EAST TEXAS HOG DOGGERS FORUM

How does everyone start/train there pups? Just would like to know some different ways of training pups

I've always started a pup by showing it a little pig in a pen.  As soon as it would bay the hair off a hog in the pen, I'll start setting up mock hunts by tieing a hog out in the woods and letting the pup fnd it.  After it gets the hang of that I'll tie a log to a hogs back leg and let it loose allowing the pup to watch it run off.  I'll cut the pup loose and let him find it and bay.  I'll continue to let the hog get further and further away and evetually will stop tieing a log to the hogs leg so its free to run as it pleases.  Sometimes I'll run an older dog with it until it learns to stop the hog by himself.  By about 10 months-1 year old I'm taking it to the woods and letting the big dogs show it the rest.

Good information Cull Buck thanks! As a pup do let them bay inside the pen with the hog or around the outside?

I'll start with them outside until they start barking at it and act like they want in.  I like the hog big enough to keep him from catching it but small enough to hopefully not scare/hurt the dog.  Once the dog really takes to baying it in the pen, he will probably never see the inside of a pen again.....its straight to mocked hunts and woods time.

Mine start on cows first then hogs!!I never show them a hog in a pen!!After working cows a few times with them then I just start takeing them hunting they just pick up and go!!

thanks for the replys

I hate to admit it but I never saw the benefit of this until just recently.
"SilvertonBoarDogs" describes how he does this on another forum. I have never done it but after reading how he does, I was impressed and it was easy for me to see how cattle work at an early age hard wires a young dog to get ahead of a hog, and keep a group bunched in a controlled bay. Afterwards, they hit the woods on DAY 1 with the built in skills of a bay dog and a heck of a handle.

Now all people like me need are a few cows! lol

yOU GET READY TO BAY SOME COWS i CAN PUT YOU ON AS MANY AS YOU WANT!!

Thanks,
You may be sorry you said that when I have some pups to start! lol I ride a mule and I know how you cowboys can get when someone is better mounted than they are. :D

Ok so my question is how do they know to work cows or hunt pigs.  All the places we hunt are on pasture land that cattle graze.  We have to completely break our dogs off of cows cuz the land owners around here are real paticular about it and dont want the dogs messin with the cows.  I hear about alot of dogs that do both how do you get them to do one or the other?