EAST TEXAS HOG DOGGERS FORUM

i took a pup of mine to the woods for the first time this past weekend.  She is 6 or 7 months old know.  She did ok out there. Meaning she wasent right under my feet. she would go out with the older dogs alittle then come back. When the dogs bayed up a sow and we went in and caught it she really dident do ahole lot. Just barked at it a few times then went back to exploring.  I guess what im trying to get to is at what age do you start taking a pup into the woods???

My pup Jake goes alot of places with me even if its just to run to the ranch and work a little.

i think that 6 or 7 months is a good age to start taking them to the woods

At six months our pups are out with us in the woods.

I think 6months to a year is best time to start pups in the woods and as long as you keep em exposed to it alot of them will let you know when they are ready.I've had some pups that wouldn,t even look at a hawg  at 6-7 mts old and then turn 9 months old and go hog crazy.

Thanks guys

i dont think any pup should be in the woods younger than 1yr old, this lets the pups mature in the mind as well as in the body!!!!!  have seen over 100 dogs ruined in the woods because someone took them way too early!!!  just try it one time and u'll agree with me!!!!      when the pups hit 1 i take them and only hunt them in the daytime. for at least 6-7 months before i hunt them at night!!!  works out real good!!

I start my young dogs in the woods at a year old. Seen a lot of young, immature dogs hurt, ruined and killed at an early age.

That is some good advice guys. Me included am starting to work with my first  young pup. He is 4 months now and he saw his first little pig last weekend. He did better than I figured he would. He showed some interest and barked quite a bit. I know that doesnt mean nothing this early in age. I do agree that the dog should have a little maturity and a good handle on him when you first take him out to the woods. When I am out at the farm feeding and working with cows I make sure he knows to not mess with cows if he tries to mess with them.  I believe that I am going to start taking mine out in the woods about 7 months and older. Good luck to you and your pup.

Josh

i feel where your coming from mike and bayinman, but i think a year old is too late.. we've raised several pups that we started in the woods at about 6 months old that by the time they were a year old they were findin hogs. Got two pups that ive been postin about lately that are 14 months old and they have both found quite a few hogs on their own, and kept them bayed till we got there. And i think part of it was getting them started at a young age.

But when we do start them early we don't let them loose until we know its a small hog the dogs have bayed or caught

Make sure your pup is "turned on" before you ask her to engage in a hunting situation.  In other words, if the dog won't really get after a training hog in a pen, you probably shouldn't expect the dog to do much in a woods scenario.  With all my young dogs, once a mnth from the age of 3mnths on they get the chance to work a hog in a controlled environment.  If at any point they don't show interest, cull.  This ensures that when you do give the dog the opportunity in the woods, they will make the most of it and you're not wasting time.

I think it depends on the dog as far as when to start. You just have to make that call your self. Some dogs do good under a year old. I've posted this pic before and the black and tan dog is 8 or 9 months old in this pic and hung with the two other dogs for two miles before I got there. And she's never been in a bay pen. Just the woods, maby that had something to do with it.
(http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j16/partins_album/trashdumpsow.jpg)
Here she is last sunday.
(http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j16/partins_album/000_1055.jpg)

Thanks for all the response guys. Alot of good opionons. from what ive seen it looks like it just depends on the dog. But scense she dident show alot of intrest when we caught the sow.  i think i will keep working her in a bay pen for alittle while longer. 

I also believe in letting them mature a bit more before I start a young dog.  I might show them a hog or two so they know what one is at 5-6 months and get a feel for the dog and its maturity level.  One thing I think is really important in young dogs is letting them run loose from weaning untill they start to get into trouble too much then put them up.  Being loose 24/7 allows them to learn, as we all know dogs dont learn much in a pen.  It also builds independance and confidence which I beleive are important traits in a working dog.  Once they start to cause too much trouble from running loose then put them up and start on Handle, Loading, leading, hualing.  Allot of people dont have the chance to raise dogs like this but I think it makes allot of difference if you do have the chance.  I like to start a dog slow at first keep them on a leash untill you get on hogs, it will keep them from messing with the wrong stuff and I beleive when you hold a young dog back like that It build thier desire.  Also depends allot on the timing, if deer season is just over and the dog is 8 months and is mature enough, hunt them while the hunting is good.  A dog might be ready at 8 months but, if its mid summer and high temps wait untill late summer or fall and the temps start to drop before you start the dog.  We all know expereinced dogs dont hunt as good in hot weather its only makes sence that youngs dogs wont start as well also.  But if you start a dog from 8-14 months old you are not too late.  The dog might have been ready before but you wont hurt anything by waiting.  You can start them earlier but allot of times you do more harm than good in my experience.

Waylon

i let my pups see a hog at about 4 months then i keep taking them to the baypen until they are 6 to 7 months old then i hunt them as much as possible because the only way i have found to finish a dog is to hunt them as much as possible. Just how i do my stuff