Who has a dog or dogs in there pack that can catch alone?

[twist]

This is a take off of jc ? about catdogs. To me every dog must be able to go truck to tree, (may need a little help from houndsman) here and there but every dog has to be helped some days at certain points in the chase. I hunt 4 hounds for the most part and any one of them are capable of catching their own cat. How important is this to other hunters? Andy

[catcrazy_406]

if a dog cant catch game on its own its not even worth having. once its past the point of starting that is. once its started if all its doing is running with the pack then its not even hunting its following and you can never count on it. a dog like that can be in my opinion one of the biggest cancers to a pack of good hounds. the one that cant catch game on its own is typically the one that is starting fights with the other dogs and causing all the problems. i've never had a dog like that but i've seen it time and time again with guys i've hunted with and it seems like it would be emberassing to be the guy with that dog. when the dogs are cold trailing or working a tough track thats one thing, some dogs just have better noses than others but if a dog cant catch game by itself in my opinion it isn't worth having. it'll cause you more problems than it will ever do you good. lion hunting has been in my family for 50 plus years and it just seems like a follow dog is a problem dog, but thats just my opinion. good topic. curious as to what others think. -Drew

[007pennpal]

I have dogs that can do it solo, but I think dogs that can't catch on their own are very useful in a pack. For example, a really slow cold nose dog could get a cat started that others couldn't - then the pack finishes the cat once started. The other example is adding running dogs that don't tree well. Or even a real fast hot nosed dog. He's not gonna grub out an old track but will add to pressure. Also, what I call a looper is useful. They are using the other dogs noses to keep them in the neighborhood while they loop out and bust the cat. And the list goes on and on. If one dog could do it all, then none of us would run a pack.

[meagain]

I really enjoy reading all your thoughts on this section of the forum. just wanted to say Thanks from the peanut gallery.
Sometimes you get me thinking and judging the faults and/or qualities of the dogs i'm hunting in a slightly different perspective. Thank You

[startingline]

I believe a dog should beable to catch his own cat , But there will be times that it might need help at some point , by other dogs or even you , like said in other posts . I don't believe in a dog thats there just as a pack dog , just to run with the rest . To me that's a waste of time and the money your putting into that dog .

[dwalton]

By the time a dog is 2 to 3 years old it should be able to catch its own game. I have caught cats with dog by them selves many times that were not cat dogs and have know house pets treeing bears and coons. Because a dog trees its own game means very little to me. One has to look at the complete dog most dogs that people catch cats with I would not own but I would own a dog that is a pack dog that has a outstanding trait that I could not find anywhere else. I would also breed to that dog to try and create the perfect cat dog. Treeing game has little to do with what I look for in a dog. It is the end result that I look for but there are far more important things that need to be considered. Just my opinion. Dewey

[Dads dogboy]

Folks,

We have learned a very valuable lesson here on BGH....that is not to make Sweeping Statements!

Different Regions require different Skill sets to successfully end a Bobcat Track.

Now the Statements that a "Hound must Catch his or her own Cat by themselves" does not apply to much of the Range of the Bobcat. Hunters from Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean below the Mason Dixon line have Habitat that makes it very hard if not impossible for “ONE” Hound to “Catch” a Cat.

Now you may infer from other Posts that this might just be a Cultural Tradition not a carved in stone rule that it takes a Pack of Hounds to “Consistently” be successful on a Bobcat Track in the South or South Eastern Piney Woods or the Brush Country of South Texas or old Mexico. This may be true however NO One has come forward with the ONE Hound to demonstrate that ONE Hound can be consistently successful in this region.

In other Regions ONE Hound can sure be Successful! In Fact Mr. Pete Richardson told me in a Post several years ago that a second Hound in his Region was sometimes just in the way.

Anyway the focus of this Rambling is that One should never loose sight of the Fact that DIFFERENT Regions require different Skill sets and in some areas this is more Efficiently Packaged in the TEAM of a Skilled Pack of Hounds!

[Patrick]

For the varmint hunting I do, where and how I do it:

I really like working with pups and young dogs. But when I come to the conclusion they are not going to develop into a dog that can do it by themselves I am ready to put my efforts into another one.
Of course they won't all do it consistently alone in style. But trying to put it into words, I think my measurement of acceptable to "eat my dogfeed" for a grown dog is that if they are the only dog in the kennel fit to hunt on a given day, I want to go hunting with the feeling I have a decent chance of treeing something.
Not to say that I haven't/won't hunt with lesser crap dogs if the option is not hunting, but I will be planning and working to change that situation.
Pat

[U.R.E.]

Some do not believe it can be done because they have not seen it done or do not have the caliber of dog that will do it constantly. A pack of “me to” dogs do little to impress me. I, as well as many others in this region, feel folks that use these dogs in breeding programs are responsible for the stagnation in the progression of the hound.

Believe me there are “cat dogs” out there that do catch cats. They do not need help from dogs suffering from ADHD. They will move a track deliberately, accurately, quickly and constantly. They are not lucky they are well breed, well trained and well rounded.

I personally would not even consider buying a pup, let alone a dog from a breed or breeder that does not constantly catch with 2 or 3 dogs.

[dwalton]

Don: That is one way to look at it and it has merit. Every dog I have and breed has caught there own cat or with any one combination with others. I hunt packs for training and for dogs to learn how to move a track, how to cold trail, and how to tree from others that have expertise in a area. I sold a good young dog this year that could catch cats and was one of the best start dogs I have ever scene because she would not pack up. I will not breed a dog that won't pack up and compete with the others. It can cause a lot of problems with training young dogs or with others. Dewey

[twist]

I will have to say I am leaning toward Dons statement A good team of 2-4 is a pretty good way to go in my area (that can all catch their own cat). In this area if you get to many dogs on a cold track you are just shooting yourself in the foot. It is always nice to have at least 4 dogs that can do it on their own as this year I had one break a toe and another have a front leg problem so you can sure be under doged real fast. If it wasnt for reason like this and also training a new pup a guy could sure catch as many or more cats here with just one dog. Andy

[slowandeasy]

i think no matter what part of the country one is from, less is more as a general rule. i mean come on, when we want to start putting dogs down that are slashing all over the place with hopes that they will run into the cat. why no just go to the grey hound track. i thought that enjoying the trailing and treeing was what was to be enjoyed. not how many hides we can put on the barn by ambushing them.

[mark]

I hunt to hear a race. And if you like the sounds of 1 or 2 dog race you would love the sound of a 6 to 8 dog race! And they aren't all playing follow the leader contrary to some of the "Cat Legends" opinions on here.

[catcrazy_406]

i good loud race with many dogs is nice to hear and just cuz there is 6 or 8 or maybe even more dogs doesn't mean they are all following the leader. im sure if you put any one of the 6 or 8 down by themselves they could all catch their own cat. theres a difference between choosing to run 8 dogs for fun and having to run 8 dogs in hopes one of them will put the cat up!

[dwalton]

I don't run 8 dogs to be able to catch a cat. Each should be able to catch it but if you have 8 out there that don't bark off track and are not running crazy you would be surprised at how fast they move a track. It is not just eight ,it is 8 cats dogs trained to run together, not bark off track and catch cat. Any one of you can come and hunt with me to see what i mean. Until you see it it seems like you can't believe it. Dewey