled by a good dozen professional game wardens, who intervene regulatorily when necessary and do not massacre foxes, badgers, birds and the like out of arbitrary hunting seasons and for the pleasure of killing, causing suffering in the process.

• Dorsal stripe: a dark stripe along the back found in deer species, chamois in summer, and in some dogs.
• Carrion hunter: a hunter through whose unsportsmanlike hunting practices much game is lost (wasted).
• To skin: to remove the hide or pelt, in the case of predatory game and hare-like animals.
• To drive off by biting: forcing young animals to leave their territory, by fur-bearing predators.
• To leave a roost: used of game birds leaving an elevated position; also used of a hunter leaving a hunting structure such as a high seat or ladder stand.
• To blow off: to end a driven hunt with the hunting horn signal “hunt over.”
• To track: to search the hunting ground for tracks.
• To dispatch: to kill wounded game with a cold weapon.
• Point of aim (see also: reticle): the sighting device in a telescopic sight.
• Point of aim: 1. to acquire the target at the moment of firing — “I had a good sight picture” means the shot went where it was intended; 2. to fall into poor health; run down: in poor physical condition; 3. to lose the track, said of a hunting dog, e.g. during a search.
• To praise a dog: to commend and pet a dog for good work.
• To dispatch (see also: abfangen): to kill wounded game after a shot or accident using a bare weapon (hunting knife = Nicker or Knicker) by a thrust into the foramen magnum (back of the neck); to do so the head was pressed forward, hence the term “Abnicken.”
• To flush and fly: the capercaillie or black grouse takes flight.
• To train: to train the hunting dog.
• To drive off: to expel (the old stag “drives off” the younger one, displacing it)[5]
• to skull mount: preparing the hunting trophy, where the skull of the game is first exposed, then sawed, and finally boiled out and bleached.
• cull quota: the number of game animals according to the culling plan, before and after execution
• cull-necessary: weak and sick game designated for management culling
• to skin: to skin wild boar and badgers
• reticle: the marking in the optics of the rifle scope (e.g. crosshair), enabling more precise aiming and distance estimation
• to fly off: to fly away, of game birds
• to man a raptor: to train a bird of prey for hunting
• latrine: 1. droppings site at a badger sett; 2. deer-specific signs when a deer cuts grass stems with its hooves while stepping
• shed antler: the shed antler of cervids (antler-bearing animals)
• eight-pointer: a stag with an eight-point antler
• to browse: to take in food
• muzzle: the mouth of most ungulate species. The muzzle is used to take in browse, i.e. food
• browse: denotes the food of ungulates, in particular of roe deer as well as fallow and red deer, but not wild boar
• kit: the young of the marmot
• hind: sexually mature female red deer
• to charge: to attack, of game. When a hunter is attacked by a piece of game, one says, “the boar charged me.”
• to shoulder: to bring the long gun into the shooting position (“to the cheek”)
• point of impact: 1. location where the game stood when shot, important for shot signs, tracking signs and blood trailing; 2. entry wound in the body of the game
• to assess: to identify and classify game by species, sex, age and condition. Also applied to plants: to assess a tree = to identify the species and condition of the tree
• to post: to assign shooters to fixed positions through the posting marshal during a hunt
• posting marshal: a hunter familiar with the territory who assigns hunting guests a fixed position, stand, seat or high seat.
• waiting on: the circling of a trained falcon above the falconer or above the dog in anticipation of prey
• to indicate: the hunting dog shows by its behavior that it has found something; the pointer freezes on point
• hunting rucksack: hunter’s backpack
• eagle owl: the Eurasian eagle owl
• to perch: to settle on an elevated spot such as a branch, of game birds and predators; to climb one’s high seat, of the hunter
• to gralloch: to eviscerate, i.e. to open up the “bag” game for removal of the viscera
• gralloching break: a break taken during longer driven hunts for reasons of game meat hygiene
• Gralloch: the entrails as the entirety of the internal organs located in the large body cavities
• coiling the leash: folding the blood-tracking leash in the traditional customary manner
• open season: beginning of the hunting period after the closed season (example: hares are “up” = hares may be hunted)
• to open up: to cut open the body of a dead animal
• to raise the head: to lift the head suddenly to locate something, e.g. in response to disturbances, noises or movements
• to eye: to see (from ‘eye’)
• brow tine: the lowest tine above the coronet on the antlers of deer species
• to work out: to follow the track of wounded game from the point of impact
• to hatch: to emerge from the egg, referring to gamebirds
• to skin: to flay cloven-hoofed game (exception: wild boar)
• to paunch: to remove the entrails from hares and rabbits
• sow: a sexually mature female wild boar
• pelt: the skin with fur of the brown hare (see hare pelt) and rabbit, red fox (see red fox pelt) and marten; also a bird skin
• pad marks: signs recognisable to experienced deer stalkers from the pads between the cleaves, e.g. the coronet mark
• bating: the wing-beating of a keen falcon on the fist or the block
• boar: a large, old, male wild boar
• velvet: the highly vascularised protective skin covering antlers or horns while in growth
