I am an avid dog hunter and the comments shared here are certainly coming from people who don't hunt. Very few dog hunters now turn dogs loose without tracking collars. Very few dog hunters fail to keep up with their dogs thru the coarse of a hunting day. Occasionally a dog will get into an area where the hunter cannot retrieve a hound (No Trespassing Signs) and the hunter is forced to leave the dog for next day retrieval after the dog has moved. Along with a tracking collar most hounds will have a collar with a tag that states owner, hunt club and phone number. Dogs do stray off leased or owned hunting property at times as they cannot read signs but rarely cause damage to property. As to the physical condition most hounds are found in, some hunters keep their dogs lean for speed and drive reasons, my dogs have food and water available 24/7. As far as safety, the leading cause of hunters being killed or injured is falling out of tree stands. All dog hunters are not beer drinking, animal abusing and abandoning, road hogging thugs, just a few of them are, which is the case in any classification of people enjoying any sport anywhere.