Hunts I remember. Al Baldwin.

[Beebout-it]

Had a lion client a few years back on his last day around 10am we came back down the last drainage we had to check and we hadn’t found a lion for him, I could tell he was disappointed but had had a ton of fun all week. We rounded the last bend before we hit the highway and on a frozen pond stands a nice Tom bobcat, client looks over and says that’s pretty cool but I’m halfway out of the truck to dump the box. We had passed up dozens of bobcat tracks all week and I told him we might as well have a nice race. He asked if I thought the dogs would catch it and I responded with if they don’t I may need some new dogs. I think I had 6 hounds of various ages and experience levels, normally don’t run that many at once but figured what the heck let’s see what happens. My may dog which is my best bobcat dog and another older of her pups we’re putting good pressure on him. We were getting to watch the whole thing due to there only being sparse small juniper trees on the hillside they were on. The cat made a hard 180 degree turn around a fat little juniper and may and her pup July over ran him just a touch, I thought he had made himself an escape but the pups bring up the rear ran face first into him giving him no choice but to climb a 10 ft juniper.

[lawdawgharris]

That’s funny. The ole bob was thinking but he wasn’t listening lol.


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[al baldwin]

Yes, recall a couple times dog running behind caught the critter, both times it was the deacon dog and both times he caught a coyote on the ground. Clarence Berg and I dogs cold trailed a track one morning, we were thinking bobcat, after dogs jumped and ran a bit Clarence said that might be a coyote, those words were just out of his mouth when coyote hit a road below us, all a sudden deacon was in front and running with just a short squeak coming out of his month. I told Clarence we just might find out what they are running very soon, Deacon caught the coyote a couple minutes later. Deacon had a big bawl mouth on track, once he jumped he ran with that short squeak. Took a lot of work but, I later had him very bent on coyote, to the point he actually checked a few . This weather makes me wish I was roading the hounds some place. Al

[Beebout-it]

Al i think you said your no longer running dogs, but do you still have some at the house?

[al baldwin]

Yes have two old dogs they are not able to hunt. One has bad feet turns 9 in august, other just to old. I really have no business trying to hunt hounds, but I sure miss it. Gave a pretty nice female to my friend Tom Hawkins last year, Tom was a big help to me for last 15 year or so I hunted hounds.

[Beebout-it]

How many years young are you sir?

[lawdawgharris]

You know Al, when it’s in your blood, it doesn’t go away. It’s like a fever you can’t shake. Lots of people get in and get out of it and the largest percentage of them were never in it for the love of the dogs. It was either a cool fad or they thought they looked macho telling about it, or in this day and time, posting on social media about it. Most of them are fare weather hunters, if it’s too cold or too hot they aren’t going to do it. Those folks rarely if ever make a dog. They buy them made and usually ruin the good ones or create a mess of bad habits. They are the same ones that don’t feed well or regular and don’t take the best care they can of the dogs. They are the ones that usually ruin it for the rest of us. In your case, your health may restrict you but it’s gotta be torture on your brain. I’m glad you can enjoy the memories as vividly as you do. The friendships you made and the pleasure you got out of your hounds, well there are a lot of people that never know that peace or pleasure in their lifetime. If I couldn’t make another hunt, I’d feel blessed. The friends and memories made are something I cherish even now.


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[al baldwin]

Beebout I am only 79, got Meniere/s when I was 62 unable to do much of anything for a year or so, sold all my dogs except the skinner hound. Friend Robin Powell hauled me out of the woods first time had a very bad attack from Meniere/s. hindered me completely unable to walk or stand up. With a diet change and rest got able to walk these hills again, problem is it can return at anytime and has numerous times. Never really completely goes away. Realize I had to be a little lucky as I never one of those bad attacks when i was couple miles in some hole. It is a progressive condition and gets worse with age. But realize was lucky to have a friend like Tom Hawkins and a wife who tolerated my addiction to hunt with hounds. Only thing that helps is low sodium diet, no alcohol, no smoke. I never drank or smoked so that was in my favor. Was never overweight, but suffer with joint pain for years. There is no medications that help much with Meniere/s.

