Hounds

[MstrHntr]

So all you lion hunters out there I have a realatively simple question for ya all. Im lookin to get some hound pups but am wondering what is the most easily trainable if there is such a thing and the best workin hound out there all your info would be appreciated. I dont wanna make anybody mad of fight about what is the better dog I just wanna get a tally to see what hound is used the most by all the lion huntin pros on here so I can make a decision on what breed to get. Thanks

 

[catmando]

First off, no offense but if you get hounds your as big of a fool as the rest of us here. Breed doesn't make a dog, however certain traits from different breeds do help make a dog. The best hounds I have seen work are a culmination of several breeds.

Second, the dogs are usually only as good as their handler, therefore I never had great dogs. If your training them from a pup then good luck, it's alot of work and time in the field to get a finished dog.:-(

Third, If your married get ready for divorce, and get used to never having any money. Get to know your local bail bondsman, and know where your local rehab centers are.

I am a recovered addict myself. Now I go with my friends when I can get a kitchen pass without all of the dog, alcohol or marital issues.

Fourth, If you plan on buying dogs, take out a second mortgage on your house and buyer beware. Houndsman are some of the craftiest dog peddlers around. In order to get a good dog that can perform you are looking at $1,500 to $2,000 minimum for a dog, let alone tracking equipment etc, etc, etc.

Bottom line is it doesn't matter what breed, just whether or not it will catch game. Remember, all that you can do with papers is wipe your butt!!!;-)

If your serious, welcome to the board and the realm of derlicts that fequent this site and various mountain locations during the hounding seasons.

Later, Catmandodoooo.

 

[HoundDawg]

Dammit Catmando,

You gotta stop warning these guys. It's kind of like when you get married. All your married friends and relatives are all excited for you and help you out in anyway they can. Cuz misery loves company baby!!!

They don't pull you aside and say, "Have you lost your freakin' mind? You're getting married? Are you INSANE?" Cuz we don't want others to have it any better than us.

So from now on I think we need to invite, encourage, and help guys get into hounds anyway we can. I want others to suffer as I suffer. I'm tired of watching these deer hunters have all the fun and live the dream while I'm sleeping on my truck seat waiting for a stupid hound to come off the mountain.

My advice is this Mstrhuntr. And this advice comes from years of pain and misery. Forget pups. Remove that word from your vocabulary for the first 5 years of your hunting. Go buy a dog that will catch a lion. Don't write the guy a check until he takes you out and catches a lion with the dog while you watch.

You may pay $2500 or more for a dog that will catch a lion in good snow. No big deal, cuz you'll pay well over $5,000 in expenses before you ever get a hound dog puppy to grow up and start catching lions for you.

Hound pups will do nothing but destroy your will to live. Go buy a broke lion dog. And if you do buy some pups, make sure you buy a .357 mag too cuz you'll want it in about 2 years to stick in your mouth and end your misery!!!

Good luck amigo and just say No to pups!!! -Dawg

 

[pumaguy]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-21-03 AT 06:36PM (MST)[p] Lets get right to the thick of things here. BEFORE you buy any pups, purchase a shock collar system with at least two collars. Buy a tracking box and collars for two dogs. There is no need to get set up for anymore than two dogs at first unless you like headaches like you've never believed.
Once you have the collars then you can go looking for pups. My personal opinion is don't get hung up on breed of dog. Don't worry about papers and generally if there is an abundence of night champions in a pups background it ain't going to make a lion dog. Find dogs that are used for and catch lions, bobcats or bears.
Now if you want the serious truth, get out your calculator and lets do some math:
Decent cat dog $2500 or

Hound pup $0-$250+
One year feed $200
Twenty tanks of gasoline (current prices) $800
Twenty bottles aspirin for headaches $40
Dent in truck looking for pup on deer race $1500
Bullet for pistol to shoot pup after one year and no cats $.25.

Total $2790.25 and happy to start over.

 

[edhunter]

Hey MstrHntr, Go check out my website http://southwestadventures.tripod.com and see what kind of dogs Dawg and I run. You will see black ones, brindle ones, blue ones and red ones. I've even run a walker or two. I think I've posted it too many times but I've got a list of "Ed's Dogs". It contains the names of over 40 dogs, some pups and some grown dogs I've bought over the past 4 years and thier fate.

