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Just curious as to other bear hunters oppinion. I started hunting with terriers so I like a dog that goes in an grabs a hold of the game. I have been on some bear chases where the only way we got em stopped is cause everytime the bear would turn to run the dogs would be hanging off his rear. (Unfortunately I don't have this type anymore).
I've heard some people say they don't want gritty hounds cause it leads to expensive vet bills and dead dogs. they want a hound to just follow and stay a few feet back barking. My own opinon on this type of dog is they wont tree the big bad ones. Just curious speak your minds and answer up. Good hunting guys.

I like my hounds to do both. Don't want them running in and latching on a buzzsaw. But don't want them standing 10 yards back booger barking either. A good hound should have enough brains to bite when it should and back up when it should. Bear dogs that catch won't last very long. If my hounds get cut once or twice a year I am good with that. Doesn't take a super gritty dog to tree a bear just a smart dog. Then again there are some bears that will not tree, don't care if you are hunting pitbulls. Just a hillbilly's 2 cents.

I heard a Quote and a kennal web site I really liked and think it holds alot of truth. A BEAR THAT DON'T TREE JUST HASN'T BEEN BIT HARD ENOUGH YET! I know not all feel this way and thats fine you hunt a differnt style of dog, but when I have a going pack of dogs nothing would make me happier then to have every bear caught look like he just got his rear shaved. But thats me

LBell wrote:I heard a Quote and a kennal web site I really liked and think it holds alot of truth. A BEAR THAT DON'T TREE JUST HASN'T BEEN BIT HARD ENOUGH YET! I know not all feel this way and thats fine you hunt a differnt style of dog, but when I have a going pack of dogs nothing would make me happier then to have every bear caught look like he just got his rear shaved. But thats me

that sums it up pretty good!

Looking forward to Nolte's input on this one, he sure seems to get outran and walked on alot, oh yeah, those Wis. bears are alot like their coons

I think that what Tomzr2 posted above is pretty much what I want. If their getting a few cuts and slaps then I'm o.k. with that. Much else and their out of commission and I don't have enough dogs to lay them up like that. The last two years I've started with six dogs in Sept. and by Thanksgiving I've been down to two that can hunt and its usually my varmit dogs still going so what good is that doing me? I've hunted a long time now and everytime someone brings their super bearfighters hunting with me in the brush they either get ate up and are worthless or are back baying with the rest. Just give me a good, close bay dog that will grab when it can, not get caught, stay till dark and its going to give me a good chance to do my part. To each their own.

Whether they bite or not I dont know, but I've never seen my buddies dogs or mine ever quit a bear.
Bears have gotten away when they've gotten ledged out in cliffs, at the base of fallen trees where the bear crossed a ravine and they couldnt climb it, been sucked under water crossing rivers, pinned between rocks, collapsed from heat exhaustion but never outrun or made cowards by a fighting bear.
Who cares as long as they never quit.

as long as you catch what you turn loose on who rilly cares..... what ever works.... i know (some) of my dogs pull (some) hair iv got video of it, but they are not stupid.

tomzr2 wrote:I like my hounds to do both. Don't want them running in and latching on a buzzsaw. But don't want them standing 10 yards back booger barking either. A good hound should have enough brains to bite when it should and back up when it should. Bear dogs that catch won't last very long. If my hounds get cut once or twice a year I am good with that. Doesn't take a super gritty dog to tree a bear just a smart dog. Then again there are some bears that will not tree, don't care if you are hunting pitbulls. Just a hillbilly's 2 cents.

Think Tom said it best. My dogs arent even close to anyones dogs on here as they are too new, they will get in there and pull hair now that they are more experienced but I definetly dont have that good of bear dogs yet, its still fun though. In a perfect world I would have dogs like Tom stated, vet bills would get too damn high, basically you need a SMART and gritty dog. But everyone is different. Id rather my dogs not be out of commission either when cat season rolls around

Thinking back over the truely good bear dogs I've owned and that I've seen turned loose I would say that they generally have one thing in common. Most all of them have barked a ton on track and when bayed. Some where aggressive and some where not.

I prefer the dog that catches the bear and does it without being injured. Every time I turn my dogs loose I expect them to catch a bear. As long as they do it without costing me vet bills then I am happy with them.

We all have different oppinions about hounds and how we like our hounds to perform. The only person a dog has to make happy is the one who buys the food.

larry wrote:Looking forward to Nolte's input on this one, he sure seems to get outran and walked on alot, oh yeah, those Wis. bears are alot like their coons

I'm not sure why you've got sand in your crack about me, but I'll play.

I like dogs that can give me an opportunity to harvest the bear and hunt day after day. Heroes do me no good having to be laid up and Cowards don't either. So somewhere in between but shaded more towards the heroes. I don't believe that all bears will tree with enough pressure. Not just from my experience, but from being around guys who have treed, caught and killed lots of bears for lots of years. If you want to disprove that theory have at it, but make sure you've got a loaded bank account beforehand.

I'm not too proud to admit bears get away from me. Got out run last night, out fought last Saturday, and couldn't start anything on Sunday. But I'd bet pretty good money that my slow, weak, chicken-shit dogs will catch more in a year than a certain someone who lives in a state that doesn't allow bear hunting. If you want a level playing field, load them up. We got 2 weeks left of training season, a week off and another month of kill season. We should be able to find a few tough ones to prove me wrong. If you've got dogs that can out cold trail or out bay our best ones, I know guys that will buy them.

I just sit here and chuckle when Nolte says stuff like, "... that my slow, weak, chicken-shit dogs..."

A couple of years ago Nolte and myself exchanged some video. I sent him some lion and bear hunting stuff and he mailed me some bear hunting footage.

You better find someone else to pick on dude. When I saw those dogs of him and his hunting buddies on bear, I was kind of ashamed of the footage I sent him. It was a helluva lot more impressive than anything I've watched from anyone else on this site or anywhere else for that matter.

I watched the one clip and called my buddy on the phone and said, "Get up here dude, you have gotta see this." My jaw was hanging open.

So not sure you are starting a war with the right guy amigo. Just because a guy doesn't talk big (no shortage of that on here) doesn't mean anything.

I saw the video and it was proof enough for me, he can say whatever he wants about his dogs on here. I'm not calling him out.

If you do get that video from Nolte make sure you watch clear to the end, cuz I guess they taped it over some wild Asian homemade Porn video they shot in the basement and when the bear hunting is over, you'll get about 3 minutes of that porn shoot before it ends. But you know it's good footage when you'd rather go back and watch the dogs work the bears instead of watch the finale of "Yellow Fever II"...

Since we can't run bear with hounds here, that bear footage would only ad insult to injury, but the finale of "Yellow Fever 2"...........

How the heck do I get a copy of that video Nolte??

Haha already tried Idaho. Anyone know how to get to Mike Kemps site or videos? Or to Brents Big Game (think thats it?) Thanks.

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