Suggestions for a hunting/ranch/kids dog

[r_cordell]

I'm looking for a cur dog to add to my pack, something that will tree a cat, but be able to work cows some, too. From what I've read on the Google, a Blackmouth Cur might be what I'm looking for. Traits that I'd like to find are something that's at least medium nosed, trees decent, easy to handle, and it has to be something that's good with kids. Basically, if I can use it for lions and bobcats in the winter, and as a ranch dog the rest of the year, I'd be 100% satisfied! Let me know if you know of anything that might fit my criteria!

[marc godfrey]

I would suggest you look into some old English Shepard dogs aka old Scottish collies. They are exactly what you are describing, you’ll just have to do your home work on which breeder to get them from.

[r_cordell]

I've never heard of anybody using a Shepard or collie for treeing game, I'll look into them, though, for sure.

[Jeff Eberle]

I think you’ll find a better nose in the Mountain Cur breed. And a good Cur in the right hands can be taught pretty much anything.

[macedonia mule man]

From what I understand in your wants, you can find it at the local dog pound. Collie crosses and Shepard crosses make good tree dogs. All cur dog breeds were originally crossed up on something they didn’t start out the way they are now. I really can’t recognize but two breed of cur that have enough good dogs to raise any interest and really good cur dogs are far and few. The good ones I’ve hunted with are good on squirrels and coon. Most make bay dogs and you can make bay dogs out of most anything.

[Deff]

The most hard treeing dog I ever had was a Australian Shepherd/ Heeler/ Lab mutt! She would work cows for me, fetch ball with the kids or hunt coons or bobcat at night. She'd put her nose on the ground and track and had to be physically pulled off of the tree. BTW, that Black and Tan/ Matthess pup I got from you years ago is here, sleeping behind my chair. She's slowing down now, but has been a sweet family pet and a well mannered hound! She never figured out bobcats but she treed a lot of coons and at least one lion. I'm slowing down too! Lately I've been pondering whether to try to find a pup for her to mentor or just set by the fire and tell stories.......

[r_cordell]

It's always good to know the pup went to a good home! I still have two of her littermates, I think I'll retire one this winter, he'd just assume to ride around in the swather all summer, and the tractor all winter! The other one, I'm gonna try and hunt one more year, that's why I'm looking for something else to run with him to get some training in. That litter made real good lion dogs, but just average on bobcats. I had higher hopes for them because their mother just lived to see a bobcat up a tree! I've just been thinking lately, that I'd get more use out of some sort of cur dog than hounds. I plan on always having one or two good hounds, but I think running a cur with them would add another dimension to their abilities, sort of play off each others strengths and weaknesses, I guess.
Good to hear from you Deff!

[Erickson]

I have 2 blue ticks that can move a couple hundred cows better than ten guys horse back with healers by myself. They are mother and daughter the daughter even try’s to heel once in a while. A little embarrassing you can hear us coming for miles. They hunt lions and bobs and when the tracks are cold I can sic them on the track and they seem to really go for it. I take them irrigating in rattlesnake infested country and they have bayed more than I can count. Once in a while they leave me moving cows or irrigating but well worth it just practice for cat season. That’s my 2 cents hounds can and do make all around dogs.p.s. They also sleep with the barn cat

[r_cordell]

Haha, I'd like to hear them blue ticks behind a bunch of cows! It probly makes the neighbors wonder a little bit about you, doesn't it?!
I've always had black and tans, they go with me everywhere, and I've had several that would chase a cow if you told them to, but they weren't herding, just chasing! Usually, in the wrong direction...
I'm certainly not opposed to any breed, but if I'm gonna go get a dog from the pound, I'd rather get one that has hunting genetics in the breed, such as a cur. Thevproblem with that, is, there aren't many cur dogs around my area, and only a couple breeders within 300 miles. I realize that they aren't gonna hunt like a walker does, but that's OK. I want something that I can tell when to hunt, and when to cool his jets! That's what made me consider a type of cur, I've heard that they hunt to please their master, not necessarily because it's ingrained in their DNA!
One of the best all around dogs I ever had was a Kellie/border collie cross... None of the sneakiness of a border collie, but had the smarts.... He'd go after whatever you pointed him at, bulls, sheep, fox, coyotes, coons, bobcats, even beaver.... No fear at all! He was pretty warm nosed, but if he saw what he was after, it was game over! I miss old Rowdy!
Thanks for the suggestions and stories, keep 'em coming!

