Cajun Squirrel Dog Names

While the Cajun Squirrel Dog was developed in the United States, not many people outside of the hunting world in the Deep South know about this interesting breed. Breeders of the Cajun Squirrel Dog can usually trace their dogs’ lineage back to just a few dogs that started it all. Cajun Jack can be found in most Cajun Squirrel Dogs’ pedigrees because he was one of the foundation males used to start the breed. His litter sister, Jimino Thompsons Cricket, was also used as a foundation dam in the 1990s. Cricket’s puppies were eventually bred to puppies out of Cajun Jack to set the type for the breed. The first cross using Cricket to begin creating the Cajun Squirrel Dog was in 1991 and quickly became notorious for being a natural squirrel finding dog being able to produce puppies with the same natural abilities. Hunters found this trait to be the best outcome of creating a new breed.

The Cajun Squirrel Dog came about in the late 1980s when Robert Kemmer of Crossville, Tennessee began working with Calvin Boutee of St. Martinville, Louisiana to create a squirrel dog with the ability to hunt through the bayous of Louisiana and the thick terrain of Tennessee. They began crossing different curs and feists of various backgrounds. The original dogs used were five Mullins Feists, three Kemmer Feists, one Mountain Treeing Feist, and six Kemmer Stock Mountain Curs. Carlton Savoy of St. Amant, Louisiana acquired several dogs from Boutee’s kennel to start his own breeding program. Boutee and Kemmer stayed in close contact with Savoy to ensure the breed’s integrity was staying true to their vision. Even though these dogs were well-documented by Kemmer and Boutee, actual pedigrees for the offspring were not maintained until around 1995. Therefore, most of the original dogs’ pedigrees have been lost. Many of the Cajun Squirrel Dogs were registered at Mullins Stock Feists until after 1996 when the Original Cajun Squirrel Dog Registry was founded. Hunters found the Cajun Squirrel Dog easy to train since most had a natural treeing ability and did not have a propensity for chasing game other than squirrels and occasionally raccoons. They generally remain silent when tracking squirrels but will become more vocal when chasing larger game. The Cajun Squirrel Dog has its own registry and has not been recognized by any other dog registry. Breeders of the Cajun Squirrel Dog do not seem interested in pursuing any other dog registry at this time.