• earth (the earths): the dwelling of an animal (fox earth, badger sett, rabbit burrow)
• occupied: to inhabit an earth (see above). Whether an earth is occupied can be recognized by the tracks at the entrance
• leathers: the ears of a hunting dog with drop or pendant ears; also used with these breeds to indicate age: “in the 1st leather” = in the 2nd year of life
• falconry (from ‘to bite’) or hawking: hunting with a trained bird of prey is one of the oldest forms of hunting, e.g. the falcon kills its prey with a bite to the nape using its tomial tooth
• to serve: the mating of all cloven-hoofed game, e.g. of a hind in rut by the stag; the animal that allows itself to be served “stands” during this act
• to confirm (also to locate): identifying and addressing game, locations etc., especially red deer, through signs recognisable to experienced stalkers
• edged weapons: hunting knife, nicker and similar weapons used in hunting
• to blow: a vocalisation, the warning call of the sow (lead sow)
• shoulder shot: a shot that strikes the shoulder blade of an animal. As it damages the heart, lungs and/or major blood vessels, it leads to immediate death
• Blattzeit: mating season of roe deer. The term derives from the lure hunting possible at this time by whistling on a beech leaf or 'Blatter'
• Blatter: instrument used for lure hunting during the Blattzeit
• Blume: tail of the European hare and the tip of the brush on the red fox
• Bockfieber or Jagdfieber: occasional state of nervous excitement in the hunter shortly before and after taking a shot at game
• bögeln: a hunting dog does not follow a trail in a straight line but in a zigzag pattern
• brackieren: hunting with wide-ranging hounds (Bracken) over a hunting area of at least 1,000 hectares
• Brand: anthrax is an infectious disease that occurs primarily in even-toed ungulates
• brav: 1) braver Bock! refers to a good, mature buck 2) braver Hund! is a compliment for good performance
• brechen: 1. wild boar root around for food; 2. game flees through undergrowth, breaking off branches in the process
• Bringsel: a short leather strap on the collar is taken into the mouth by the hunting dog, indicating to the hunter that a tracking search was successful
• Brocken: bait
• Bruch or Gebräch: spot where wild boar have dug while foraging
• Bruch or Bruchzeichen: informational signs used between hunters; these are typically broken, leafy or needle-bearing twigs from specific trees
• Brunft or Brunst: mating season of ungulates, excluding wild boar
• Brunftkugeln: the testicles of ungulates; Steine in the case of the wild boar
• Brunftrute: the male genitalia of ungulates, excluding roe deer and wild boar (referred to as Pinsel in those cases)
• Büchsenlicht: denotes lighting conditions sufficient for hunting, i.e. the rear sight and front sight on the rifle barrel are still discernible on the target
• Bürzel, der: tail of wild boar, badger and bear
• Burgfrieden: various animal species living together in a burrow, e.g. fox and badger
• Burgstall cf. Hirschgerechte Zeichen: small raised mark in a track
• buschieren: hunting method with dog and shotgun
• changieren: the dog switches trail or track, particularly during a tracking search to a (usually) fresher or uninjured trail/track
• Chinaseuche: rabbit disease
• Chokebohrung: choke boring in a shotgun barrel
• Conibearfalle: kill trap made of steel wire
• Curée: right of the hounds, i.e. the portion of the game due to the hounds after a par force hunt; the rewarding of the pack
• Dachrose: special form of a rose on antlers
• Damwild: fallow deer (dama dama)
• Decke: hide of ungulates (excluding wild boar = Schwarte)
• Deckung: 1. protection from being seen; 2. distribution of shot pellets when firing a shotgun
• dick gehen: pregnant game
• Dickung: thicket, provides cover for ungulates
• docken: winding and unwinding the blood-tracking leash
• Dohne, die: trapping snares for bird catching
• doppeln: unintentional discharge of two shots simultaneously from a multi-barreled weapon, e.g. a drilling (triple-barreled gun)
• Dublette: 1. The killing of two pieces of game from the same weapon in immediate succession; 2. Shooting at two simultaneously launched clay pigeons in clay pigeon shooting
• durch die Lappen gehen (Lappjagd): when game escapes, a colloquial expression derived from hunting terminology
• Durchgehschütze: a shooter who moves together with the beaters during a driven hunt
• Dunst: very fine shot pellets for bird hunting
• Ehrenlauf: the right foreleg of a stag hunted par force. Formerly regarded as a trophy and presented to the most distinguished hunting guest
• Eichelmast: The fruits of oak trees (pedunculate and sessile oak), which serve especially as food for wild boar.
• einfahren: Describes the behavior of den-dwelling game species that crawl into their burrow.
• Einfahrt: The entrance to a burrow. It is either active or inactive.
• einfallen: The landing of game birds on the ground, a tree, or water.
• eingehen: Game that perishes naturally (e.g. through disease) without external influence; found dead game.
• Einlauf: 1. Opening in a fence through which game can enter but not exit; Einsprung; 2. the morning retreat of the hare into the forest
• Einsprung: Opening in a fence
• Einstand(-sgebiet): Resting and refuge area for game (e.g. within thickets, bramble tangles, reed belts, etc.)
• Eissprosse: Tine between the brow and middle tine on the beam of an antler
• Ende: Branch, tine on the antler beam
• Entenstrich: The waiting of hunters as ducks fly in to the waters in the morning or evening
• erlegen: To kill a piece of game.
