Stopping a running hog!!!!

[oconee]

First of all I'd like to start by saying "I'm not one of these guys that has pulled a couple piggy sows out of a mudhole and thinks he's a hoghunter". To make it clear!!! I've caught a TON of hogs in my life!!! Now having said that I have an OPINION on these so called "runner stoppers" everyone is talking about here latley. I'd like to hear everyone elses OPINION after you guys read mine. I've ran curs most of my life and have recently went to all plotts so I understand the pros and cons of each. The truth is no matter what you prefer some hogs just RUN and there is nothing we can do about it. No matter what our ego tells us!!!! I understand the reasoning behind the silent curs but having said that I've ran hogs for hours with dogs not making a peep on track. Likewise I've ran hogs less than a mile with a pack of plotts barking every breath. Now back to what I said befor "some hogs just run" and the topic is stopping them. Its my understanding that there are hunters that own dogs that can physically run an adult boar down and bite him in efforts to MAKE that hog stop. Now its my OPINION that, that is not possible. Now I know there are variables that may make this possible AT TIMES!!!!! If a hog is crossing open country or running through open timber there are plenty of dogs that can do something about that, I own a few of these type dogs myself, but chasing a hog through the thickets is a totally different chore altogether!!!! Now assuming we are all very experienced hoghunters we should know that 99% of hog races take place in the thickest of thickets. If we are now all on the same page just tell me how many times you've seen a boar BLOW out of a briar thicket that your dogs could barley get through. Now lets all be honest!!!! How many of you believe that this "runner stopper" you have in your pack actually runs that hog down and grabs him????? Is there any chance that the hog stopped on its own and that dog found him and got real rough on him until the rest of the pack got there and proceded to catch the hog????? I've seen this happen hundreds of times with silent dog as well as dogs barking every breath. So the truth is if that hog hadn't stopped ON HIS OWN TERMS there would've been nothing any dog could've done about it. Now by now I'm sure there is smoke coming out of some peoples ears as they read this and thats why I say its only my OPINION. Back to my little theory, lets say this hog hasn't stopped for about a mile now. How far do we all think our dog would be behind after a mile of that thicket he could barley get through the last time we saw him. I have a big ego and alot of confidence in my dog but I feel like that hog would already have the upper hand in this race. Now this running hog can slow his pace alot and run for along time and all the sudden we're after one of those DANG RUNNING SUCKERS. Now outlasting this hog and wearin him out is not the topic so without that feel free to tell me where in my little senerio this "runner stopper" would've stopped this hog??????? My OPINION " some hog just RUN" and there's nothing we can do about it!!!!!!!! Thats my OPINION so don't hate me just share your OPINION!!!!! Thanks for reading!!!

[mountaincurs]

Now this is alot to read but i know where your coming from, most the places i hunt are mountains/swamps and open country isnt anywhere close lol. when you gotta belly crawl to most your hogs you know how i feel. But yea no question a hog has the upper hand in the brush, but they only run as fast as you chase them. Goes back to what you were saying hogs stop when they want to. but my idea of it is i want dogs that when they stop or are stopped they arnt gonna let it go again, mind you ive got a pack of running catch dogs but thats the way i want them. Got a buddy that runs both curs and plotts and both his packs catch alot of hogs. but the main thing ive seen that they have in common is they will pull hair when he stops. now weather he stops or the dog stops him is kinda like which came first the chicken or the egg.

[Huntsalittle]

In my experience what you have said is pretty much how I think things usually have gone down. When we bust and scatter a bunch, or a bayed hog breaks, we have pretty good luck (but not 100%) catching and stopping the smaller pigs, (150 or less), but the big boys can be a problem, especially if they have a head start. Circumstances such as inexperienced dogs or not being in top hunting shape can affect a dogs ability to catch up to and stop a hog, but bottom line, if a hog decides to run it can sometimes make for a long day, scattered dogs, and possibly no pork.

[stevemac]

I know we hunt pigs a little different over here to you cur and hound fellas and your right a pig will have it all over the dogs in thicket. some time back I was hunting in a pine forest in the mountains not to far from here the dogs tracked a good boar down the side of the moutain to a tea tree thicket along the a creek when we got there we could here a good race going on after a while the boar came out to a point where we could see them he was wheeling around using the scrub to evade the dogs at one point I could have shot the pig but my mate got in the way not sure what he thought he was going to do. the up shot of the whole thing was the pig got away. Now I hunted that day with a bullyxcattledog a couple of staghounds and a ridgeback who happened to do the finding in the first place. After this I gave a fare bit of thought to that hunt and how we were beaten through this thicket so I decided to put a bully xstoghound x my staghoud female and ended up keeping 2 pups from either end of the litter now those 2 dos are 4yrs old and I hunt all sorts of country with them including those tea tree thickets and while themale is big dog and that catches hogs most places he cant compete with the female that is only 24"tts and grease lightning in a tight place. her first point of contact is the nuts and and not just a love bite she has them sitting on the familly jewels quick as can be and if she gets beaten out of the thicket she has the speed to not let them get very far. any way thats what I did to catch more pigs out of that type of country.

