Need some input about potential coondog

[pigstickndude]

I have a 5 1/2 month old 1/2walker 1/2 cat, that I was gonna train on hogs, he bays great, but he has been trailing & treeing squirrels along the river bed at my house. Guess what I'm asking is, is there any similarity between a squirrel and a coon? And what would be the best way to start him on coons? He seems to be a full open dog so I can't use him to run hogs. Will stay on a tree for a solid hour easily. If someone could point me in the right direction on how to train him I would greatly appreciate the help. Thank you.

[walkersrule]

show him one or two that are in a live trap and see what he does. pet him and let him know that its good. he should put the rest together on his own.

JIMMY

[pigstickndude]

Thanks Jimmy. How old would you say he should be before actually trying to hunt him? He will be ran alone because I don't have anyother coon dogs, and have no room for anymore dogs. I know when to run a hog dog, but don't know nothing about coon hunting. I just know some of them are mean as all get out! Had one whip a catch dog a few years back.
Kenneth

[Emily]

A lot of people hunt their coondogs on squirrel during the day. If its treeing, there should be no problem, although with a crossbreed, you never know what game it will prefer.
I am assuming by 1/2 cat dog you mean catahoula leopard dog? Doesn't really matter.
To switch the dog to coon, get yourself a live caged coon, a fresh hide, or some bottled scent. Live trapped is best. Lay a trail with it and hang it in a tree, so the dog learns to look up. Encourage it, so it knows you want it following this scent.
After that, the best thing is to take it to the woods at night and let it hunt. Encourage it for following what you want it to, correct it for following trash. If you have access to a reliable broke hound to hunt it with, another hound is usually the best teacher, but it will also teach bad habits if it has any.
You can turn out a live coon for it once or twice, but don't overdo it with turned out coons. You want to wet the coon down, then set it free and bring the hound in to hunt after half an hour or so. You don't want the hound seeing where to start the trail--just cut it loose close to the track. That way you know the hound has a fresh track to follow. If you do this too much, the hound won't go out looking for a track and will quit after checking close in.

[walkersrule]

like emily said it is easy to overdo the caged varmints. as for how young? that is all up to you. last winter i had a pup that was 5 1/2 months old on a bobcat and it really turned him on. we had it bayed up under a bush and the pup was right in its face. the cat swatted him a couple times, but the pup went right back at him. i like to start showing them game when they are big enough to put a tracking collar on. thats just me though. it also depends on if the dog is showing interest in it. my advice is that the pup is old enough to start, but thats just me. there are some on here that dont start their dogs until they are almost a year old. you just have to find what works for you.

good luck!
JIMMY

[Emily]

Some start younger than years, most six months to a year, some not until they are three, some never. If he shows interest in a caged coon without acting afraid of it, its ready to start. If you have someone with an older broke hound to turn him out with, just try it and don't force the issue. If he's ready, he'll go with the older hound. If not, put him up for a month and try again until he starts. If you're going into the woods alone with him, just encourage him to follow his nose. If he is treeing squirrels, its just a matter of switching him to the game you want to hunt, and he's probably ready.

[pigstickndude]

Thanks for the advice and input. Yes I meant catahoula. I have an orchard to hunt that is loaded with coons and I know my kids will love hunting them. I just showed him a big boar coon that a buddy has in a pen and he immediately went to the pen from across the yard and started baying. I believe he will stay treed because he will tree a squirrel for a long time. Is it prefered to have feet on tree or just looking up? He is normally just looking up til I get to him, then he tries to climb it and gets very aggressive. Thanks again.

[walkersrule]

thats good, im glad he is doing good.
a good tree dog is just that. if he stays treed, he is doing what he is supposed to do. wether he is standing on the tree, or sitting at the bottom, if he is treeing thats all that matters. some dogs can get over aggressive at the tree and that is a bad thing when you bring other dogs into the picture so watch for that. sounds like you could take him out tonight and get a coon race to me.
good luck!
JIMMY

[montananative]

if the dog is already trackin and treein a showin him a caged coon is all but worthless, and is basically takin a step back in my mind. you can relase them, but like the others said, dont let him see where the coon took off. when i do "controlled" releases, i just leave the dog in the box when i release the coon, then kinda meander over to where i released the coon, let the dog find the track. caged coons are a last resort for me, do alot more damage then good. my dogs dont track on squirrels, if they see em they sight chase em, but i know lots of dogs that will run them. dont think it hurts em any.

[pigstickndude]

Thanks, looks like I'm gonna have to release one for the lil fella. He tried at the orchard, but still lacks confidence to complete the track. He did tree a medium size female but he cheated. She jumped out of a trailer in front of us about 75 yds. Afterwards he would cut out and trail, but pull off after about 150-200 yds. I guess I'm just gonna have to put some time into him. No prob though the kids and o had a blast.

[Emily]

Just keep bringing him out there and praising him while he's trailing. If he gets to the tree, pet him up and keep it exciting. Won't take him long to figure it out.

[pigstickndude]

Found one last night! Sure was proud of my lil buddy! But I got another question. Since he is still a youngster, should I just keep shooting them outta the tree, or would it be better to knock em out? I just don't want him to get hurt, and loose his drive. I can't use him for a hog dog cause he's open, so I wanna be sure to give him the best chance to make me a coon dog. Any and all advice and tips are greatly appreciated! Thanks

[walkersrule]

i think the first few should be shot out. the reason for that is, he is only a pup, and it might be a bad thing for a coon to get ahold of him. a few shot out so he can chew on them should get him really interested in them. after the first few, maybe just one every now and again. you dont need to kill everything you tree to make a dog. if he starts getting bored with it, then shoot one out. just keep him wanting to do it. after a while it wont matter if he doesnt get to chew on one. just pet him up real good and make sure he knows that he is doing good. i hope that helps answer your question.
good luck.

JIMMY

[pigstickndude]

Thanks again! Noone around here hunts coons, at least noone I know, so your help is very appreciated. I'm having a blast with him and the kids, even my 5 yr old daughter gets a kick out of it! Can't take her hog hunting yet so this is turning out to be a good deal. Guess I'm glad he turned out open mouthed after all. May have to get him a partner to work with. Did find out that he ain't tracking the squirrels tho, he is watching for them to come outta the trees, the trees til someone comes and kills em.thanks again for all your help!

[montananative]

sometimes the best thing for a young dog is for the coon to latch on, it just pisses them off, and they have that deep down hate for coons from then on. but it can also ruin a young dog, if it were me, id shoot them out, but do your best to shoot them out with as little life in them as possible. how i did it with my female was when i started huntin her hard and she started treein good, i would shoot every fifth coon out to her. now that she is three, it may be a couple times out before i will knock one out to her, and she still hunts really hard for me.

i think u are on the right track with this dog. keep huntin them orchards where the coon are, and he will catch on. the main thing is to get the dog in good woods with lots of coon, and hunt hunt hunt. thats what makes em