What's the Best Truck or SUV for Pheasant Hunting in South Dakota?

Where a bird rig actually drives

A pheasant day is mostly gravel township roads, minimum-maintenance roads and field approaches, and then walking. GFP's 2026 handbook prohibits driving on Walk-In Areas except on signed trails, and keeps vehicles to designated roads and parking areas on GFP land. The same rules apply to ATVs and UTVs.

So 4WD isn't for driving into the cover. It gets you to the parking spot, and home again, when a road turns to gumbo in October or drifts shut in January. GFP also asks hunters who start leaving ruts on a soft road to back out, park and walk, because frozen ruts make it hard for farmers to move equipment. A truck that backs out of a soft spot under control beats one that pushes deeper into it.

Look for a 4WD system that engages cleanly (low range helps in mud and drifts), enough ground clearance for crowned gravel and snow ridges, and tires with real tread left. Our AWD vs. 4WD guide covers drive systems and tires. Before a late-season trip, check SD511.

When a hunter asks us for a bird rig, we ask two questions first: how many dogs, and what size crates. Then we ask where you hunt. Those answers narrow the choice faster than any brochure.

Taher Alyamany, General Sales Manager

Will your dog crates fit? Check the numbers

Most hunters haul dogs in plastic airline-style crates. Petmate, a major crate maker, lists these outside dimensions for its Vari Kennel:

In a pickup, the narrowest spot is between the wheel wells. By the makers' spec sheets, that is 50.6 inches in a Ford F-150 and in a Silverado or Sierra 1500, and 51.0 inches in a Ram 1500. Short beds give about 67 to 70 inches of floor length, and 6.5-ft-class beds about 76 to 79 inches. Our truck bed size guide lists each bed. On paper:

• Two 32-inch crates side by side (45 inches) clear the wheel wells easily.
• Two 36-inch crates side by side (50 inches) clear by an inch or less. A drop-in liner can make that impossible.
• Two 40-inch crates (54 inches) won't fit side by side. Turned crosswise, one behind the other, they need about 40 inches of width and 54 inches of length, which even the short beds have. The crate doors then face the side of the bed.
• Two 36-inch crates end to end need 72 inches of floor, which only the long beds have.
• Most crates stand taller than the bed sides, so check the inside height of any cap or tonneau cover too.

SUVs are harder to judge on paper. Their spec sheets list cubic feet, not the floor width between the wheel wells or the liftgate opening height. Jeep and Dodge do publish load floor height, which is the jump your dog makes or the height you lift a crate to. With standard suspension it is 32.2 inches for the Grand Cherokee L and an AWD Durango, 32.4 for a 2026 two-row Grand Cherokee and 34.0 for the Wagoneer. Air suspension in entry and exit mode lowers the Grand Cherokee and Grand Cherokee L about 2 inches.

These are factory figures, not our measurements. Liners, mats and caps take away an inch or two, and crates vary by brand. Measure your crates, or better, bring them and set them in the vehicle before you buy.

Pickup or SUV?

A pickup keeps mud, wet dogs and feathers outside, with room for crates, a decoy bag and a cooler. Strap crates to the bed tie-downs. Dogs in an open bed take the full wind at highway speed, which is rough in a South Dakota December; a cap or topper fixes most of that. A crew cab adds a back seat for gear or a second hunter.

An SUV keeps dogs warm and out of the wind, but the mud rides inside too, so plan on a cargo liner and seat covers. Check crate height against the liftgate opening. Full-size SUVs like the Tahoe, Suburban, Yukon, Expedition and Wagoneer have the most floor space.

If the dogs ride in the bed, plan on a cap. If they ride inside, plan on a liner. Either way, buy the floor space first and the options second.

Taher Alyamany, General Sales Manager

Floors, liners and the mud

Look for rubber or vinyl flooring (some work-grade trims offer it instead of carpet), all-weather floor liners with raised edges, and a cargo liner or bedliner. Our service center handles truck accessories such as bedliners and toolboxes. After a wet hunt, rinse mud from the wheel wells and undercarriage before it freezes. Our salt and rust guide covers undercarriage care.

A hitch for the ATV or dog trailer

Pulling a dog trailer, a utility trailer or an ATV to a lodge or a farm takes a receiver hitch. Our service center installs trailer hitches; book online or call service at (605) 250-7474. Tow and payload ratings vary by configuration, so check the door-jamb sticker or the owner's manual. We'll confirm the numbers for a specific VIN. Our towing guide covers trailer weights.

Guns, birds and the vehicle: know the rules

Read the current GFP Hunting and Trapping Handbook before you go, because rules change. The 2026 edition says:

• No one may let a firearm protrude from a motor vehicle on a public road during a hunting season (there are predator and varmint exceptions).
• No one in or on a motor vehicle may shoot at game without a GFP Disabled Hunter Permit (same exceptions).
• Transported pheasants must keep the head, a fully feathered wing or a foot attached, unless processed at a licensed facility or at your home. Birds in a cooler in your vehicle count toward your possession limit.

For the vehicle itself, look for a back seat or cargo area where cased guns lie flat and out of sight, and lockable storage if the rig will sit in a motel or restaurant lot.