Slowing down is good

[TexasHogDogs]

You know I hear all the time from people how this are someones dog just ain't finding the hogs he should.  They will say I think my dog is missing hogs.  I notice a lot of times when hunting with folks how they are just on the go all the time and pushing the dogs from place to place and a dog might be in tune with you but you are not int tune with him and when he hears the wheeler moving off he will stop what he is working on and take off to keep up .  This is a bad habit that most folks don't even realize they are doing it teaching a dog to break off a track he is on bad news .  A lot of times a person just needs to clam down take a deep breath and take some time give the dog ample time to hunt a area without rushing the dog sometimes it takes a while for a dog to locate a hog in a ruff area of the woods.  Don't keep your four wheeler going and rolling move up stop and wait and watch your dogs.  Be in tune with your dog if you are not in tune with your dog are dogs then you are missing out on a lot of things .  A man should know what his dog is doing as best he can at all times.  Now I know people hunt different ways but this is the way I do it hunting off the wheeler.

Moving to fast is not a good thing all the time .  Watch your dogs folks they will tell you a lot of things.  With my dogs I can dang near tell you if hogs are in the area by that I mean with end 750 yd are so are out to their range by the way they are hunting and what they are doing .  Lots of times my dogs will make rounds and after four five rounds they will come back and begin to act bored and just generally not acting right they are telling me hey lets get the hell out of here the hogs are not in this area are on this piece of property .   This has happened many times with my dogs before I realized what was going on .  Hell I would get mad at my dogs until I realized they were trying to tell me noting is here.  Been many of times this has happened and I will drag up go to another piece of property and boom soon as they hit the ground they are gone and ten Min's later bayed.

So it pays to slow down and to get in tune with your dogs save you a lot of trouble sometimes and puts more pork on the table .

[Purebreedcolt]

So so so true I have a hard time with this as I think any impatient person does.

[RyanTBH]

Good advice there Tex! I make a point to STOP in the woods... let the dogs get out and do what they do. We don't hunt off wheelers, but we do get to moving pretty good sometimes. It's a lot easier when they are out 4-500 yards though. Then you don't have to worry about them paying attention to you so much; although I think they are going to know what you are doing and where you are at all times though. Good post and reminder! 

[easttexasoutlaw33]

I agree somewhat but to me any dog that is running a track and breaks off because i crank the 4 wheeler is worth 2 cents to me. a true hog dog on a good track shouldnt break off to run to you

[TexasHogDogs]

I agree somewhat but to me any dog that is running a track and breaks off because i crank the 4 wheeler is worth 2 cents to me. a true hog dog on a good track shouldnt break off to run to you

I agree LOL.

If thats the case I have seen a whole lotta number 2ty supposed to be hog dogs LOL.

Experinced  real hog dogs is not going to do it but any young dogs that are out working it sure can screw them up.

[easttexasoutlaw33]

I agree LOL.

If thats the case I have seen a whole lotta number 2ty supposed to be hog dogs LOL.

Experinced  real hog dogs is not going to do it but any young dogs that are out working it sure can screw them up.
[/quote]


yeah its unfortunate to because alot of people dont understand what they are doing to young pups bc most are worried about getting left lol. i agree you have to give young dogs time to learn to stick the track and alot of people get going to fast and hot nosed dogs alot of time will get run past tracks because the owner wants them to hunt faster and quicker operator error in IMO

[Reuben]

You know I hear all the time from people how this are someones dog just ain't finding the hogs he should.  They will say I think my dog is missing hogs.  I notice a lot of times when hunting with folks how they are just on the go all the time and pushing the dogs from place to place and a dog might be in tune with you but you are not int tune with him and when he hears the wheeler moving off he will stop what he is working on and take off to keep up .  This is a bad habit that most folks don't even realize they are doing it teaching a dog to break off a track he is on bad news .  A lot of times a person just needs to clam down take a deep breath and take some time give the dog ample time to hunt a area without rushing the dog sometimes it takes a while for a dog to locate a hog in a ruff area of the woods.  Don't keep your four wheeler going and rolling move up stop and wait and watch your dogs.  Be in tune with your dog if you are not in tune with your dog are dogs then you are missing out on a lot of things .  A man should know what his dog is doing as best he can at all times.  Now I know people hunt different ways but this is the way I do it hunting off the wheeler.

Moving to fast is not a good thing all the time .  Watch your dogs folks they will tell you a lot of things.  With my dogs I can dang near tell you if hogs are in the area by that I mean with end 750 yd are so are out to their range by the way they are hunting and what they are doing .  Lots of times my dogs will make rounds and after four five rounds they will come back and begin to act bored and just generally not acting right they are telling me hey lets get the hell out of here the hogs are not in this area are on this piece of property .   This has happened many times with my dogs before I realized what was going on .  Hell I would get mad at my dogs until I realized they were trying to tell me noting is here.  Been many of times this has happened and I will drag up go to another piece of property and boom soon as they hit the ground they are gone and ten Min's later bayed.

So it pays to slow down and to get in tune with your dogs save you a lot of trouble sometimes and puts more pork on the table .

this is exactly what I always preach...slow is best when the dogs are casting out in circles around the 4 wheeler...if they take a track when they are hunting close then we are constantly reading the dogs...when they go off to work a track I stop and one of 2 things will happen...they will line the track out or it will be  too cold to work out and they will come back and I move on...If I stop too long the dogs will cast deeper so I try to keep moving fast enough to keep them casting out a quarter mile in circles and they will continue to hunt with me...IT IS ALL ABOUT THE DOGS...I LIKE READING AND TELLING THE STORY AS THEY WORK...one day I will get that garmin so I won't have to look in my head to tell or feel the story...but it is fun doing it that way...

IMO this is how to bring out the best in a hunting dog...it is called dog handling...going to fast and not really reading the dogs at all times teaches the dogs to hunt closer and to only take hot tracks...I want the dogs to take all good tracks...and they know I am hunting with them so they are totally focused on hunting and not worrying about keeping up with me...

[firemedic]

Very sound advice Jimmy.....I agree with you. I finally learned to stop trying to get my dogs to do what I think they need to do.....they showed me that they know more about finding and baying a hog than I do,....lesson learned.

My dogs do just what you spoke of when there aren't any hogs around....they make loops and check in, do it over again, and again, and again and finally they realize that it's futile to spend more time looking, there are NO hogs around where we are.

Of course when you get close to our age you just slow down naturally..... Which is sometimes a good thing.

[hillbilly]

Of course when you get close to our age you just slow down naturally..... Which is sometimes a good thing.

X2 on that.
I agree with your post. I find myself hunting to fast alot of times. I am a very impatiant person on all things. If you just stop the dogs will usually take you to the hogs or like you said will let you know we need to get the heck out of here.

[TexasHogDogs]

Am sure glad am not alone in the 50 department Lol !  Yeah you know even now at my age 51 I catch myself sometimes getting ahead of my dogs but at our age we know it and slow down quick .  Haste makes waste and that is really the truth when people are rushing their dogs people just dont realize just how true this is and will really teach a young dog bad habits that once there is very hard hard hard to break if at all.

Yeah if you have good dogs and trust them they will sure nuff let you know in a hurry if there is no hogs in their hunting range are even on the proptery..

Am with you Reuben its all about reading being in tune with your dogs and knowing each dog is different.

[reatj81]

I usually hunt like grandma slow!   That is another thing I hate about hunting in the summer!  I tend to rush them a little & try to get out before it gets too hot..  In the winter I will wait as long as need be.