Slick treeing?

[The Vise]

The dogs been treeing alot lately and i dont see nothing up there. I read everything on here about how hard it can be to spot the little bandit sometimes and also about tricks for gettin him to look. I think some of these trees prob had something in it i couldnt see but i am pretty sure a couple didnt cuz they were pretty small and i could see the whole tree pretty good. i guess my question is why do the dogs do this? Is it cuz the coon was up there? If so how are they supposed to know it aint up there anymore? Should they be able to tell cuz they cant smell him up there even though they can follow the scent right up the tree? i just wanna get some more feedback on this thing before I start gettin after them for it.

[bency]

Sometimes its been that there was a coon up there, but majority of the time its a den tree.
Just give your dog a light shock, and tell him no and walk away from the tree. Eventually he should get it right, but if not and the slick treeing continues then cut your loses.

[lucus4440]

i had a dog that used to do this pretty often until i found out he was treeing squirls. im not saying that is what your dog is doing but it is somthing to look for. hope you figure it out it can be a pain.

[The Vise]

Thanks for the feedback!

A den tree would have to be a pretty good sized tree right? At least with a good trunk on it? So if a coon was up the tree and bailed before the dogs got there how are they supposed to know that? I guess they should be able to smell if something is still up there??? Like even though a track is going up the tree if the critter aint up there anymore it just wont have as overwhelming a scent anymore? I know none of us could really say for sure how they know cuz we cant smell like that but just wondering what anyone else thinks about how the dog can tell if something is still treed if its dark and they cant locate nothing either way. I mean they are climbing the dang tree so they seem pretty convinced.....

[twist]

This could be the start of a very serious problem. If this is happening and you are not finding game in the tree on a frequent basis your dog is slick treeing dont try and make any excusses for the dog if you dont put a stop to it every dog you have will be slick treeing when ever the track gets a little messed up the dogs will take the easy way out and start treeing. I have seen dogs that have been broke from this and go on and make nice hounds but that is not always the out come. When you catch them in the act make sure they know they are wrong with a good sized education stick or shock collar if this wont correct the dog it needs to be culled unless you like to hear your dog tree and never see the game! later, Andy

[The Vise]

My questions sound a little bit like excuses for the dog but really the purpose was to satisfy my own curiousity of how the dog is SUPPOSED to know nothing is in the tree anymore. I know they just need to know that and they have a way of doing it. Just curious what it is. I assume a tree that has game in it just reeks of scent to them while a slick tree just has a track into it but no powerful aroma of coon! And yes they need educated immediately. 3 out of 4 dogs are doing it all of a sudden. Thanks for all the input.

[Eric Muff]

Twist

You say that you've seen dogs turned around from slicking?
How was this accomplished?
I don't know anyone that has successfully brought a dog back from this.

[twist]

More often than not a slick tree dog will have to be culled but like I said if you get after the dog in a (very aggressive way) they can be stopped of this I have seen 2 different dogs of buddies of mine that this has worked on and they have went on to be very outstanding bobcat dogs. later, Andy

[cobalt]

How old is the dog? Is that the only dog your running? How do you know it is coon your running? How long are the races? Are they jumped races or old feed tracks? What time of day or night are you going out?

[BlacktailStalker]

Bang the tree with a rock, stick or even have somebody kick it while you look up at different angles/shine the light. The vibrations always make the coon move if you do this hard enough.
If there's nothing there, then you know the answer.
Dont over look the fact they (the coon) may cross to another tree if the tree canopys are close enough to each other, sometimes they do this.

I dont know much about the slick treeing thing but I would suggest if you KNOW they are doing that, shock them good and immediately help them get it going again. I'd think they need to know what they should be doing after being zapped, not just zapped off a tree, led away and left confused. Touchy thing, to be messing with a dog on a tree, some dogs are smart enough to figure this out (what they are being punished for) and some relate it to punishment for treeing... Only you know if this particular dog can handle this. You may be better off just pulling him off the tree (hard) with a leash and handling him til you get the track going (hiss him up on the ground, encourage him to work/look for it) if he's too sensitive to shock.

[The Vise]

How old is the dog? Is that the only dog your running? How do you know it is coon your running? How long are the races? Are they jumped races or old feed tracks? What time of day or night are you going out?

This was never a problem before. Had a couple trees i didnt see anything in before this but they were huge and all the trees were meshed together so the coon could have went tree to tree forever. Then one night i went out with my buddy and the dogs treed like 5 times and never did we find anything. One of the trees was so small i know for fact there was nothing in it. I have a 4 year old and 2 year old on on it. He has a 2 year old that was treeing and his better dog (dont know the age) was pretty hesitant. I did tree a few times but i think it was peer pressure. Never saw a coon that night. The next week i went out by myself and they treed twice and were right both times. Couple days later we all went out again and slick treed once (again was a pretty small tree so i am pretty sure nothin was in it). Pulled the dogs off and they treed for real minutes afterward on another tree. All in all its happened like twice on different nights but the one night it was like 5 times. At least one of those five i am certain no coon was in the tree. I can never be sure what they are chasin but i am assuming its coons. We are just free casting them into the fields and letting them find a track. I can usually shine my light in near by trees as the dogs are hunting and see coons up there so i know there is plenty of them around.

[The Vise]

I am usually out just an hour or so after dark. The races are anywhere from 5-10 minutes. Sometimes longer if the little bandit makes for the reeds

[cobalt]

I think you've answered your own question. If you are not slick treeing with your dogs, but are with other dogs(your buddies), then that might be your problem. It should be an easy theory to check. Also, I would be taking my dogs out one at a time to see if they can catch on their own. It is much easier to assess a dog independently, than with company. Young packs usually reduce themselves to the lowest common denominator(one bad apple, weakest link, etc.) and to find the culpret, one needs to isolate variables and eliminate possibilities. Never give the dog the benefit of the doubt. If you are not finding eyeballs, chances are there aren't any there to be found. I've done enough coon hunting to know that 95% of good coon races end up at a tree with eyeballs in it. Good luck.

[The Vise]

Thanks for the advice. I have never hunted the dogs by themselves. It will be interesting to see what happens. My buddy told me that would be a good idea too. The way i posted it sounded like i have only seen slick trees when huntin with the other dogs but that not true. Just happened to have alot that one night. Had a couple on my own before that. I lost an E collar last week so one dog at a time gunna work best anyway for bumpin them off the slick tree. Thanks for all the help. Nothin more frustrating then this thing. I would rather not hear a peep all night then to here em crying wolf. Really pissed me off to be honest but i wanted good advice before i started leanin on the dogs. Thank again

[grouse]

I would not be rough on a dog when it is treeing.Just lead them away and turn them loose again,chances are the coon was there at one time or the other. Try that a few times, and as you are walking into the tree see if you can see the coon before you get the dogs all pumped up on it. Also i like using a dim light for spotting eyes the coon will be less likely to look away.