Re: Slick treeing?
Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 11:23 am
I'd be extremely hesitant about shocking or beating a dog at a tree. I've been at this for a very long time and I've never seen good results come from beating a dog at the tree for any reason. In my experience, the hound associates the pain with the tree, not what he's supposed to be doing. Scold him verbally, handle him a little roughly, and lead him away from the tree.
It sounds to me like this hasn't become a serious enough issue to warrant culling your hound yet. Young dogs are going to make mistakes, but alot of the bad habits they learn are from peer pressure. I've never been a fan of a 5-10 minute hot race for that reason. They are too easy for the hound. They learn to expect a tree in 10 minutes and if it's not there, then they invent one. Another bad habit is for you to start shining a tree too soon. Dogs pick up on this and assume you know more than they do. I like to hunt colder nose dogs that are likely to have to work hard for a tree, usually after quite a long race or hard track. I also want a dog to check his tree really good and make sure he knows he's right before he settles in to treeing.
I'd definitely work with that hound a little more before you cull him. Hunt him alone (and don't expect great results at first... he's been depending on others to help him), try hunting creek beds or river banks away from fields if you can, and give him time to settle down. Don't rush to the tree, either.
It sounds to me like this hasn't become a serious enough issue to warrant culling your hound yet. Young dogs are going to make mistakes, but alot of the bad habits they learn are from peer pressure. I've never been a fan of a 5-10 minute hot race for that reason. They are too easy for the hound. They learn to expect a tree in 10 minutes and if it's not there, then they invent one. Another bad habit is for you to start shining a tree too soon. Dogs pick up on this and assume you know more than they do. I like to hunt colder nose dogs that are likely to have to work hard for a tree, usually after quite a long race or hard track. I also want a dog to check his tree really good and make sure he knows he's right before he settles in to treeing.
I'd definitely work with that hound a little more before you cull him. Hunt him alone (and don't expect great results at first... he's been depending on others to help him), try hunting creek beds or river banks away from fields if you can, and give him time to settle down. Don't rush to the tree, either.