The distance traveled by the hunting dog can be calculated by adding up the distances covered during each trip. Let's break it down step by step:
Trip 1: The dog travels from -1 m to 3 m, which is a total distance of 3 m - (-1 m) = 4 m.
Trip 2: The dog travels from 3 m to -4 m, which is a total distance of -4 m - 3 m = -7 m. Note that when we subtract a larger number from a smaller number, the result is negative.
Trip 3: The dog travels from -4 m to 4 m, which is a total distance of 4 m - (-4 m) = 8 m.
To find the total distance traveled, we add up the distances from each trip: 4 m + (-7 m) + 8 m = 5 m.
Therefore, the hunting dog traveled a total distance of 5 meters.