How far out can you...

[rdjustham]

Any more than 3 dogs on the truck is a dead give away where I'm from.

With the exception of young dogs.. 

[bignasty]

Any more than 3 dogs on the truck is a dead give away where I'm from.

yep

[Sneaky Creek Kennel]

There's a bunch of different factors in the answer to your question. First thing I think of is the type of land your in flat, open, brush, hills, or briar's. How fast can you get through to the dog.

The dogs ability to catch and hold.

What kinda wind the dog has.

Experience (dog) & (the guy that cuts him loose)

Is it a single hog or a group of hogs

This list could go on.

My opinion there is no right or wrong answer to this question. It's just what circumstance calls for.

[reatj81]

The more I hunt the more I see that a catchdog should be treated like a gun, BE SURE of your target and what's beyond it, meaning calm down take a breath, analyze the situation ad then cut em loose when your ready.
X2
At the bay usually after watching a few minutes   
But I love it when you bay a group and a single hog bust out across an clearing and can turn loose and watch a catch dog run one down!    That's good stuff!  But that being said its a judgement call, can it be run down?  Can I get there immediately and get the hog?

[magnuml]

Release YOUR catch dog from??

Thus has been discussed to death in other threads, but it's one of the first questions I like to ask anyone I meet at a gas station or public place when they approach and start telling me all about their dogs and 500 pound hogs they've cuaght. It's one of those questions I use to help determine the attitude, ballsyness and character of a fella


Whether you wanna answer or not, whether you think I'm a douche or not, what are some dog handle related questions you use to figure a fella out?

Those are the same people that own 150 LB PitBulls!! lmao.

[Dirtydog]

I cut mine loose when ever I think I can be right behind them... Every bay is a decision I have to make the call on... I let them go from 100 yds often, but always two dogs and two people or more ! I expect my dogs to have the stamina...

BUT MY DOGS SUCK AND WE DON'T CATCH NO BIG ONES...

[T-Bob Parker]

I cut mine loose when ever I think I can be right behind them... Every bay is a decision I have to make the call on... I let them go from 100 yds often, but always two dogs and two people or more ! I expect my dogs to have the stamina...

BUT MY DOGS SUCK AND WE DON'T CATCH NO BIG ONES...

Haha dude whatever! I'm sure you catch your fair share 

That's why I debated on wether not to ask the question. There's a guy I know who will send his catchdog from 400 yards or better sometimes and he not only catches good hogs but does it often and doesn't seem to have too many cuts. That's just good smart-rough dog work I'd reckon.

[reatj81]

That's why I debated on wether not to ask the question. There's a guy I know who will send his catchdog from 400 yards or better sometimes and he not only catches good hogs but does it often and doesn't seem to have too many cuts. That's just good smart-rough dog work I'd reckon.
[/quote]
400 yds must be one of them gangster bulldogs   That I could outrun!   I can't even out run a fat lady!

[Hawkins]

We've cut them loose from probably 700 yards or so before. For us it all depends on the terrain, if we are hunting briars and thick stuff I like to be right there close. But open wheat field country, we can cut them loose from far away and be right behind them on the ranger just as quick. It also depends on the dogs, in our country we hunt, I like a leggier catchdog. More of a smart holder type like Silverton Boar Dogs uses.

[T-Bob Parker]

That's why I debated on wether not to ask the question. There's a guy I know who will send his catchdog from 400 yards or better sometimes and he not only catches good hogs but does it often and doesn't seem to have too many cuts. That's just good smart-rough dog work I'd reckon.

400 yds must be one of them gangster bulldogs   That I could outrun!   I can't even out run a fat lady!
[/quote]

Not at all.

That's the rub though, some people use a cd as a tool to hold the hog in place while they make their way to them. Others require the bay dogs to do that until the hunter and catch dog make it to the bay.

Different strokes for different folks kinda thing.

[t.wilbanks]

We've cut them loose from probably 700 yards or so before. For us it all depends on the terrain, if we are hunting briars and thick stuff I like to be right there close. But open wheat field country, we can cut them loose from far away and be right behind them on the ranger just as quick. It also depends on the dogs, in our country we hunt, I like a leggier catchdog. More of a smart holder type like Silverton Boar Dogs uses.

Not downing your style, but curious as to why you don't wait till you are closer to drop the bulldog in an open field?

Why not save his energy and drop him closer, than have him run all that way when your on a ranger right behind him?? Or do you send him and wait for him to catch before driving in??

[Reuben]

I like hunting without a bull dog best...let the dogs catch all that is easy to catch and have them back up when it is a 200 pound plus boar...

[Hawkins]

We've cut them loose from probably 700 yards or so before. For us it all depends on the terrain, if we are hunting briars and thick stuff I like to be right there close. But open wheat field country, we can cut them loose from far away and be right behind them on the ranger just as quick. It also depends on the dogs, in our country we hunt, I like a leggier catchdog. More of a smart holder type like Silverton Boar Dogs uses.

Not downing your style, but curious as to why you don't wait till you are closer to drop the bulldog in an open field?

Why not save his energy and drop him closer, than have him run all that way when your on a ranger right behind him?? Or do you send him and wait for him to catch before driving in??

Wait till they catch most of the time or head that way when it shows he's almost there on the garmin. All of our dogs wear tracking collars. This isn't a common theme to do it like that. We've done it a bunch on a little honey hole place. It's less than 1,000 acres and most of it is wheat, and the brush it has, has good roads through it. 700 yards was maybe once or twice it's usually half that on a place I know it will be safe to do. And a 700 yard run isn't really burning off his energy IMO for a leggier conditioned dog. Not saying this way is for everybody but it works for us under the right conditions.