• Erleger: one who has lawfully taken the game
• Fähe: female fox, also female wolf and all members of the marten family except the badger; origin: Middle High German vohe, Old High German voha meaning ‘vixen’
• Fährte: the “footprints” left on the ground by ungulates (cf. “Spur” and “Geläuf”)
• Fährtenschuh: a shoe with ungulate hooves attached to the underside, used to create an artificial blood trail for training dogs
• Färben, das: 1) Discharge of blood from a female dog during heat 2) Coat change in ungulates (except wild boar)
• Flag: 1) the long-haired tail of long-haired hunting dogs 2) inner and outer sides of bird feathers
• Falconer: a falconer (or hawker) practices falconry with birds of prey such as falcons, sparrowhawks, goshawks or eagles to hunt feathered game (e.g. partridge) and small furred game (e.g. rabbits)
• Fallbaum: also Hakbaum, a perch on which feathered game sits, e.g. crows during decoy hunting
• Trap trail: a prepared path on which a trap is placed: smooth passage, good catch
• Fallwild: wildlife that has died a natural death
• Fang: 1. the muzzle of predators, including the dog; 2. the feet (talons) of birds of prey, see: bird foot
• Finishing shot: the shot fired to kill game that has been wounded but not immediately fatally hit, or struck by a vehicle
• Fasch or flesh: the blood
• faschen: to bleed or lose blood
• Fäustling: a young hare the size of a fist
• Lure: a training device consisting of a cord and a prey decoy used to train birds of prey
• Feathered game: birds subject to hunting law
• Velvet rubbing: the rubbing off of "velvet" from the fully formed antlers of stags and the horns of roebucks on trees and shrubs
• Feistzeit: the period before the rut, i.e. the time before reproduction – it serves roebucks and stags to build up fat reserves for the demanding period that follows
• Field: age designation for pointing dogs (hunting dogs used primarily for pointing): "standing in the 1st field" = being in the 2nd year of life
• ferm (also firm): a fully trained hunting dog or a well-trained hunter
• Feuchtblatt: the external female genitalia of hoofed game
• Feuchtglied: the male genitalia of furred predators and the dog
• Flüchtig: a wild animal that moves away at a walk or trot after being disturbed. Animals fleeing at a gallop are called hochflüchtig.
• forkeln: fighting or thrusting by an antlered or horned animal against a rival, a person or a dog
• frischen: to give birth to piglets
• Frischling: a newly born wild boar in its first year of life (originally: in its first hunting year)
• Fox tossing: a cruel "hunting pastime" of courtly hunting
• führen: 1. a mother animal leads a young one; 2. to use a firearm; 3. to keep a hunting dog; 4. a lead animal leads a pack
• Führigkeit: the good cooperation between a hunting dog and its handler
• Foot brace: the leg of the goshawk
• Gabler: red deer whose antler shows a brow tine forming a spike, or roebuck whose antlers each have only one point
• Gebräch, das: ground churned up by wild boar
• Gebrech, das: the mouth of wild boar
• Gefege: the hairy fibers that remain after the velvet has been frayed
• Geheck, das: the young born to furred predators, or the young hatched by waterfowl
• Gehöre: the ears of predatory game
• Gehörn: the antler of the roebuck
• Geilen, die: rare term for the testicles of game, e.g. of capercaillie, bustard, and wild turkey cock
• Geiß: Ricke, the leading doe in roe deer
• Geläuf: track of feathered game, except bustard and capercaillie
• Geläut, das: barking of hunting dogs, e.g. during driven hunts
• genossen machen: 1. to reward the hunting dog, 2. to reward the falconry bird, especially after the hunt with a piece of meat
• Geräusch: lungs, heart, kidneys, trachea, and esophagus of hoofed game
• Gescheide (dialectally also Geschlinge): entrails of all game; stomach: großes Gescheide, intestines: kleines Gescheide
• Geschleif: entrances to badger, fox, or beaver dens
• Geschleppe: bait meat on a line, used to drag a scent trail to the shooting or trapping site, where it is secured and made accessible
• Geschmeiß: droppings of birds of prey
• Gestell: a section of forest cleared in the manner of a ride, originally for setting hunting equipment (nets, flags), today mostly for transporting felled timber (cf. Adlergestell)
• Gewaff also Waffen: canine teeth of the boar (male wild boar); in the lower jaw Gewehre or Hauer, in the upper jaw Haderer
• Geweih: the “head ornament” of male animals belonging to the Cervidae family
• Gewicht: Gehörn, the antler of the roebuck
• Grandeln: hunting trophy 1. the upper canine teeth of ruminants (usually from deer); 2. the first feathers from the wing shoulder of the capercaillie cock
• Grashirsch: red deer that has fed only on grass until the milk-ripeness of oats (June), later Feisthirsch, then Brunfthirsch
• Grind: head of the animal
• Haar, das: in furred game, except hare and rabbit (Wolle) and wild boar (Borsten)
• Haarwild: mammals subject to hunting law (game)
• Haderer, die: canine teeth in the upper jaw of the boar, part of the Gewaff
• Haken, die: canine teeth in the jaw of the sow
• Halali, das: both a greeting and a hunting call, a component of hunting tradition
• Halsung: collar for the hunting dog
• Häsin: term for the female hare and for the female rabbit
