What Do You Expect Out Of Your Strike Dog??

[t.wilbanks]

What do you expect out of your dogs at different ages ? Say, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years?
What kind of interest should they be showing or what should they be doing in the woods?

Also, for yall that have raised your best strike dogs from pups, when did they really turn on, and what were they showing
at those ages?

Just curious to hear what everyone thinks...

[Reuben]

The very best dog I had I named Yeller and at 3 months old he was winding and trailing what I layed down for the pups. He always excelled and out done his siblings. He trailed way out in front of the pack and he was cold nosed. At 4 months when I turned him loose in the woods he made a big circle running with his head up and looking from side to side and and checking in every five or 10 minutes or so. He trailed pigs before 5 months old for short distances of a quarter mile or so. At 6 to 8 months he was doing some pretty outstanding things and this pup amazed me every time out...

We had a top strike dog named Smokie and he was giving Smokie some competition at 10 months and at a year they were about even.  Yeller just kept getting better... He was just smarter than Smokie because he could line out a track way faster than Smokie and be bayed by time Smokie found the exit track.

When yeller got older and crippled up by big boars he slowed down but still out struck most dogs and I think it had to do with his intelligence and nose.

I have had quite a few good dogs since Yeller but not as great as him.


I tested all pups in the same manner and that strain of dogs basicly tested about the same as the next litter, and, the age was consistent with performance in each litter. The best pups usually tested a little better than their siblings.  

[Rockin-P-Ranch]

I dont exspect a lot out of a dog until it is almost a year old.But I raise all my own dogs so their is never any hurry to push any of them. But by this time all have been culled pretty hard for other things.Now what Im about to say is IMO only.I have lead dogs for cows and hogs when a young dogs grows up in a pack like this they know where their place is in the pecking order of the pack.And I have found that a dog is not going to make a finished dog until he or she gets to be at the head of the pack.IMO you need to give them that chance by leaving the good ones be hind once in awhile and let the younger ones have the chance to prove them selves.Now at what age you do this may depend on the dog.By the time one of mine is 3 they should be doing just as good as my main lead dog.Now I know that this may be hard for some people because of the lack of dogs to do this.But I do beleive every dog would show better if they where given the chance to been the lead dog and not just a backup. I like to lead every oce in awhile and not follow all the time.

[LionandBoarHunter]

I expect alot out of my dogs at a early age. My line of dogs start early i epect them to be starting and working a track on there own by a 1 1/2 old alot of my dog do it earlier then that.I put alot of miles and hogs in my dogs from 7 months of age so they better have it pretty well figured out by 1 1/2. I will not mess with a dog that wont start his own hog.I like to be able to use any dog i pull out of my kennels to go find a hog.

[TimmsHogDogs]

I guess we expect alot outta our dogs as well, by no later than 4-6 months old they should be showing very good interest in hogs but preferably sooner than that and most of our dogs are finished by 1 1/2- 2 years old preferably 1 1/2 years old. We breed and raise our own bloodline so I know what they are capable of and I expect them to do it......

[hogdog05]

What rockin p said