While I can't put a price on walking up to a tree that my dogs are howling around, then looking up to see fur in the branches, I can come pretty close with a look at my current financial situation.

Over the last 4 years I've spent over $11,000 on dogs. I sh!t you not amigo. One of my favorites was a plott named Dan. He was a game catcher and cost $2,000. By game I mean mostly bear and lion but the sucker would bay up an elk in an instant. He was baying a bear last spring in Utah and took a paw to the shoulder. I sold him for a pup trainer to a guy from NM for $600. My best dog was $2,500 and he isn't much for pressure. Got rolled by a bear when he was young and learned not to get too close. He will rig a bear as well as any dog I've seen. If he dies, I'm done for. I've got 3 dogs right now that are good. My good dog and others that he has trained for me that I got as pups.

As for the tracking/shock systems. You'll spend more money in gas looking for dogs over a month than these will cost. I've spent $2,200 on tracking systems and have two boxes and 6 collars right now. For the shock system, I've spent $700 and have 1-1/2 systems right now. (I lost my transmitter for my tritronics pro 200) I don't go into the woods with dogs without that.

Don't look for breed, find a lion hunter and buy his 8-10 year old dog and one yearling dog that acts like it wants to hunt. The older dog will teach the younger dog and you should be able to get into them for $2,500 or less for both.

Dawg and I have 4 pups out of the same litter. They are very different dogs. I have one in AZ and she is great. He has 3 and I've had to hide all his firearms so he doesn't blow his head off at times. DON'T SCREW WITH MORE THAN ONE PUP AT A TIME. I know the kid on "Where the Red Fern Grows" did but he didn't wear any shoes either.

Ed

 

[Border]

Yopu guys are setting him straight on the pups thing.I cringe when I hear someone tell me they want to get into bear hunting and buy a couple pups.Then, a couple years later ,they want an old dog to teach the pups?I never figured that one out.Why not get the good dog first and then work in a pup.I would say the prices on the lion hounds are about the same as bear dogs.Pups are a crap shoot even for experienced hunters with good hounds to run them with.Getting a couple pups,getting attached to them, and then not having any success,is the quickest way to get out of hunting with hounds before a guy ever really gets started.
I know broke dogs for $2500 dont sound as good as pups for $200 each as far as the wallet goes.All you have to do is look at the math above and you will see the $2500 dog to start with is the real bargain.
I think Dawgs suggestion to look for an 8 or 10 yr old dog to start with is excellent.Thats the way to get a pack started on your own in my book.One top older dog for good money,1 or 2 or 3 (if bear hunting) started dogs to run with it.Being careful to feed them in slowly to the older hound.
I love it when someone local that I dont even know gets a hold of me and wants to know if they can come hunting with me and bring their new hound pup with them.Sure,I spent thousands of dollars,hundreds of hours,just hoping I could help someone else get their pup going and maybe even screw up my pack.At the same time I figure I can work in one young dog a year usually.Be great if it was someone elses pup that I didnt even know till he needed help.Oh and by the way, I will show you my best places to hunt in case you want to go without me too.I encourage new people into the sport around here as there arent many doing it.Before someone goes with me with his own dogs he had better put his time in helping me out for the first year.Then we will get you a started dog to take with us the next year.

 

[KattTraxx]

MH,
I read your post, and then all the responses, and it seems the boys did an excellent job of answering your question. It would be interesting to add up the numbers of years of experience combined in the wise words of the "Hound Brothers" above. You have been given counsel from the Grand Masters of the Houndogger way of life. I'm not sure what you expected, but what you have been given is real world advice from guys who have done it.
I'm not sure where you are from, but if you would tell us where your neighborhood is, maybe some of us could take you out and give you a little practical experience.
If you haven't been dissuaded, you just might have a low enough I.Q. to make a hound guy. Good Luck, and let us know how the process goes for you. KattSkatt

 

[MstrHntr]

I live in Wyoming and plan on runnin mostly lions. I plan on huntin in the southeastern half of the state because the mountains are only about a hour from were I live Ive hunted bear over bait but never dogs and dont know If I would be interested in hunting bear with dogs. But chasin lions looks like it could be pretty fun. Also If I should get a started dog do you know anybody that has any for sale. Thanks