• Hasenklage (also Hasenquäke): lure instrument for predatory game
• Mobbing: behavior of various bird species that is exploited for decoy hunting
• Baiting: a historical, now prohibited form of hunting in which heavy dogs are set upon large, living game (wild boar, bears) to bring it to bay and hold it
• Tusks: also called “tushes,” the canine teeth in the lower jaw of a male wild boar
• Head: the head of hoofed game, except in wild boar, where it is simply called “head”
• Coursing pursuit: if necessary, the chasing and cornering of injured game at the end of a tracking search
• Coursing hunt: with greyhounds after light game, with pack hounds after large game; prohibited today in Germany
• Witch rings: tracks left by a driving roebuck and a doe in heat or a young female deer in grain fields
• Sky signs, cf. red deer-specific signs: traces left by the antlers of a red deer stag on trees in branches and foliage at antler height when passing through; shed snow can also constitute such a sign
• Stag: Cervus elaphus, cf. red deer
• Deer call: instrument used to imitate the voice of a red deer stag, e.g. a triton shell
• Heat: the period of ovulation in a female hunting dog
• Hot: 1. heat; 2. a hunter who shoots too hastily out of greed for prey
• Bolt-fleeing: a wild animal that flees at a gallop after severe disturbance or when pursued
• High game: today refers to all hoofed game except roe deer, as well as capercaillie and golden and white-tailed eagles
• To branch: to move from branch to branch or tree to tree, e.g. the marten
• Horrido: used among hunters as a greeting, but also as a hunting call to show honor
• Dusting: sand bathing by game birds, for cleaning and removal of mites and other parasites
• Hide hunt: decoy hunt for crows and birds of prey using a (formerly) live lure
• Standing in the field: the age of a pointer dog
• Lying in the fire: shot game collapses at the moment of the shot
• Possession break: a sprig that indicates lawful possession of a piece of harvested game at the site of the kill
• Pregnancy: the state of gestation in hares, rabbits and small furred predators
• Insiegel: a track mark created when game passes through soft, loamy ground or snow. Remnants of clay or snow are released only later from the hooves of hoofed game. Insiegel is a red deer-specific sign
• Hunting operation: all activities involved in the practical exercise of hunting
• Hunting district: private hunting ground and communal hunting district are both types of hunting districts
• Hunting aptitude test (JEP): a utility test for hunting dogs
• Buck fever: a stress reaction that affects some hunters at the sight of game and prevents a safe shot
• Hunter's yarn: the more or less truthful tales told by hunters, who often exaggerate the number and especially the size of the animals they have killed
• Hunting cooperative: an association of all landowners in a municipality with less area than required to maintain a private hunting ground
• Hunting firearms: 1. Shotguns for shot firing 2. Rifles for bullet firing 3. Combined weapons, e.g. drilling rifles
• Hunting lord: owner or leaseholder of a hunting district
• Hunting year: unlike the calendar year, the hunting year begins on 1 April and ends on 31 March of the following year. Hunting licence: licence to practise hunting
• Hunting signals: sequences of tones or musical pieces blown on hunting horns
• Hunting retinue: the entourage of a hunt, particularly in a historical context
• Hunting equipment: implements used to carry out a hunt
• Yeld deer: female animals of red deer and fallow deer. They have no antlers.
• Calf: young animals of red deer, elk and fallow deer from birth until Martinmas or 31 March of the year following birth
• Cold track: a track that has been left for several hours before the search, overnight
• Cold (or: bare) weapons: knives (e.g. hunting knife) and similar weapons (e.g. boar spear) used for hunting
• Raking: aggressive sweeping of the falconry bird over the lure, the pelt or the quarry
• Chamber: chest cavity of furred game
• Pulpit: elevated hide
• Capital: large or strong, e.g. a capital stag with strong antler formation
• Cat (female cat): 1. female marmot; 2. female wildcat
• Boar: mature male wild boar
• Kernel: “naked” body of smaller furred game (particularly predatory game) after skinning (see also pelt)
• Hollow:
• the main chamber of an animal burrow, e.g. in a red fox den
• the resting place of a wild boar sounder and the sow with piglets
• in a driven hunt, a circle formed by hunters and beaters within which and out of which the game is driven
• place where a covey of partridges has huddled or rested
• Covey: family group of partridges
• Break-action firearm: hunting weapon with a tilting barrel, usually shotguns, but also rifles or combined weapons, e.g. drilling rifles
• Bait station: deployment of feed for the purpose of attracting wild boar
• Kid: young animal of roe deer, chamois or ibex
• Claws: 1. nails of furred predatory game, dogs and birds of prey; 2. biological term for the hooves of hoofed game
• Minor hunter's right: traditional right whereby the offal belongs to the person who has grallocked the animal
• Small hunting right: the right of a landowner to hunt rabbits and stone martens using (trap) hunting on their property within the pacified district.
