What causes a bear to tree

[lepcur]

If you really stop to think about it, I think the tree is safety to them, from the time they were little cubs and the first 2 years of life the old mamma bear put them up a tree to escape danger and to them that's their safety zone. I think once a bear learns that the dogs can't really hurt them then you run into the bay-up stay on the ground a$$ kickers. JMO Mike

[Nolte]

what causes a bear to tree ? beats me.

Well it surely isn't owner's IQ, cause none of us would ever see a bear in a tree.

Some bear are snappy, some are fast, and some are just soft. The only way you find out is when you put the dogs out. Until then it's all a guess.

We had one a few years ago that was a puzzle and pretty funny. Turned out and it treed right away, simple he was laid out on a limb practially sleeping. We got in there and were standing around for 5-10 minutes and then he got antsy. We didn't even leash a dog up becuase he was acting so mild. Well in a flash he was coming down and the dogs were on him again. He took us all over the place until he got tired out. Then he must have got pissed because wanted to catch. It turned into a walk in bay, bust, repeat deal. The dogs were giving it to him and then he was giving it back. We started picking them because it was getting hot. A couple of the peckerheads kept evading our efforts and we ended still have 3 on this bear.

This went on for what seemed like an eternity. Finally there was no barking we figured they had finally petered out and quit. Didn't hear a peep for like a half hour. I was walking to them with a tracker and out walks a bear across the trail with the dogs walking right behind it. And when I say walk, it was about as slow as they could go. It reminded me of a fight where both guys won't give up but can't really do anything. They walked off the trail and the bear laid down in grass swamp and the dogs did the same. They all just sort of sat there and looked at each other. They finally let me catch them at this point. The bear did bust again, but he went about 10 feet and laid down again.

Not much point to my story except to ramble, but it just sort of shows that a guy never knows whats going to happen on a hunt. If they all get to be routine it would become pretty boring.

[Redwood Coonhounds]

We had a bear bail on us, the dogs would not let it back up a tree, they ripped it down every tree it tried to climb, which was every tree in sight. Ended up turning into a full scale rodeo. The bear had more holes in him than the dogs did when we skinned him out... Not sure why that bear even wanted to come down to begin with. We'd already been at the tree a while....

We've also treed one that ran about 500 yards or so before treeing, nice mellow bear, sat low in the tree, good pup trainer, let it come down to re-run/tree.... We picked up dogs the next morning in the next county...

Walked into a big one just sitting down on his ass. He looked like Winnie the Pooh. His ears were up, and he was just staring around curious, almost bored watching the dogs, zero aggression. Dogs were biting him, and barking in his face.... He seen us and kinda had an annoyed look. Stood up, turned around and walked about as fast as my grandma up the hill into the brush and found another spot to sit down where he didn't see us. As he did so he had two dogs dragging, litterally catch dog style on his ass, they were pulling as hard as they could and he was dragging them. Never even felt them. Could have been a fly on his ass for all he cared....

Bears do what they want. I think a lot of them are dog smart. If they are rewarded (get away) one time by bluffing dogs, or outrunning dogs, they will try to do it every time, and each time they get worse, and it takes that much more pressure to put them up.... They quit seeing dogs as a threat or a danger and for some I think it becomes a little bit of a game.

[dwalton]

If a bear does not want to tree there is not enough hair pulling dogs in this country to make him tree. All you have is a lot of vet bills. They tree because they tree. Dewey

[dhostetler]

Treeing Bears are boring. I will anytime rather turn on a baying bear. To me there is nothing in hound hunting more exciting than walking in on a bayed bear. A lot of guys will not walk into a bayed bear but I always do no matter where its at or how rough.

Then again I like to tree some too. My average is about 1/3 walk/bay 1/3 tree and 1/3 run out of the county.

I have no idea what makes them tree, several weeks ago I heard one climb from where I turned loose (50 yard race) I have never had one bay that was under 150 lb.

I have also noticed on some bears that the more you run them the easier they tree, I think they figure out it is easier to just climb then to waste the energy in running or baying. I think a factor in this might also be in how you treat them while they are in the tree.