get a handle on them dogs!

[waylon-N.E. OK]

I had the oppurtunity to hunt with a fella a while back before it got hot who ran bobcat dogs, all hounds. I have been told forever hounds don't handle like other dogs, and mine really haven't but this fella's dogs acted like border collies or something like that. The moment he unchained them ( 12 dogs thiat day ) they darted to the truck cleaned out and loaded with out him saying a word, no dogs even had a head out of the dog box no growls or barking just some whineing, in the woods they waited until he called them by name to come out the dog box to have there tracking collars placed on them and then went back into the box and waited. When we would come to a y in the road the dogs paused there until he pointed to the direction to go( we were roading them looking for a track ), then all the dogs followed the lead dog when told which way to go. when it was time to go home same deal except this time he did tell them to load. I was really impressed and would like to know what you fellas teach your dogs besides load up and come here, I can see a time when having a great handle might keep a dog out of trouble and it was a pure joy to hunt with dogs so well trained. I have lot's of time before it's cool enough to hunt and am gonna focus on handle, handle, handle.

 Any tips or ideas would be great!

[Cristina]

I wish my dogs had that kind of handle  ...but I think I have more fun having unruly dogs    jk I have a few dogs that are really good. Just about all of them load in the trailor to go to a hunt and load when we leave from a hunt. I only have trouble with puppies to get them in the trailor and back in the kennel but for the most part all of them get in their kennels without a problem. The only thing I have had trouble with is the older dogs will fight with the young ones....actually I cant put any two old  cur dogs together because they will fight. That is the only thing that we have not been able to fix. almost all of our commands start with the word "get"...."get inside" "get ahead" "get out of that" and "get over here" and for the dogs that ride in the back of the truck its always "up up".

You are right a dog with good handle can keep be kept out of trouble for sure.

[waylon-N.E. OK]

How do you teach that " get ahead " command

[Cristina]

The man that we got our old lead dog Hank taught that to him, he was a full time dog man. Hank helped us teach that to our young dogs and those dogs are now our old dogs that have taught it to the young dogs we have now. We will say it and old dogs will go out and young dogs follow. We just point out and say "get ahead" after repeating it many times they get the point. Its funny when they come back and there isn't anything we will tell them get ahead and they will look at us cockeyed lol

[Purebreedcolt]

As a pup when they still want to be by ur side or even behind u move over and tell them get ahead if they don't go have a little switch and tap their butt slightly.  As they get older and understand that get ahead means move foward get in an open place in the woods tell them to get ahead and u see them turn around to check in tell them to get ahead just work them up. Once u have one dog that does it like cristina said the others will learn

[waylon-N.E. OK]

I usually just say look for'em I guess to do the same thing, but I have seen bmc dogs that once they caught and bayed cattle would be told get ahead and they would drive them with a dog in the lead and the rest pushing and containing the cattle.

I would like to hear from others on what there teaching there dogs as far as handle or specific commands