• Kloben: a clamping trap used for catching birds
• Klötze: the testicles of male wild boar
• knautschen: a poor trait of a hunting dog that crushes retrieved game
• kneten: the spasmodic contraction of the talons in grip-killing birds of prey, triggered by movements or sounds
• Knieper: a two-year-old fallow deer stag
• Knödelbogen: southern German term for Schüsseltreiben
• Knopfbock, also Knöpfler: an inferior roebuck with stunted antler development, e.g. as buttons or short spikes
• Kolbenhirsch: a stag with antlers in velvet
• kollern: the vocalisation of the black grouse cock
• Kompanieschuss: two shooters simultaneously fire at one piece of game
• krank: the condition of a piece of game that has been shot or hit by a vehicle
• Kranz: see Kränzen
• kränzen: tracks left by a stag on hard ground through the outer hoof edges, known as the Kranz
• Krebsschere: an O-shaped, undesirable notch in the fallow deer's palmated antler
• Krellschuss: a shot that, instead of killing the game, only strikes the spinous process of a vertebra
• Krickel: the horn of the chamois
• Krone: 1. all tines above the middle tine (except the wolf tine) in the antlers of a red deer; 2. in the roebuck, the entire antler; 3. ornamental feathers on the head of certain birds; 4. the tip of the canine teeth (Grandeln)
• Krucke: the horn of the ibex
• Krumme, der: colloquial term for the European hare
• Kuder, der: the male of the lynx or the wildcat
• kudern: the “growling” of the black grouse cock, also the imitation of the black grouse cock by the hunter (probably no longer in use)
• Kugelfang, natürlicher: terrain features that can safely stop bullets that pass through or miss the target during a hunt; in flat terrain, this is ensured by an elevated position on a high seat, driven hunt stand, etc., which allows shooting at a relatively steep downward angle into the ground
• Kugelschlag: the sound of a projectile striking the body of game; cf. Schusszeichen
• Kuhle: a sleeping hollow or resting place of ungulates
• Kurzwildbret: penis and testicles of red deer, roe deer, and wild boar
• Lager: 1. resting place of game; 2. cartridge chamber; 3. location for a trap
• lahnen: the begging (calling) for food by an imprinted falconry bird upon seeing the falconer (usually observed only in the first year of life)
• Lampe, Meister: the name of the hare in fables
• Lauerjagd: individual stalking hunt, as opposed to coursing
• Läufe: the legs of four-legged game
• Loud: Barking of hunting dogs; they give tongue or become vocal: hunting cry, tracking cry, earth cry, stand cry, chase cry
• Lap hunt: Strings with flaps are stretched around a drive; the game does – normally – not pass under the flaps and can thus be driven in a targeted manner
• Lecker: tongue of hoofed game
• Lehrprinz: master instructor of an apprentice hunter in training
• Leiter: high seat ladder
• Licht: eye of hoofed game
• Lure hunt: a type of hunt in which the game to be hunted is attracted by various means
• Löffel: ears of the hare or rabbit
• Lösen: 1. animals deposit excrement: relieve themselves; 2. to obtain or renew a hunting licence
• Löseplatz: a place where the hunting dog can relieve itself, i.e. deposit faeces and urine
• Losung: deposited excrement
• Luder: dead game or parts thereof used as bait for predatory game, e.g. gralloch
• Luderplatz: site where bait is placed
• Lunte: tail of the red fox
• Luser, Loser: ears (of game)
• Mahnen: short nasal sound used as a contact call by red deer
• Malbaum: tree against which game rubs itself, e.g. wild boar
• Manteln: the bird of prey, e.g. the falconry bird, covers its prey with its wings
• Marking: behavior of certain game species to mark their territory
• Mast: the fruits of certain trees (mast trees) that serve as food for game, e.g. acorns, beechnuts
• Mauser: 1. moulting of feathered game; 2. drake in moult; 3. German firearms manufacturer
• Mausen: predatory game catching mice
• Mäuseburg: lure site for hunting the red fox
• Mäuseln: to imitate the sound of a mouse for lure hunting
• Meckern: sound made by the common snipe during a dive
• Meister Braun or Petz: brown bear
• Melden: vocalisation by cervids during the rut
• Meute: used today for a group of hunting dogs on a hunt
• Milchreife: grain kernels before hardening, particularly attractive to game, resulting in wildlife damage
• Mittelsprosse: tine located in the middle of the antler below the crown
• Mitziehen (also mitschwingen or mitfahren): to follow a moving target with a raised firearm in order to shoot at the right moment
• Moderhinke: infectious disease in which the hooves or claws rot away
• Mönch: antlerless stag
• Nachsuche: the search for wounded game using the blood-tracking dog
• Nadeln: the capercaillie feeds in coniferous trees
• Nageln: claw imprints of individual steps in the tracks of predatory game
• Nässen: to urinate
• Nestling: young bird of prey in the nest
• Neue: freshly fallen snow that aids in tracking
• Lowland hunting or small game hunting: hunting for and hunting ground where only small game occurs
• to lie down: deer settles or lies down, wild boar burrows in
• Time of need: period during which wildlife cannot find sufficient natural forage
• Nut: female genital organ in dogs and furred predators
• Game for use: wildlife with hunting-economic value, e.g. venison
• to bell: the prolonged calling of the red deer stag during the rut
• Paired birds: parent animals of the partridge that later form a covey with their brood
• Paired track: track of weasel and marten
• Rumen: one of the three fore-stomachs of ruminants, large storage stomach
• Parforcejagd: hunt on horseback behind a pack of hounds
