Waylon I've lived in Bama all my life,.....I hunt with buddies from Bama, TN and GA. I was a hound man from the start and still love to hunt with 'em. I now have 2 cur dogs, one is a cur/fiest cross the other half Plott half Catahoula. The cur/fiest is the best hog dog I've ever had.....and probably ever will have. Most of my TN buddies have hounds, mostly Plotts that are of course open on track. I hunt my silent curs with their hounds and have for over 3 years now....my dogs still don't open on track and theirs still do.....simple as that. My cur dogs go with their hounds and vice versa....they form a pretty good pack seems to me. I can hunt my dogs alone and kill hogs, done it before and will again. One reason that the guys from around here use hounds is that's what they've always used and always will. Hunting in the mountains is different I agree, but if your curs have a good nose and will run a hog for some time if need be, they'll do just fine here. You are right that the hogs here, that being north AL and East TN, aren't as numerous as in TX and some other states. I think that's why folks here have always used hounds as you stated,...they've been bred to hunt the mountains and find hogs that are few and far between. Now, having said that, I also think that most folks around here have never hunted with a cur that had a super cold nose and would trail a hog or bear from quite some time before they finally jumped it, and then run it for quite some time as well.
I just don't think that those kind of cur dogs have been seen around here in the past. Out west, they seem to have used curs since they are a better multi-purpose dog than a hound. We don't do as much cow work in the SE as they do in TX is what I'm saying I reckon, so hounds have been used more here than cur dogs in the past, but that's changing I think.
I know some guys would stroke if they we asked to hunt their silent dogs with open hounds, and I can understand that. But,.....as I mature...
....I find myself being less and less concerned with whether a dog barks on track or not, I don't want a dog with endless bottom,....had that and done with it. I JUST WANT TO HUNT AND HAVE FUN......simple as that. So if my silent curs open on track next trip, so be it. I won't lose one minutes sleep over it. I hunt with good friends that just want to have fun as well. Hope that kinda helps answer your question bud.
