Hunting I. The hunting of wild boars and deer. Montería.

Deer chased by a dog.

"Montería" is a Spanish word with no translation to English. It is a hunting art in which a group of hunters, helped by several packs of dogs called "rehalas" , tries to hunt big animals (mainly wild boars and deer which live in a concrete forest area). Here we are going to explain how a "montería" is organized.

Step 1: to reserve a concrete forest area.

Rehala.

In order to get the maximun animals in the hunting day, it is a common practice to prohibit hunting in the forest area which is going to be hunted. Some organizers also feed the animals, thinking in to make them bigger and healthier.

Step 2: to hire "rehalas".

Dogs are a very important part in "montería". Without them this type of hunting would be not possible, because these dogs have to push the animals slope up towards the crest of the mountaing range, were hunters are waiting. Thus, the organizers hire "rehalas": packs of 20 / 30 dogs controlled by men, called "rehaleros".

Raffle of hunting posts.

Step 3: to raffle the hunting posts.

In a "montería" there are hunting posts better than others. Animals trend to flee towards certain areas, such as glens or thick forest zones. For this reason the organizer raffles the hunting posts, in order to avoid fights or disagreements. This raffle happens in a large country house, close to where the "montería" is going to take place. There hunters, all together, have breakfast and chat, improving good spirit and comradery.

Step 4: arriving to the hunting posts.

Once the posts have been riffled, it is time to go to the forest. It is better to go walking, with no cars, to not scare the animals away.

Step 5. The "montería".

When all hunters are setted in their posts, the "montería" can start. The organizer blows a horn, with indicates the moment in which "rehalas" are free. The dogs start to comb the forest, pushing the wild animals up to the crest, where hunters are waiting for them. There it is the hot point: shooting, danger, big animals running... 

Step 6. To collect the hunted animals. Return to the meeting point.

When hunting's over it is time to collect the animals. The staff of the "montería" look for shooted animals, dragging them out of the forest and carrying them to the meeting point. There the organizer offers a big luch for all people involved in the "montería". Now every hunter identifies and takes his prey. It is very common to cut out the head of the hunted animal and send it to the taxidermist: a person who dissects and prepares it as a trophy. Later, the hunter usually hangs this head in his house.