[lawdawgharris]

Al I hate that for you. I have to be extremely careful when and how I hunt. This intestinal disease is tricky and has put me in a bind more than once while hunting, heck even while watching my youngest boy play baseball and football. Sometimes it’s because I’m not watching from a restroom window and sometimes it’s because my sugar level bottoms out. I wake up and go to bed everyday with what can only be described as having a stomach bug everyday. I wake and go to bed with a belly ache. I get not being able to go like you want. Fortunately I’ve never missed an event one of my youngest sons. We just had an opportunity to go to the Dominican Republic to play baseball on one of 4 American teams selected to go compete against the Dominican kids. Was a great opportunity for my son but the plug got pulled on it. I wasn’t going to be able to go for fear of being there and getting down. I wouldn’t want to distract my son with that nor would I want to put anyone else out with trying to help me. I’m fortunate to have some great hunting buddies that all know my situation and know what to do if something does happen. If I had to leave I would trust them to do as I would do with any dogs I may have out. I’m gonna enjoy it as long as I can. The one thing I always try to remember is that no matter how bad it gets, things can always get be worse!


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[al baldwin]

Yes Lawdawg things could be much worst we just have to be thankful for the health we have. Good luck to your son/s baseball team. Ak

[lawdawgharris]

Thanks Al. How is your wife doing? I thought you mentioned that she had had some health issues too. Did she ever hunt with you?


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[al baldwin]

Lawdawg wife is doing very good, thanks for asking. Al

[Beebout-it]

Really sorry to hear that keeps you out of the woods. I have gout and it always seems to show up when I’m 10 miles from the truck and I have to absolutely hobble to the truck. What year did you get your own hounds?

[oneguy828]

I’d like to hear a story or two about that dog Log you had for awhile.

I am really enjoying the stories, thanks for you taking the time to put them down.

Rodney

[al baldwin]

Well, Log is retired, just walked down to my son/s place, brought log home for night stay in his kennel. Son will let him loose first thing in the morning, he will eat his pig ear and maybe a couple milk bones, then head down over the hill to spend his day mostly sleeping on his choice of three dog beds at son/s place, He will wake up every couple hours to get his meat treats. Sure wife would kick me out if I wanted to get rid of log. As you know log was given to me at 2 years old, within a couple months log had treed 2 bobcat for me. only had him and a young female. My balance went to heck and Tom Hawkins took log and that female to hunt with his dogs. He soon discovered log was one heck of a cold trailer, however he had some traits that were less than desirable, he did not like hunting with pups, could be fantastic one hunt and quit a track next hunt if he made a lose and bo got out ahead of him. Bo was not a pup bo was the dog that made most of the cats climb that tom caught. Then I got a little better and started hunting with Tom, recall one morning were were trailing a cat, dogs had a short run, made a lose and after a search all the dogs but log treed. We searched an decided dogs were false treed, log was not at the tree, made our way back to the rig and discovered log was tracking something on the garmin we watched as log covered a lot of ground, however if he was barking we never heard him, this went on for an hour or so before we heard log bark, he was good distance from us when he jumped that track and brought it back to where we were able to get the other dogs to him, after a good run log and other dogs tree the bobcat. Log treed good and really shined that day. Because log could be so independent and we had several pups to hunt at five years old I regretfully sold log, log went on to help Russ Devoug and Jim Palmer catch numerous bobcats. however they too found that log was overly independent at times, but Russ said they caught numerous cats because log was so good at at finding those tough loses and they found jf log was excited about a track one could relax, it was a bobcat. When I sold him to Russ told him to take his time to be certain log was going to do for him wat he had been doin for tom & I, Russ called couple days later and said cash the check. At 10 years old Russ gave log back to me, log returned at a good time, all of the good dogs we had when I sold log were gone, hunting several younger dogs I thought we had a couple coyote races, log helped put an end to that. I loved his voice and he was a huge help jf log was barking I relaxed. Recall one race and log was the only dog barking at the tree, after a search Tom said I be damn log has the cat. I now help log in and out of the truck, log has a home. Al