EAST TEXAS HOG DOGGERS FORUM

Does anyone run all there dogs on the ground? By this i mean catch dogs and all? I have recently hunted with a guy that ran all his dogs on the ground. Catch dogs were bulldog/ cur cross. We used them as running catch dogs. The others were staight bmc. Does anyone use this technique? If so how has it worked? I have always thought about doing it in certain places to help slow down the running hogs. I have really ruff dogs, but often times my cur dogs can just not shut them down and the race is on. When hunting with that guy we had great success and caught good qaulity hogs, But just want to hear other peoples opinions and experiences on using this method? Not saying anyway is right or wrong just wanna learn new things.

Kenny,
That is pretty much what I do. Like you I run very rough dogs, my dogs will usually bay tight until they see me then its on. I have started using bay vest on all of my dogs with great results, I do not remember the last time I used staple gun or sutures.

Yes sir i run really ruff dogs also. I have had running catch dogs as you should no. But i have never ran all my dogs. I have been interested in doing so. I wanted to hear pros and cons on the whole deal. I did  check out the site you told me about. They have some really nice hog dog gear. I am interested in getting some just got to wait to get the money needed. I eppreciate the site you gave me and the response.

In my experience, most people that hunt this way go through a lot of dogs.

X10 and when you catch a hog there is nothing left of it, you have to kill it because of the dogpile that you have to have 10 people to get under control.

No one take this too personally but the dogs are usually sub par and can't do it on their own so they make up for it in pure numbers. JMO

I really like the idea if it too. I have a friend that did it a few years ago and after catching a cow in youpon bush one night he stopped it. Even some of the most seasoned cur dogs make an oops now and then and with catch dogs on the ground it kinda compounds those mistakes. I like the concept of stopping a hog that  may run after only a few barks but I'll stick to the loose way of doing things and lead a bulldog in close.

I personally like catching hogs as much as anyone, but I enjoy the dog work of the hunt more than anything.  How well the dogs hunted, and how they handled a struck hog is how I measure my success.

I'm not trying to be smart, but for people wanting all bite (or catch) and no bark, why even bother with cur dogs and not just hunt a straight pack of bulldogs?

Well i personally use lots of cur pit crosses and i do use lots of ruff dogs. i sometimes dont hear any barking even from my curs. And bryant for your question if directed to me personally my answer would be. Because no matter how ruff of a pack one man runs a cur dog still is gonna tend to have a better nose for tracking and winding then a bull dog and also, He will be winded a little more for those running hogs. I or we around here very seldom ever tie a hog unless needed in a pen for training. Even then we trap. So the tearing the hog or ruining the hog would not be a problem for me. We run 100's of yards just to get there and stick it anyways and half the time leave it. So if the ears are missing o well. But the very good point that i like is even the best dogs make mistakes and running a pack of ruff dogs could cause a big mess. That would deffinately not be a good thing. i Am different than most hunters i guess. I Dont really get a thrill out of hearing my dogs work. And i hunt at night so even seeing them is not even an option. I get a thrill from the squeal. So I for one dont think it is pointless to hunt if you cant hear them work. My dogs work when there riding the hood or running the ground or fighting the hog. Anyways guys and gals i appreciate the input and some was very helpful in future decision making.

I ran very very ruff cur dogs for a long time Kenny  you seen some of them Cj, War Dog, Ole Blue , Mojo , Steve and a bunch of others and some that are no longer with us we never ran a bulldog we didnt need one .  I used catch vest on every dog I had and still got dogs killed and cut up.   Yes we caught more hogs like that and the races were a lot shorter thats for sure but after the last cutting War Dog took and I went threw 10 staple guns and no telling how much needles and thread that year that is when I decided nuff is enuff and I took those great bitches and bred them I started modifying my dogs and breeding them accordyling .  I knock the catch out of those dogs with my old stud dog but I did not knock the grit out of them .  Now from what I have seen with the young dog coming up from the modifications I made they are tight baying nut grabbing son of a guns .  That big boar we stopped out at the hey pacth over in Buckolts you know about was found stopped and bayed by all young dogs from the breeding modifications I made .  The boar went around 250 had 2 to 3 inch hooks on him and no dogs got hurt and it was a pretty , pretty thing to sit there and watch for a change .  He tried to run several times but all times was hit in the back end and stopped as a matter of fact he finally got tired of dogs ripping his man hood and backed off to the edge of the tank and just sit down like a trained poodle and that was that .  I love them ruff son of a guns but it just got to be way to much for me and my pocket and I just hated looseing great dogs like that !  Either way a man  chooses is not wrong its just up to the man and what he wants and likes !!!!

ya jimmy i like your last sentence. I no some of your ruff dogs you had in the past. Jimmy, But now back to the ruff dog and getting them cut up. You first hand personally no and seen the hogs i catch or caught. You no the dogs that caught them and the dogs that still continue to catch them. How is that? I dont no, but jimmy i have lost very few dogs on the foods due to hog injuries. And also i have never been to the vet is it because i dont want to take proper care of my dogs. Not hardly. I don no how or why that is. Chance scareface lightning, weda, little red. All these dogs are really really ruff ruff dogs and all these dogs have been with me since i have known you and hunt with me everytime i hunt. You for one no how much i hunt. How is that. I hear people judging or maybe knowing for a fact these styles of dogs dont hang around long. Well these have maybe im just lucky i dont no. But anyways i went way off track on my original post of does anyone run catch dogs on the ground with the others and sorry for that.

