First hogs caught with my dogs only

[JDJP]

[JDJP]

[longshot]

I know that is a great feeling. Great job on your first hogs with YOUR dogs. I cant wait to see the pics!
Longshot

[broncobilly]

[JDJP]

Spaz, my catahoula pit cross

[JDJP]

So its finally time to go to uglydog for a vest and some collars.
Last night, we went out behind my buddy's house, where he told me he has seen a lot of sign. We took our dogs spaz, cutter, and Mo, and another friend came with his dogs barbie and carl. Barbie is a jam up strike dog, and carl is a gritty catahoula strike dog.

So we head out around 10pm walk back about 1/4 mile and let the dogs loose, about 10 minutes later barbie starts baying solid. Spaz sticks real close at night till he hears bay, and hes off. and mo is a pup so he still sticks kinda close, but he gets out there. SO after we hear barbie, we just wait and seconds later we hear some fighting "Spaz is there" I say, yowe hear mo bark a couple times and he goes right to catching. And just to be safe, bret lets cutter go to make sure hes anchored good, and the squeeling starts.

That pig was about 120lb bar hog, I didn't see any teeth. I took a couple crappy pics with my phone, that unfortunately I can't put on my computer.
I hold the hog and let everyone walk the dogs back out to the trail. I climb up on some tree roots about 3 feet high (where the hog backed up to for the fight) with the hogs leg still in my hand, and let him go. That bastard turn around looked at me for a second and then leaped up at me, his nose made it up to my knees. I gave him a good kick and he fell on his back, got up and made his way out. Im glad I thought to get up on those roots.

We walk the dogs on leads back the opposite way the pig went, and let them loose again. another 1/2 mile back barbie bays hard again, spaz and mo leave us. I count the dogs arivals off again. "mo's there, IS THAT SPAZ BARKING? No thats carl" that fighting starts "now spaz is there" bret lets cutter loose, and we start going in. We here cutter get there and there is no squeeling, just fighting. "he ain't squeeling!" daina yells, and we all pick up the pace. We find a trail through the thick palmettos, and there is a small opening about 10' circle. I hear CAREFUL I SEE TEETH. The boar hog is caught on the ass by carl, on the shoulder by cutter and on each ear by our boys mo and spaz. He's swinging his head around like crazy, the dogs hold on for the ride. bret legs the hog, I pull mo off with one hand, grab spaz's collar with the other, brets starts trying to flip the hog "hold on" I say "spaz is caught" spaz is still on the ear, but when I pull his collar(A NORMAL DOG COLLAR) the hog is moving with it. For a second I thought the hog had spaz by the throat, but he just had one of his wetters looped on the collar.

the guys started walking the dogs out, I still had mo, and noticed he had two good cuts on his neck and chest, and boy was he mad. Little Mo wanted to kill that hog, he was pulling so hard to get back at him, it made me proud. Anyway, we get all the dogs out and bret lets the hog go, he had a broken cutter on one side but nasty wetter on top, and he had a good 2 1/2" cutter on the other bottom side. we get back to the trail and someone says "hey man your dog's cut pretty bad" "who?" I say "spaz, hes leaking good" we shined the light and he had two good punctures, One on hisside chest, and the other right around his solarplexis which was bleeding with a steady flow. Daina kindly offered his extra shirt and wrapped him up tight for me. We walked back out to the trail, and spaz decided he didn't want to walk any more. So bret and I took turns carrying him about a mile back to the house. thank god the little guy is only 50lbs. We got him home and peroxided the cuts, and wrapped him with some gauze and an ace bandage, and took him home.

Spaz is doing good today, his tired, and hes really sore, but hes in good spirits. Ive been babying him all day and feeding him real good to make up for that blood loss. Im glad I didn't lose him hes my main man right now.
So I need to get a collar and vest for him before I hunt him again. Im thinking the devistator? would that be a good vest for a dog like him?
Can't believe I just wrote that much, but I had a good night of hunting so I Thought I'd share it with some people who can appreciate it.

JD

[broncobilly]

Congrats,

Sounds like your dogs are really working good.

Thanks for the story.

Bill

[1hogwild]

[longshot]

What I am about to say are my opinions that have developed over the years and have been molded by hundreds upon hundereds of hogs, they are not trying to convice someone what they should do and it is up to each hunter to do what they feel is right for there dogs:

I fully vest and collar all my catchdogs unless it is blazing hot.

I put a 4in cut collar on all cur\hound size bay dogs and a 2in biothane on my jagds.

I DO NOT AND WILL NOT vest a bay day. The heat and humidity is the enemy! Dogs will heat stroke in the heat without wearing a vest muchless with one on.

So you say it is winter and cold out and you want to you run a vest on baydogs they will learn to get careless when working a hog and rely on the vest to take the beating if you run it while it is cold. Then when it is too hot to wear they will get killed because they dont have the nessacarry skills to avoid taking the horn.

A bay dog SHOULD BAY and have enough sense to him not to try and handle something he shouldnt. Leave the heavy hitting to the dumb bulldogs (that are wearing a vest). There job is to find and stop the hog not catch it.

I feel putting a vest on a bay dog is doing them a big injustice. Restriced movement in the vest is the least of your worries.


I will vest a bay dog if I run them in a bay comp. Becuase they are only there for a set time such as 60sec or what ever the comp time is. But I wet them before they enter the ring and if is is warm I strip the vest as soon as time is called!

Happy Hunting
Longshot

[longshot]

JDJP,
Man, that is awesome that you caught those hogs with only yours dogs. That is a hunt you will never forget!

I remember my hunt with only my dogs and the first hogs we killed. There have been thousands of hunts since then that I cant recall but I wont forget that one! WAY TO GO

Longshot