• Pass: movement trail of small game other than roe deer
• Licence hunting: licence-based hunting as opposed to territory-based hunting
• Pearls: small protrusions on antler tines
• Perücke buck: pathological deformation of the antlers of a roe buck
• Petschaft: fracture point on the shed antler of cervids (deer species)
• to paw: striking away leaves with the front hooves
• Planting season: period for setting out forestry plants
• Flat head or monk: red deer stag without a trophy
• Brush: term for the longer tuft of hair on the penis of hoofed game
• Stalking: solo hunt in which the hunter carefully and quietly stalks through the territory against the wind in order to approach wildlife as closely as possible without being noticed. Good knowledge of the territory is required, as are clean stalking paths
• Stalking signs: blood, bone splinters, pieces of flesh, etc. from wounded game
• Dominant stag: “master” of the rutting herd (hinds)
• Pürzel: tail of the badger and wild boar
• to call: the luring call of the woodcock during its display flight
• Hare call: luring instrument used in fox hunting
• Quarter hare: hare aged one to two months
• Tassel: tail tip of wild boar and stoat
• Side-by-side shotgun: double-barrelled shotgun with barrels lying side by side
• Ricochet: incorrectly used term for a deflected shot
• Cross search: the wide-ranging search of the hunting dog to the right and left in front of the hunter
• to acknowledge: a shot piece of game acknowledges the shot, it shows a reaction
• to chirp: vocalisation of the displaying woodcock
• Rutting wool: tufts of hair from hares and wild rabbits during the rut
• Ranz: sexually active period of predatory game
• Ratz: polecat
• Predatory game: predators, animals of prey
• Vermin: predators not subject to hunting law, including stray, roaming or poaching dogs or cats
• Rausche: mating season of wild boar
• Rausch synchronisation: mating synchronisation of wild boar is an assumption that has not yet been substantiated
• Roe deer or roe deer game: collective term for roe deer
• Slot or slot mark: the leaving of a deer track so that when the front and hind legs step into each other, a small strip of earth is created
• Hanging: game is hung in cold storage for a short time of up to a few days
• Mating season: copulation period in waterfowl
• Territory: hunting district
• Quartering: systematic searching of the terrain by the hunting dog
• Checking traps: daily inspection of traps
• Doe: female roe deer, also called she-goat
• Ridge crossing: game trail in the mountains
• Ridge drive, ridge hunt: driven hunt with few beaters, in which forest sections are stationed at the ridges
• Swimming: swimming in furred game
• Ringing: 1. new, hygienic method of gralloching; 2. bark stripping by squirrels
• Thermalling: the ability of many raptor species to circle upward in thermals with virtually no wingbeats
• Rolling, cartwheeling: the (occasionally occurring) somersaulting of fleeing game after being struck by a bullet or shot
• Rose: 1. ring-shaped base at the bottom of the antler beams of multi-year-old cervids; 2. bare skin patches on the head of gallinaceous birds, e.g. display wattles on black grouse cocks
• Pedicle: bony frontal peg on which the antler beam sits
• Red work: gralloching or evisceration
• Sounder: 1. group of several wild boar; 2. also used for wolves (rarely)
• Red deer: red deer stags
• Herd: group of several animals of an ungulate species, excluding wild boar, and of wolves
• Herding: 1. gathering of animals that form a herd; 2. vocalization of the black grouse cock
• Brush: 1. tail in dogs, all furred predators except fox (brush), badger and bear (rump); 2. penis in ungulates (rutting organ), predators and dogs (reproductive organ), hare, rabbit and marmot (rutting organ)
• Salt lick: device that offers game salt for mineral intake; usually located near game feeding areas
• Form: resting place of the hare
• Sow: a wild boar (as a species – specifically as a female animal, see: sow)
• Boar spear blade: a blade used for dispatching (stabbing) wild boar, e.g. during a driven hunt
• Boar trap: live-capture trap for wild boar
• Boar spear: a long, double-edged blade mounted on a hardwood shaft up to two metres long, used to dispatch charging wild boar
• Rogue stag: also known as a killer stag, because as a usually older, regressed red deer stag with antlers lacking developed tines, it can gore (stab) other stags
• skull-authentic: antlers or horns that were not shed (shed antlers), but were firmly connected to the skull bone at the time the animal was killed
• Schachtel: old female animals of roe deer, chamois, or red deer that no longer raise young. This is the origin of the term “Alte Schachtel” (old bag).
• cloven hoof: the hooves of ruminating game animals and wild boar
• cloven-hoofed game: wildlife species with hooves (claws), i.e. ruminating game animals and wild boar
• scissor trap: a formerly common trapping device built from logs, particularly suitable for catching martens
• shield: 1. thickening of the skin on the shoulder blades of male wild boar (tuskers); 2. breast patch in galliform birds; 3. further, archaic meanings found in Haseder
• screen: a visual blind at ground level used as a hunting facility
• lock: term for the cartilage in the pelvic floor through which the rectum of the game passes. cf. field dressing
• slip type: classification of roe deer and sika deer
• pricket doe: young, not yet sexually mature female roe deer. It is the fawn from the previous year.
• young hind: young, not yet sexually mature female red deer, the calf from the previous year.
