How do you pick your pups

[J. Tallina]

You guys will pry laugh at me but we let our 6 week old coyote hound pups chase tame rabbit like to see which ones stay after them and will keep looking after we grab rabbit look for the most consistent ones of the group

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I like what you said there Booney...I don't keep cats but I like to see a 10 week old pup bay one or better yet tree it...

I got one that is cat crazy he's broke off everything cept hogs and occasional deer but looses his frikin mind everyday when my wife's cats come to eat I mean foamin at the mouth peein type excited idk if a cat jumped on him before or what.

[justincorbell]

I think we sit more with Justin. It's nice to be able to raise them until they've had all their shots. Start them as early as you see their ready for it, and pick which ones you like best... then keep the others close as possible incase they turn out better so you can breed back to em. Love messing with pups,  but it's a damn chore for sure. Lol

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I know that right lol but hell Ryan.........something about watching pups turn it on just makes me grin and puts me in a good mood (as im sure it does everyone else lol) but I really think I enjoy workin and raising pups more so than just goin out hunting the grown dogs.

[RyanTBH]

That's what it's all about for me now... To see that switch get flipped, and the progression start on a pup you've bred is like no other feeling. I'm more into training the pups and getting them ready to hunt than hunting itself now it seems. I mean don't get me wrong, I love to get out and put hands on a hog, but it's about the dogs and judging them now. I pay attention to everything I can when it comes to judging the pups as they get older... Conformation, nose, bottom, mouth, ect... I like the ones that for the same mold as the breeding plan I'm trying to follow, but so far most of them have hit the mark that I'm looking for.

[justincorbell]

^ absolutely, thats what its all about.........long as you are makin progress you are headed in the right direction!

[TexasHogDogs]

Close your eyes reach in a toe sack and pull one out is how I use to do it.

[Big Game Joe]

I like to keep all of them and cull when they have had a chance to show me what they are made of, probably at a year old or so. But when picking at six or seven weeks, I look for the one's most like their parents, male pup that looks like the sire and female pup that looks like the dam. I also want the independent pups, not shy, but a little aloof, kind of like they are a little above the others. Seems like these kind would just as soon find their own game to run, don't need any help to find game. But in the end it's just a crap shoot. The ugliest, runty, shy one may turn out to be the best, you just never know. How about you Cajun, how do you pick your pups?         

[Cajun]

  When pups are 6 or 7 weeks old, I just dont think it matters which one you pick. If it is a well bred litter, there is no way to pick ability in a pup so just grab one that suits you & go with it.
  I have kept runts before & they turned out to be just as good as the others. Now I tend to pick one that is more in size with the average of the litter.
  You can definently change the size of your dogs. If you always pick the biggest male or the biggest female you will see a increase in size of your dogs in just a few breedings. Same with runts.
  I really believe that it is not which pup you pick as how much exposure & hunting a pup gets as whether he makes it or not. My dogs do not do good staying in a kennel until they are a year old & then taken out & I dont believe anybody else's dogs do either. JMO

[Reuben]

runts usually don't stay runts...that has been my experience with pups...and 6 or 7 week old pups are as you said...a crap shoot...10 to 12 weeks and one can already see consistent differences in the pups if we are looking to pick the best pups in the litter...but it is best to keep as many as possible and slowly cut down as they mature until we have what we believe are the best pups at 8-10 months or even older if they come from a slower maturing line of dogs...