[t.wilbanks]

We've cut them loose from probably 700 yards or so before. For us it all depends on the terrain, if we are hunting briars and thick stuff I like to be right there close. But open wheat field country, we can cut them loose from far away and be right behind them on the ranger just as quick. It also depends on the dogs, in our country we hunt, I like a leggier catchdog. More of a smart holder type like Silverton Boar Dogs uses.

Not downing your style, but curious as to why you don't wait till you are closer to drop the bulldog in an open field?

Why not save his energy and drop him closer, than have him run all that way when your on a ranger right behind him?? Or do you send him and wait for him to catch before driving in??

Wait till they catch most of the time or head that way when it shows he's almost there on the garmin. All of our dogs wear tracking collars. This isn't a common theme to do it like that. We've done it a bunch on a little honey hole place. It's less than 1,000 acres and most of it is wheat, and the brush it has, has good roads through it. 700 yards was maybe once or twice it's usually half that on a place I know it will be safe to do. And a 700 yard run isn't really burning off his energy IMO for a leggier conditioned dog. Not saying this way is for everybody but it works for us under the right conditions.

Yep, it would be impossible to do that around here!! 

[sdillard]

I like hunting without a bull dog best...let the dogs catch all that is easy to catch and have them back up when it is a 200 pound plus boar...

X2

[JoshH34]

I usually like to be around 50 yards or so, but I've been 4 yards before and I've turned out at 100 yards.  Usually about 50 yards though.

[RyanTBH]

We've cut them loose from probably 700 yards or so before. For us it all depends on the terrain, if we are hunting briars and thick stuff I like to be right there close. But open wheat field country, we can cut them loose from far away and be right behind them on the ranger just as quick. It also depends on the dogs, in our country we hunt, I like a leggier catchdog. More of a smart holder type like Silverton Boar Dogs uses.

Not downing your style, but curious as to why you don't wait till you are closer to drop the bulldog in an open field?

Why not save his energy and drop him closer, than have him run all that way when your on a ranger right behind him?? Or do you send him and wait for him to catch before driving in??

Wait till they catch most of the time or head that way when it shows he's almost there on the garmin. All of our dogs wear tracking collars. This isn't a common theme to do it like that. We've done it a bunch on a little honey hole place. It's less than 1,000 acres and most of it is wheat, and the brush it has, has good roads through it. 700 yards was maybe once or twice it's usually half that on a place I know it will be safe to do. And a 700 yard run isn't really burning off his energy IMO for a leggier conditioned dog. Not saying this way is for everybody but it works for us under the right conditions.

Yep, it would be impossible to do that around here!! 

x3 That would end up bad around these parts as well... The furthest that I've cut Baus loose from is 150, but I do not like doing that. One of the scariest things, IMO, in the woods is when you cut your CD loose and the bay breaks... dogs start chasing the hog(s) and you just really don't know where they will end up. Even with a Garmin on the CD, my heart drops when they break and start running. Around the places that we run, you never know whether they'll end up in a creek, pond, thicket, ect... could end up bad if you're not close to provide backup.

I will have to say something about the pics and stories and stuff like that though... I like my dogs, I like my buddies dogs, and matter of fact, most of the people that I've hunted with I like their dogs as well; and that's not saying all of them are jam up... Just that I like most good lookin' good working dogs. They can't all be superstars... LOL!  When I get to hunt with someone new I like to share stories, and pics... talking about what dog does what... what types of land you hunt and what hogs you've pulled off said land, and how you normally hunt, ect... basically shooting the chit. I am not an old dog man, I am learning to be able to analyize dogs, and to train puppies... so I see chooting the chit as a learning experience, and I honestly take full advantage of being able to get input from older/more experienced dog men than myself. I don't see it as immature to want to trade stories and pics, and as a matter of fact I like to look at other folks dogs and pics or heads of hogs. I personally don't like to judge people as I do not like to be judged myself... I take it how it comes, and if I end up not liking or not believing that person or whatever then I just wont hunt with them again. Easy as that... now as far as "judging" someone's experience or knowledge about dogs/hunting hogs goes from seeing meeting them in parking lot, I think that asking weight of hog, how they hunt, and what type of dogs they use pretty much tells the tale.  But like I said, I'd rather see the dogs hunt and shoot the chit rather than hear a bunch of stories and see a bunch of pics. Good post T-Bob!

[dodgegirl]

My family as well as the people we hunt with have always just opened the box and let all the dogs out. Our catch dogs are all dogos & one is a 90 pound pit x redbone cross. I always see people on here saying dogs will get wrecked from running around, but our dogs have only gotten cut down a few times. Granted our catch dogs don't really roam far until they hear the bay.

[BA-IV]

I like to walk mine in.  See when you hunt culls like I do, you have to help em. I walk mine in tip she sees the hog, I whisper in her good ear alil cuz she's half deaf and all wobble.  Then she'll miss and I'll have to catch the pig for her, and then call her over to try again.

I never catch any of those 500 lb'rs though  .

[-Hdogs]

Its a good idea to wait and see what the hog is and where he is before you turn your cd loose. He may be in a pool or river or in some thick number 2. I like to see what im turning him loose on. But once you see the hog and he brakes then i would turn him loose as long as he can hear them bay if you know your terrain well.