• fat: the fat of the marmot and the badger
• fat man: badger, also known as Grimbart
• castings: excretions of birds of prey
• vulva: the external female genitalia of dogs, foxes, wolves and others
• to slip: when the hunting dog is released from the leash
• snail: 1. horn of the ram, hunting trophy; 2. shell of the triton snail, cf. deer call
• tailor: 1. inferior stag or capercaillie/black grouse cock; 2. hunters who return home without game
• woodcock flight: the courtship flight of the woodcock
• cut hair: hair cut off upon the projectile entering the body of the game
• single-tracking: gait of the red fox, wolf or lynx, in which the paws touch the ground in a straight line one behind the other, with the hind paws placed in the tracks of the front paws on the same side of the body, as opposed to side-tracking
• to drink: game and wildfowl are said to “schöpfen” when they drink
• straddle, cf. deer-lawful signs: the lateral distance of the tracks of the right pair of legs from the left in the walking trail
• side-tracking: the placing of the legs side by side, deviating from a straight line (“crossing”)
• apron: in female roe deer, a light tuft of hair above the female genitalia (moist patch)
• shooter’s sprig: a branch of a suitable wood species presented to the hunter who has taken a piece of game by the master of the hunt
• Schüsseltrieb or Schüsseltreiben: a social gathering after a completed driven hunt, usually for a meal
• steady to shot: a hunting dog that does not startle when a shot is fired
• shot-eager: a hunting dog that immediately wants to pursue or track game after a shot is fired, without being commanded to do so
• shot indication: characteristics that indicate whether and where the game was hit, e.g. how it reacts
• Schwarte: the thick, hairy skin of badger and wild boar
• Schwarzkittel: hunting term for wild boar
• Schwarzwild: general hunting term for wild boar
• schweimen: flight euphoria in birds of prey; withdrawing to great heights beyond the falconer's influence
• Schweinesonne: full moon whose light is particularly favorable during a nocturnal vigil for wild boar
• Schweiß: the blood of game and of the hunting dog once it exits the animal's body
• Schweißhund: a hunting dog specialized in tracking, finding, and baying wounded (injured), bleeding cloven-hoofed game during a tracking search
• Seher, die: eyes of furred predatory game such as fox, as well as hare, rabbit, and marmot
• sichern: 1. for game: to scan the surroundings using all senses; 2. for a firearm: to engage or disengage the safety on a loaded weapon
• Spiegel: the light-colored fur marking on the hindquarters of cervids (deer species), e.g.: kidney-shaped on the male roe deer, heart-shaped on the female roe deer with additional light hair above the vulva, also called Schürze (apron)
• Spiel: the entirety of the tail feathers of the black grouse cock
• Spießer: a young roe buck or stag with antlers that have not yet forked
• sprengen: to drive game out of a fox or rabbit burrow using a terrier or ferret
• Sprengruf: the battle cry of a territorial stag to drive away rivals
• Sprinz: male sparrowhawk; in all other birds of prey the male bird is called Terzel
• Sprung: a group of roe deer in wintertime. In summer, roe deer are solitary (bucks and young does) or form small family groups (doe with fawn)
• Sprosse or Spross: a branch or tine on an antler beam
• Sprung: the hind leg of the European hare
• Spur: track impression for all furred game species except cloven-hoofed game
• spurlaut, cf. fährtenlaut: describes a hunting dog that hunts loudly, i.e. barks, while on the track or trail of game
• Ständer: legs and bird's foot in feathered game
• Standarte, or Lunte: the tail of the fox and the wolf
• Resident game: wildlife that, in contrast to migratory game, permanently inhabits a territory
• Tine: 1. Antler tine; 2. Guard of a bladed weapon; 3. Trigger bar
• Stones: testicles of a wild boar (rare); also: particularly large pearls on antlers
• To bring to bay: 1. the dog brings the game to a standstill, e.g. during a chase after a tracking search; 2. a falconry bird lands; 3. to set a trap ready to catch
• Star: the iris of a game animal
• To flush: systematic searching by a flushing dog outside the handler's direct control
• Fan: the collective tail feathers of a bird of prey
• Bag, hunting bag: all animals killed during a (driven) hunt, laid out in rows according to a prescribed order (“laying out the bag”, “to bring to bag”)
• Flight line: regularly maintained flight path of birds ("feathered game") to and from resting or feeding sites, or during courtship displays, e.g. woodcock flight
• Head: general numerical classifier for things and animals (without plural, e.g. two head of roe deer), particularly because in hunting parlance one does not say the deer or the animal, but refers to a single head
• Shot indication: signs at the point of bullet impact on the game animal's body
• Lick: see salt lick
• Teckel: hunting term for dachshund
• Plates: ears of wild boar
• Tiercel: male bird of prey (exception: sprinz for the male sparrowhawk)
• Hind: female red deer; depending on the species the full term is red deer hind or fallow deer hind, also used as an age designation as yearling hind
• Tirasse: a cover net for catching feathered game
• To bark at the dead: a dog giving voice upon finding a deceased piece of hoofed game and continuing to do so until the hunter arrives
• Death barker: a dog that gives voice upon finding a deceased piece of hoofed game and remains with it until the hunter arrives
• Mort call, death signal: individual hunting horn signals for each species of game brought to bag during a driven hunt
• Tracht: uterus of furred game; also the embryo
• Neck: the neck of hoofed game excluding wild boar
