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Mondomuttruner: You are right on to be a cat hunter one has to train themselves as they train the dogs. Walking out tracks is the best way to learn both. Most old dogs that are sold as pup trainers do more harm than good. No matter how many cats they have caught in their younger days. Just my opinion. Dewey

My thoughts about a good pup trainer is a little different, no disrespect toward anyone, a solid 8 to ten year old pup trainer can be worth there weight in gold, especially if one hunts bare ground, where cats are thin. I have sold a few over the years that helped some others a ton, most of those wound up dying of old age in the kennel of the person who bought them from me. My experience has been if a young dog had the correct breeding behind them behind them, they were soon pulling ahead of the old hound & HAVING A CHANCE TO RUN THE FRONT OF THE TRACK. True not every one is going to work as well as others & one will need to realize when a trainer is doing more harm than good.

You guys are actually making a lot of sence after reading your posts but the next question is is there anyone that would be willing to take me along for a day and show me the ropes of this cat hunting and talk to me n fill me with more knowledge on cat hunting my ears are wide open and are listening to everything you guys are saying I'm not new to hounds just new to cat hunting

Your more than welcome to tag along but I'm pretty much starting over with some young hounds so I don't know how many cats your going to see.
Where are you located?

I'm located near Marion wisconsin

I'm up near Medford if you feel like taking a ride.

actually if someone is just starting out they don't know what bad even Means they have very little experience as to know how to deal with the woods and a cat or a dog and what he's doing depending on your dog hunting experience u have I would try and find someone to buddy up with and learn a few basics. I Would deffinaty find a trained hound and buy it if u can afford to.in my opinion if your willing to put in the time that dog will teach u more good and bad than any pup or person ever can hands on.i think some people can do more harm starting out with a pup than good and can get discouraged very easily.i started out hunting varmints with out the right stock of dogs and put tons of time in but learned a lot but looking back if I would have bought a good hound and hunted it hard I could have been on my way years earlier. With out a doubt it's a long road to learn and understand so why not make it a little more fun and buy a good dog first. U can train plenty of dogs as u learn what your doing.this is just my opinion not everyone will agree

I don't think he's new to hounds, just cats. I don't think there is a right or wrong answer, just what fits you the best.

Umm. You aren't going to find a dog with some cat experience for sale right now in the midwest. The seasons are going on and anybody with some is probably hunting them. And to be honest not many are for sale ever. Cat hunting is in a tough spot right now in WI. You can't hardly draw a tag. It's up to an 8 year draw right now unless you're native. Not sure how many tags they can get a year.

Walking up tracks is the best way. But that doesn't mean it's easy or much fun. Pounding brush/water with a dog on a leash is a sure fire way to have a meltdown and try to figure out why you didn't pick a different hobby.

Last bit of advice. Temper your expectations. Cats in WI can be tough critters to catch. If you ain't laid off and hunting every snow it'll be tough to get your dogs on enough tracks to get them experience. Also evaluate where your tracks are. If you're headed in to a miserable big section, pull the pin at noon if you're fun hunting. You'll thank me for it. Floundering around in the brush, wet in the dark in the winter isn't that much fun.

Spot on advice Nolte.....

Really love the advise you guys are giving me waiting in the next dusting of snow and then going out and walking a track with my pup