Jimmy how old is war dog now? Who has him?

It's called "luck". I went for over 8 years without losing a dog and I started with all rough dogs, never needed a catch dog. My dogs were on lots of hogs with other dogs that weren't so lucky. My luck finally ran out, i've lost 9 in the past couple of years.

I know and have known many people over the years that hunt this way... they go through a bunch of dogs.

Nobody's saying there's a right way or wrong way... just answering the questions you asked.

Ya i agree. There is no right or wrong. Way and i guess you can call it luck. But i guess i have lots of it. Maybe im wrong, but i would think that using only one catch dog to shut a hog down or say "catch" the hog. It would take a much more major beating compared to having a multiple of ruff dogs? I dont no this for a fact and am not saying its facts just my way of thinking. I guess that could also depend on how the dog catches and how fast you get in there. I dont no i guess i am so skeptical because my way has worked great for me. I have had really good luck with it. I obviously no other ways work great for other people or they would not use them. Thanks guys for all the input.

My partners and I run all ruff dogs, but only because of the property we run borders a large ranch( The King Ranch). And the last thing we need is to have our dogs have a hog break, Then run miles in that ranch and get lost.  So we run all ruff dogs that will shut a hog down quickly.  but still use at least one catch dog on a lead for the big bruisers.  I guess it all depends on your hunting property.  You tailor your pack to your liking and surroundings!

I dont want to step on any toes but I myself do think luck has a lot to do with it .  Because I myself went for a long time and really didnt get dogs hurt much but then in a years span I had two killed and a whole host of others cut bad bad and others that had to retire early real early.  When I ran dogs we ran six dogs are so and they were all head hunters then would not even hardly mess with anything under 150 lbs it seems like we were always on the big bad boys 250 and up and never used a catch dog are bulldog .  I myself wondered at one tme how the hell is everybody getting dogs cut so bad and killed because I was not at the time but buddy my time came and when it did it hit hard.  So all I can really say is if it aint happened yet just keep on hunting because it is and will come that time it did for me and it has for a lot of people I know .  But like I said man it aint what everybody wants and likes it what you like and want and there is no wrong way about it .

Ya i hear you jimmy all it takes is that one time. I no that man. But that is the same with any catch dog i think man. I was asking about war dog cause i liked that dog man just curious how he was. Did he have any plott in him?

War dog is going on 6 .  I sent them to one of my best friends that was the oringal ones that owned as pups.  O and put up,  locked up and staying up ahahahhaahhaahah.

I think were the difference is ,  is this.   Those dogs that I had were head hunters as ruff as they come but were the difference lies is this.  Those dogs were ground hunting dogs and they would hunt all stages short, med and long long long distances.  If we were hunting and drop the dogs they would go short at first no hogs check in then they would go med distances no hogs check in and then if I did not catch those dogs it was katy bar the damn dooor because they were fixin to go were ever the hogs were and if that ment they were two miles from were I was at that was were they were going .   I think this is what the deal was sometimes those dogs would bay and catch a hog a mile mile and a half from were I was threw the woods we could not even hear the dogs any more and would have to track to them sometimes having to take different roads to get to them sometimes taking as much as a hour to get to them well these dogs would be fighting these big boar hogs for a long time before we could get to them and soon as we got in hearing distance of them my other dogs would be gone too and still sometimes it would take us another 20 mins sometimes to get to them and by the time we would get there these dogs had been locked on fighting the hog the whole time we were trying to get to them and that is were all the cuttings I think took place the worst .  This was not all the time but it was a lot of the times and were the injuries mounted up big time.  Real ruff catchy type dogs that are long distance dogs will get in a bind bad simply because the hunter cannot get to them as quick !   I know your dogs Kenny will wind off the truck and be gone and you will get the hogs Johnny on the spot most the time and you can get to those dogs real quick and that saves a lot of cuttings and killings.  It is the time that is your worst enemy with dogs like what I had long distance head hunters.  Anyway jmo !

Right on man! I agree! My dogs stay close and usually together. As i said maybe its luck. Thanks for the reply

The first pack I had, which was eight dogs, ran on the ground.  Only one full pitt.  They worked really well together.  I ran them for about for about three years and never had more than one poke hole on one dog.  Some people will say I was lucky.  I say I had a good pack that knew what they were doing.  Also to the guys that say the pigs are always tore up, not the case with my dogs.  They caught and held.  It didnt look like a tug-of-war when you got to them.  Maybe I was lucky.  I dont think I'll ever have another pack like em.  I was young and just starting my family so I needed to sell out.  I sure miss those dogs.