[txswamphunter]

i belive , that the hog decideds where an when he will stop ,
with that being said i have a dog that will for sure stop a hog out in the open, Staghound thats the only dog i have fast enough to catch a hog at full speed ,
through thickets or swamps hogs will get a pretty good lead on dogs , i have had them run no where an then i have had them run miles , usally the big hog runs to group an scatters the dogs on smaller hogs while the big hog keeps on running

[dhogdog]

What you are saying is very true and feel that this happens most of the time. Here are my 2 cents and only my opinion. I think what most people refer to as a dog that will "stop a runner", is a dog that is silent until he sees the hog. This dog is more than likely a rough strike/find dog that will get close to a hog and ham/bite a hog in rear immediately once a hog turns and tries to run. When this happens most hogs will stop and turn to defend itself--thus the name run stopper/nut dog. Now having said this, i have seen hogs try to run with a dog hanging on its rear end but obviously cant run as fast when this happens (these are not the norm but does happen).

Adding to this, when most hunters have "runners" or hogs that have been dogged before, they prefer to use silent trailing dogs. This is just to improve their chances. Please don't misinterpret what I am saying. Open dogs can get the job done ( i have owned many), but in order to maximize your chances, most people tend to go to a silent trailing dog. Does this happen 100% of time, no it doesn't. Just my 2 cents and not trying to offend anyone.

[kadams14]

run him with a pack of barking dogs. hearing the race is the best part of the hunt

[coadycurbow]

Nearly every hog that we strike now, is a runner to some extent. I believe this is happening due to us killing the slow hogs that would stand and fight over the years, and due to so called "runner stoppers" and running catch dogs. Fifteen years ago the dogs trailed to the hogs and bayed up the whole group and you caught or killed what you wanted. Now, they scatter like quail at the first sign of a dog in the area. Then, you run one of for four or five hours and bay him five or six miles from where you jumped him. The rough dogs that everyone are so high on don't do anything but train hogs to run more. IMO. Nothing upsets me more than getting a hog bayed and a rough dog shows up late or is turned in, only to grab at the hog, making the hog take off again. I think you need a dog that can apply enough teeth to make the hog stop, then get back and bay until he tries to run again.

[ironman]

This is the main question I've tried to answer in my book hog hunting with dogs the hogdoggers bible

[hoghunter89]

I have found that the number of hog hunters have trippled in the last 10 years. hogs are just flat out being run a lot more. i run both open dogs and silent dogs and have found that i put my best silent and best open slower trailing dog together i catch bigger hogs more than i have in the past. i really dont know how it works but it works for me. i enjoy listening to hounds rattling down timber but i also enjoy the agility in a cur dog. i think everybody here makes valid points but i think the running problem is just the number of hunter. this may vary depending on area. when i hunt public places i find myself running hogs for hours. i hunt somebodies private ranch i can run open dogs and stop hog in a matter of a few hundred yards. To me running a hog for 3 hours then he stops and we catch the hog and hes a biggin it makes me proud of how hard my dogs worked to stop that sucker. On the other hand my dogs usually wont stop unless i catch them crossing or they are just flat out gassed which usually will ruin a day if the hog wont stop.

[lukeyboy]

all dogs I run all run down hogs with the ass end bite in thick gorse and crap they all have bit greyhound and cross with bull breeds some can hold a good hog 150lb with guts out by them selfs and others will bail once stoped pigs get chased a lot over here I sit on 80-90% catch rate lot guys don't most of the boars I catch have ears missing from other dogs that they have beat and got away and they don't bark till pig is caught you woudnt catch a cold here with dogs that trail bark I have dogs between 25kg-35kg and some can reach speeds up to 55km and 2 bitchs I have can also track at high speeds in the thick shit and can stop a running pig in there tracks by hit the nuts or ass and they also rip nuts out of them what makes them sit down and puts there ass on fire. we wouldn't have the pig numbers like yous guys every dog in my pack has to be able to find and stop a running pig cant afford to carry a dog that just goes to bark