• Drive: a subsection of terrain hunted within the framework of a larger-scale driven hunt
• Drip bed: accumulation of dripped blood from a shot but still standing animal that has sought cover at that spot
• Track: a single hoof print of hoofed game (multiple prints form a trail)
• Plume: feather tuft on a falcon's hood
• To take: hoofed game takes obstacles, i.e. jumps over them
• to pass over: 1. To overlook, e.g. a track or stalking sign, 2. e.g. to walk past a crouching hare, 3. a female ungulate is not covered (mated), so that it does not rear offspring the following year, i.e. has no young
• over-preservation: leads to increased population and wildlife damage
• to over-hunt: a hunting dog leaves the area to be hunted or hunts beyond the boundary of the hunting ground
• yearling boar: a young wild boar between 12 and 24 months of age (originally: in the hunting year following birth)
• to roll over: during earth hunting, the fox or badger escapes to the open past the dog lying in front
• underloaded: a loaded repeating rifle with no cartridge in the chamber
• Urhahn: capercaillie cock
• Urian: an old, strong boar
• to browse, resulting in browsing damage: feeding marks on trees and shrubs
• to sound the death signal: to indicate by a horn signal that a piece of game has been shot
• to spook: to frighten off a roe buck during the leaf hunt
• to die: game dies by violent means. Natural death is called “falling”
• to deter or deterrence: intentional or unintentional driving away of game
• to heat-spoil: the stale ripening (spoilage) of shot game due to heat build-up in the carcass when it is not grallocked in time
• to freeze: the stopping of moving or grazing game, e.g. to examine a “suspicious” object or to locate a sound
• retriever of lost game: a hunting dog that follows the wound trail of an injured hare or fox, catches it, dispatches it and retrieves it
• to spoil: the deterioration of shot game that was not found in time
• to hear
• to startle: to drive away game through carelessness or clumsiness
• preliminary search: finding the point of impact by the hunting dog for further tracking
• pointer breeds: hunting dog breeds that exhibit the characteristic of “pointing”, i.e. they indicate discovered game to the hunter by “pointing”
• Waidgerechtigkeit (or Weidgerechtigkeit): ethical rules by which a proficient and fair hunter should act and hunt
• Waidloch (or Weidloch): the anus or rectum of game or the hunting dog
• Waidmann (or Weidmann): hunter
• Waidmannsdank! (or Weidmannsdank!): the response to a “Waidmannsheil!” intended as a congratulation
• Waidmannsheil! (or Weidmannsheil!): traditional greeting, farewell or congratulatory expression used among hunters
• waidwund (or weidwund): a shot to the entrails (viscera)
• Transient game: ungulates that are not resident in a particular hunting ground or area, but move through for specific reasons, such as the rut or food availability, and soon leave the hunting ground or area again
• Tail: the tail of deer species (cervids)
• Pup: young of carnivores, and thus in principle also of cats, but most commonly used for canids
• Game: wild animals defined as such under the Federal Hunting Act
• Venison: the meat of harvested game intended for consumption
• Game pursuit agreement: an agreement to track wounded or shot game across hunting ground boundaries
• Wildlife damage
• Game trail: a path regularly used by ungulates
• Banner beating, a celestial sign: the scattering of anthills caused by red deer using their antlers; the resulting damage is also referred to as banner damage
• To wind: to perceive something by sense of smell, to scent; used in reference to game and dogs
• Nose: the nose of ungulates, excluding wild boar
• Scent: the sense of smell or a smell (“to pick up a scent”, to sniff)
• To whelp (also: to litter): to give birth, in reference to wolves, foxes and dogs
• Wolf tine: an additional tine on the antler between the middle tine and the crown
• To croak: (also: to rattle, to gurgle) the creaking or guttural sounds made by a capercaillie cock when it has roosted in its (sleeping) tree
• Wound bed: the spot where an injured ungulate lies down
• Zain, the (masculine or neuter): archaic term for 1) the tail of a badger (today: rump); 2) the rutting penis of a stag
• Reaction to the shot: the response of game to being shot, expressed through movement and vocalisation
• Cementum annuli method: a method for determining the age of red deer
• To gralloch: to dress game into venison or kitchen-ready cuts; see also boning out
• To move: 1. to move quietly, of ungulates; 2. to fly, of birds
• Shooting water: alcohol supposedly consumed to help steady the aim
• Saddle or chine: the back roast from dressed red deer, fallow deer, roe deer and wild boar venison, further divided into tail or flower saddle, middle saddle and shoulder or blade saddle
• Future buck or stag: young cervids showing good potential
• To collapse: to fall after being shot, of ungulates
• Press (cf. deer-appropriate signs): earth or snow compressed together in the track
• Forced trail: a path that game is compelled to use due to local conditions (terrain, obstacles, etc.)

IG Wild beim Wild

The IG Wild beim Wild is a non-profit advocacy organization committed to the sustainable and non-violent improvement of the human-animal relationship, with a specialization in the legal aspects of wildlife protection. One of our primary concerns is to introduce a contemporary and serious wildlife management system in the cultural landscape, modeled on the Canton of Geneva — without hobby hunters, but with upstanding wildlife wardens who genuinely merit the title and act in accordance with a code of ethics. The monopoly on the use of force belongs in the hands of the state. The IG supports scientific methods of immunocontraception for wildlife.