that dog won't hunt

that dog won't hunt

old-fashioned Primarily heard in US.
1. That claim, argument, or explanation is inaccurate or unfounded. My opponent claims that my administration has hurt the economy, but you only have to glance at the statistics to know that dog won't hunt. A: "Our company could have really been successful if you hadn't held us back like that!" B: "Come off it, Jack, that dog won't hunt. I've done all I could to make this company a success, and you know it."
2. That idea or proposal is not viable or has no chance of succeeding; that won't work. A: "Why don't we try lowering the price?" B: "Nah, that dog won't hunt. We need something that grabs people's attention, not just a cheaper product." Tom wants to sue them, but that dog won't hunt if you ask me. They've got enough money to hire the best legal team in the country.
See also: dog, hunt, that
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

that dog won't hunt

This idea or excuse won’t work. This folksy expression originated in the American South, where dogs are commonly used to hunt raccoons and other wild animals. Also put as that old dog won’t hunt, it originated in the late 1800s.
See also: dog, hunt, that
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • (Well,) I'll be durned!
  • a bad quarter of an hour
  • a pile Jack Rice couldn't jump over
  • a roll Jack Rice couldn't jump over
  • (for) land('s) sake(s) (alive)
  • a bit of crackling
  • a whole team and the dog under the wagon
  • a stuffed shirt
  • fashion
  • a dusty answer
References in periodicals archive
I'm here to tell you: that dog won't hunt. Allow me to echo the words of a wise friend: "The amazement and passion we receive from the wild is for all who desire to choose to do so.
Women In The Great Outdoors--Oh My!
"I want you to say, 'That dog won't hunt!'" - Rick Perry in Austin on Saturday, advising his supporters how they should respond when critics challenge Texas' accomplishments
The Brief: Aug. 22, 2011
That dog won't hunt. Shareholders are owners as much as they are investors.
Capital plan is a bust
Lou Allin (author); THAT DOG WON'T HUNT; (Fiction) $9.95 ISBN: 9781554693399
That Dog Won't Hunt by Lou Allin reveals that a dog is not just man's best friend but also woman's.
That Dog Won't Hunt
That dog won't hunt. In drafting FISA, legislators were mindful that the government would need the kind of flexibility that would avoid delays.
The man who would be king: what to do when a president places himself above the law?
IN WAL-MART COUNTRY, SAM Walton and others of his era often used sayings such as "that dog won't hunt" when declaring a business idea futile or unfounded.
'That dog won't hunt'
But when Bush gets the nomination, that dog won't hunt, as they say in Texas; he is damaged goods.
SHRUB: The Short But Happy Political Life of George W. Bush