Big game trials

[Goose]

Tuskers hog hunting magazine is planning on putting together a big game trial of some type in north la next year and I mentioned to Ed about having a rigging contest. Could some you guys who have put on such events or competed in them give some advice on things to do and not do, going to have a trailing contest as well and would like some pointers on it as well.


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[Cajun]

Goose, Dont know anything about a rigging contest but when the WBCA put on a field trial years ago they did have a drag race using Grawes hog scent.

[Goose]

We were talking about having a hog in a cage off the road, putting a deerhide out and some other off game and having maybe 3 or 4 dogs on a rig with the handlers riding in another rig behind with the judge, putting some sort of trail marker out that only the judge knows and it's whereabouts starting several hundred yards from the hog, the handler will call his dog struck no different than a nite hunt, if the dog rigs and opens on on the off game then he is DQed, how did yall do the trailing contest...


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[david]

I have never heard of a feild trial for rigging.
I will be curious to hear how it goes for you guys.

I know with cats the slightest shift in wind can make all the difference. Hopefully you have a reliable wind direction.

[Goose]

That's going to be a hurdle were going to have to figure out different ways to do it for changing environmental factors...


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[Joshg223]

I'm not sure I would set out off game scents simply because a dog may be rigging the hog where the deer hide is and it would be DQ'ed when it might have been rigging the hog. You might be able to turn the dog out and see if it goes straight to the hog though. I think that is a really cool idea and if you come up with a good system I might drive in from Texas as I have a pretty decent rig dog I would enter.


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[Pwilson]

I like the rigging contest ideal may just make sure the off game is way off the trail to were u know they can't be smelling the hog


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[pegleg]

I think it had more real world application then somethings hound owners do. Use a Garmin to Mark the route with no visible markers. And keep it simple enough but seperate scent by a mile or more its not like anyone hounds included are going to get worn out rigging. I messed with it a little and found it worked best in training to road the young dogs several miles first. Just to calm them down. Anyway I suspect a few dogs will be able to strike a hog a hell of a long ways off. For this reason unless your able to really stretch things out I would give any handler the option of dropping the dog if it strikes before dq or minusing it or whatever.
I am not a master hog Hunter by any means but have seen dogs scent things at distances and conditions I couldn't really believe. But if the dog ends up at a trash scent its hard to argue. Another thought is some dogs just never open on training scents so having trash scent and live hog maybe stacking the deck a little. But be fair and have fun beats sitting at home however you do it.

[Goose]

I think it had more real world application then somethings hound owners do. Use a Garmin to Mark the route with no visible markers. And keep it simple enough but seperate scent by a mile or more its not like anyone hounds included are going to get worn out rigging. I messed with it a little and found it worked best in training to road the young dogs several miles first. Just to calm them down. Anyway I suspect a few dogs will be able to strike a hog a hell of a long ways off. For this reason unless your able to really stretch things out I would give any handler the option of dropping the dog if it strikes before dq or minusing it or whatever.
I am not a master hog Hunter by any means but have seen dogs scent things at distances and conditions I couldn't really believe. But if the dog ends up at a trash scent its hard to argue. Another thought is some dogs just never open on training scents so having trash scent and live hog maybe stacking the deck a little. But be fair and have fun beats sitting at home however you do it.

Never thought of handler having the Option to put the dog down, that's a good idea, in LA we can still Transport live hogs so the hog would be live in a pen off the road, and off game would be some frozen deer hides and maybe some coons in a cage, the different scents would definitely be a good ways from each other...


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[duck duck goose]

I saw a rig contest once up in Alberta. They ran 20 something dogs through where they had just drug a bear scent and not one of them made a sound haha. It was a really short run though and pretty close to the camp where everyone was hanging out so i think the dogs didn't know they were supposed to be hunting.

They put them 1 at a time on the back of a side by side and ran them maybe 500 yards up a trail, turned around and came back.

[dhostetler]

I have rigged bears up to a half mile away and have not rigged bears I seen cross the road in front of me with the same hounds. Rigging is a complicated science and to be able to get it contained into a field trial arena I think would be pretty hard, though having the competition on flat ground a person should be able to have a more consistent wind drift rather than mountain terrain. Some good rig dogs are pretty rattly too, would a dog get minused for being excited and the handler knows the hound when he is rigging and just being stupid but the judges wouldn't. My dogs usually have to be roaded several miles before I can get them to settle down and actually rig.

I think pegleg has a great idea in letting the dog down on a rig and go to the scent. The handler could be given the option to let the dog down or not and by doing that the handler could be calling his own dog's strike.

[david]

Rigging is a complicated science and to be able to get it contained into a field trial arena I think would be pretty hard, .

I was trying to think of a good way to say that, but you said it perfectly. There are so many variables its unreal. Finding the actual best rig dog this way would be an amazing feat in my mind.

I want to hear about the dog that rigs, is put down and trails up a free roaming wild hog, lol.

I am excited about it and hope it goes well and you come up with a system that works. You are pioneers, and could really add something fun and useful to the hound world if you figure out all the issues and find ways to deal with them.

We wish you the best and please let us know how it goes.

[david]

I saw a rig contest once up in Alberta. They ran 20 something dogs through where they had just drug a bear scent and not one of them made a sound haha. It was a really short run though and pretty close to the camp where everyone was hanging out so i think the dogs didn't know they were supposed to be hunting.

They put them 1 at a time on the back of a side by side and ran them maybe 500 yards up a trail, turned around and came back.

Most dogs I have ever seen on a drag don't open on the ground on it. Dogs with any experience know the difference. So I would be surprised if dogs would open from the rig on bottled scent, wether good game or off game. I never tried it though.

I am all ears.