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I've heard this term used quite a bit in this section to describe cat dogs, and mostly as a favorable trait, but it's hard to tell exactly what everyone means when they talk about a "track minded dog". It seems it's a trait that's prevalent in running dogs and running crosses, but what does that mean to you when you use it?

This is my theory of a so called track minded dog, it should be one that can move the track at a very steady pace with out over runs or mistakes and be able to pick its head up and run a jumped cat at a very high pace. Alot of real track minded dogs never do want to pull up and locate when a cat is up as they are wanting to keep trailing so some never do make real great locate and tree dogs. A dog that is the track stradling, nose to the ground all the time will not be consistant at catching cats as they never learn to pick there nose up and run when the cat is up and jumped. Andy

I think a track minded dog is simply a dog that just absolutly LOVES to trail over all other things, and thats his/her most out standing trait. Track minded dogs are not quick to grab a slick tree when they make a lose, but keep hunting for it. When they do tree they damn sure have something in it.

andy hit it right on the head, the key is to find the proper balance between track minded and good locator very hard to do. there are alot of dogs that catch cats but very few cat dogs

Its obvious we dont have a houndoggers dictionary here, certain terms can mean different things to different people. I totally agree with fox hunter and Twist on what kind of traits a dog needs to be a top cat dog or your ideal type of cat hound.
Question was, what do we mean by "track minded"? JMO. I think most commonly, when we (houndsmen) use the term "track minded" it would be just what you are thinking, Andy, is most prevalent in running dogs. Track track track, thats what is in their "mind" no matter how they dice it, you can see it when you hunt them. Is it not what that generally means?
Personally, I like a "track minded" tree hound. A hound that has a track mind but also tree's if the critter goes up. Just more enjoyable to hunt to me. To much of that tree can be a big time fault and leave you pissed off when you walk way in to a good sounding tree thats empty. Seems like the track minded tree dogs are the most honest type of tree dog that ive found out anyway. Good and confused now?? Hope I made some sence anyway..
When we get a good balance of all traits (nose, track, tree,brains) then we move into the term "GAME CATCHING SOB"

Thanks for the responses, just getting started. I hunted almost every night this week and caught a coon but no cats. I've been hunting an old dog that belongs to a friend of mine who is a straight cat dog, he is nine to eleven years old though, a younger green dog, and a a good solid pack/jump dog that is a good coon dog as well. The old dog struck a track last night and I listened to him cold trail for about half an hour to forty five minutes. I was roading and stopped in a particular spot for a minute for one dog to come back, the pack dog, I though he might be on a coon, before he got back the old dog struck on the other side of the road. Every five minutes or so he would open really hard, two or three long bawls and then about five to ten seconds of hard chopping. He made a semi circle and covered less than a mile by my estimate, I have no garmin just beep beeps, the other broke dog never opened, he is a very hot nosed dog but moves a track super fast once the cat is jumped. My evaluation of what happened is that it was just a track that was too cold for that old dog and eventually gave up or was tired, he can't go very long. I don't know if I should start a new thread to ask that but what do you guys think? I'm sure this was a cat as that dog is broke and I have it from a reliable source that he was a hell of a cat dog in his prime. All I know for certain was that I didn't know whether to shit or go blind the first time that old dog opened I was so damn excited!

Andy,

Hold on tight to that EXCITMENT!

Bobcat hunting is sort of like War…Hours of Monotony followed by Moments of EXTREME EXCITEMENT!

I will PM you the names and numbers of a couple of Good Hunters pretty close to you…look them up!

Keep after them and Good Running!

After that dog struck the first time I got a taste, it was a little one but I'm hooked, thank you for the help Mr. Clay.

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As all things track minded means different things to different people all is correct for that person. For me a track minded dog is a dog that does not bark twice at the same place but is moving that track forward, not over running it but able to push the track past dead spots. He seems to know where that cat should be going. He also knows the difference in the front end of a track and the backend, not going far until he turns the track around. A track minded dog knows when a track ends such as at a tree and hopefully trees. Most good track minded bobcat dogs that I have seen work with their head up talking scent from the air and off bushes, thus are able to move a track faster. It does not take a super fast dog to tree a bobcat it takes a good track minded dog that makes the turns, seems to know where that cat is going, picks up loses fast and put steady pressure on the cat. Thus he or she will appear to be a fast dog because they are moving the track fast. Some running dogs seem to have these traits more than other dogs but it can be found in all breeds. Dogs can be taught this by proper hunting with dogs that move a track. There are others that will never pack up or move a track fast. Each to their own. Dewey