[david]

I have a freind in Montana who did a lot of research on the black mouth curs and decided to get a cross out of a black mouth Cur and a lab. If you talked to him, he would probably convince you this is the best all around dog in the world. He got a second one, and both were females and bred back to labs and they sell puppy’s to the pet market and get more than Hound puppies usually sell for. He says They are the best family dogs ever, have treed lion, retreive birds and work cattle.

Some of the stories he tells about them are remarkable regarding their intelligence and perception of what needs to be done.

He decided against the pure bred black mouth curs. I think his primary reason was they can be over-protective/over- territorial and he was having reservations over getting someone bit.

[lawdawgharris]

I'll bet those cur/labs are good dogs. I have seen several lab or lab crosses in hog hunting over the years. I once considered breeding some bird dog into my family of hog dogs and the old pointer breeder I was friends with gave me 3 to try. His advice was go with the lab. He said they are tougher. Said they they will push through what the pointers want to run around. I never used either for several reasons but that's another story. I'm the type that wants it done right. I don't want something that will bark at a cow. I want something that will work a cow, right. Down here we want our cow dogs to circle and then when we start pushing the cattle to stay out front to control the bunch and the pace. If you have a good handle on them, you can push the cattle faster from behind by moving the dogs further out ahead. There were a family of dogs down here that would've been perfect for you. They have been used on about anything I can think of with a good success rate. They were called the "Doughbelly" dogs. In a nut shell they were a black mouth/catahoula/plott cross that they line bred for a long time. I knew a fella that was a professional cat hunter and that's all he used were these dogs. Numerous people used them on cattle or hogs or both ways. Doughbelly himself is gone now so there are no more straight doughbelly bred dogs but there are some that are heavy in it. For me I love the Catahoula/hound cross with the hound blood about 1/4. They are very versatile and well rounded. I have seen them used for a wide range of duties as well and they seem to meet or raise the bar everytime. For my liking and what I do, I don't like pure cur types (this includes catahouls) or full hounds. There are GREAT ones in every breed but as a whole there to many undesirable traits for me. The crosses seem to be what does it for ME. It sounds to me like a good cross or even a good Mt. Cur would likely be what you want. You can absolutely get a pound dog that will work but you may have to go through a quite a few to get what your looking for and by then the wife and kids have gotten too attached to the first 3 that won't hit a lick at a snake. I would go with a purpose bred dog for that reason. You at least up the odds of satisfaction. Just my opinion. Good luck

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[Willyrockhill]

My lifestyle requires like the ones you are looking for. I have a small place here in Idaho that I run a few cows on. I also trap and call coyotes a lot. I run nothing but curs and I'm very happy with them. The best all around dog I have ever had was 1/2 Mt cur, 1/2 border collie. He was crazy smart and would do pretty much whatever I wanted him to do. Work cows all day then go catch a bobcat that night. He handled extremely well and I feel that was part of why he was so good. I have mostly Mountain curs now with a splash of other breads hear and there. They a good all around dogs but I don't think they would have been very good on cows if I didn't spend time with them doing it. And still they are not the best. They are great with my kids and I have one that is an excellent bobcat dog but won't run a lion. My others will run lions but are not the best bobcat dogs lol. But they will all work cows, decoy coyotes, and put game up a tree or I wouldn't feed them.

[r_cordell]

I've also wondered if a BMC wouldn't be too protective, I'm kinda leaning towards a mountain cur or bmc mix. David, if you could get me in contact with your friend in MT, I'd love to visit with him! Where at in MT is he?

[david]

I texted him your number. Have not heard back from him yet.

[macedonia mule man]

Cordell, this is a description of a coon hunt with two good hounds and a cur dog. Cast all three and the hounds get in the dark and stay there until a good track is found. The cur will leave with them but will be back shortly. When the hounds have the track up and running, the cur will recognize by the ways the hounds are running that it’s his time to shine. He will get there and tree and be ahead of the hound sometimes. Take the cur by himself the next night and you will have to walk him to a hot track or you will go home empty handed. If you fill the woods with corn , you can catch morecoons with a cur than you can carry out of the woods. Don’t have any idea what they will do on lion and cat. The boys I hunted with in NM said a lion or cat hunt is very similar to a Louisiana coon hunt. I’ve owned most all breed of cur dog and the BM suited me best. I didn’t find any breed of cur more protective than another. You will find some mean ones in all the cur breeds but they don’t usually make hunting dogs