"I love bear hunting but my opinion of using dogs will remain quiet."
I truly understand & FULLY respect your thoughts.
Many feel the use of dogs isn't sporting, proper, ethical, unfair, or many other emotions. Everyone has the right to their feelings.
I teach Hunter Safety, and part of my class is "Ethics." And I use dog hunting as a good example for part of that. The use of dogs in hunting for many species is as old as time itself. Not just bears. Many breeds of dogs were bred just for specific purposes. Terriers were bred to go into holes after foxes & groundhogs or such. Pointers were developed for birds. History is full of many things relating to dogs being used in hunting.
Here in the mountains of WNC, or the swamps of ENC, dogs are used for bear hunting. The terrain, combined with the thick foliage, or swampy places, can make it very hard to even get a chance at a bear. And hunting is a good, ethical method of assisting the population control of bears. I'll use our local area, and even this bear hunt as a prime example.
Locally, we have Buncombe County, and especially Asheville City. It has the largest population of bears of all the surrounding counties. Why? Asheville City & much of the county is some form of sanctuary for bears. No hunting allowed. Many of the residents there fight fiercely against any form of controls. So we have an over-population of bears. As such, humans encounter bears daily there. And yes,, there are many problems with bears. The local hunters all have discussed the fact that it's not "if" it's a matter of "when" a kid gets killed by a bear. We went almost 100 years around here w/o any bears attacking a human. But a few years back, a woman was killed by a bear. We hear stories daily here of different interactions with bears. Some,, not so good.
Personally, I wish hunting bear w/o dogs around here was a bit easier. The western method of "spot & stalk" to me would be exciting. Here.. we are lucky to be able to see 100 yds,, much less a few miles like many western states.
And in many states,, the "Hunting over bait" is the preferred method. Many oppose that as well.
There needs to be a balance.
That said, I will also offer this.
SOME bear hunters who use dogs are not the best people to be around. How those types treat their dogs etc is wrong to me. I won't go into many details,, but I do my best to avoid having anything to do with those types.
But it's like just about every subject out there. There is good & bad in everything.
Heck, look at gun owners.
Some gun owners dislike AR-15's. Some feel we should all own anything w/o any restrictions. I know shotgunners who push for bans on AR's.
My point is,, we need a balance in everything.