How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Talk about Big Game Hunting with Dogs
Sureshotshane
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How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Sureshotshane » Fri Oct 29, 2021 6:48 pm

I see and hear about you all who have 6, 12, 20+ dogs and just have to wonder how you keep all of them? Pictures would be welcome of setups, etc.

Lots of talk about how many dogs are best to run whatever animal… but how many dogs before you say I have enough dogs and can’t handle them anymore? Not on a hunt but just in general.

I see people who are defeated by a single puppy and others who have a hoard of them. A new puppy is always stressful. Personally I feel I can reasonably keep 3-4 dogs, depending on the dog(s). I’ve never had more than that in a household so I wouldn’t know what it’s like to have more at once.

Are there times you want to rip your hair out and get rid of some?

I’m getting a couple more puppies in short order so just something I’ve been thinking about because I’m impressed by the folks who can handle a dozen dogs.
Beebout-it
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Beebout-it » Fri Oct 29, 2021 7:28 pm

I love this series of questions, I find myself wondering how the dry ground guys do it ? Or the guys the keep entire litters. I personally have been running 6ish dogs and it has worked well, this year with our pending bear season in the spring and a few dogs getting some age on them I decided to up the number to 10. I hunt way more than I use to so I need more fresh legs so I can hunt day after day. I think the answer to your how many dogs do you need is that you need as many as you can do right by, meaning if you hunt weekends only for pleasure then 2 or 3 is probably all you need, if your running 7 days a week your entire season and guiding hunters you want to have enough dogs to rotate through to hunt day in and day out. Also living in wolf County any time the dogs you turn out could be wiped out. I've got 4 pups in the kennel right now and absolutely question my sanity and pull my hair from time to time. My dogs all live in kennels with their houses in open faced loafing sheds. They never come in the house unless they are injured and they absolutely hate being inside.
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Sureshotshane » Sat Oct 30, 2021 2:23 am

Beebout- 10 dogs is quite the pack. Great points.

Keep in mind I’ve never owned hound breeds. Still working on acquiring my own. Though I’ve had various other types of dogs. Every hound I’ve ever really got to know has been a very well behaved dog, I’d say even more so than an average house dog.

I almost forgot the another important question. Are you all married? How’s your spouse like them?

My wife is an awesome mother to our son but not as fond of the dogs. She says she loves dogs but I can tell they stress her out quite a bit, she probably would like them more if she wasn’t allergic to them.

My wife just the other day asked if I was crazy as a response to me showing her a picture of a litter of Leopard Cur pups and asking her which color she liked best. She prefers the Merle btw, I have no preference so I let the breeder know “our” preference.

I like my dogs outside most the time with some visits inside to get them accustomed to being good citizens in the house.
bowieknife50
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby bowieknife50 » Sat Oct 30, 2021 11:16 am

I have 5 hounds plus a house dog right now and it's too much. I think I really want to stay at 4 hounds because I know I couldn't give more than that the time they need. Realistically I don't give these the time they need but I want to have enough to tree a bear on my own. I think it helps to have the ages spaced out so you're not trying to train a whole kennel full of puppies. My older dog is approaching finishing out so it's nice to be able to turn loose and not really worry about what he's doing. As far as the wife if mine was allergic they would never come in the house, don't want to give any reason for her not to like them. Also, the next time she asks you if you're crazy just look deep into her soul and say, "crazy about you." It's a great deflection.

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Beebout-it
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Beebout-it » Sat Oct 30, 2021 12:49 pm

If it wasn't for my wife and sin I wouldn't be able to have as many as I do, all summer long im leaving the house by 4am and not home till 8pm so they do all the feeding, cleaning, shots. If my wife had it her way our 20 acres would be a hound retirement facility for old dogs. I'm very lucky that she loves the dogs, and what they are bred for even though she only likes to go out running cats a few times a year. You know that you got it good when its Valentine's day and your wife says the girls haven't caught a lion in a few days you better take them out today! She also has 2 house dogs so there's a dozen dogs and she would gladly have a 100 if I'd let her.
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Beebout-it » Sat Oct 30, 2021 12:50 pm

Son not sin lol
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tman308
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby tman308 » Sat Oct 30, 2021 10:46 pm

I have 12 hounds and 3 yard dogs currently. I've had as many as 26 at one point. I think the key is well mannered dogs. I put a lot of time into my puppies so they mind and handle very well. My hounds run loose in about a 2 acre area during the day. They get chained up at night. Each dog knows where it goes and waits at their house at feeding time. I hunt from the saddle and take all 12 with me. I can whistle and say let's go and we leave the tree without a leash. It's all about the basic obedience I instill in my animals.
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Sureshotshane
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Sureshotshane » Sat Oct 30, 2021 11:26 pm

Bowieknife- that’s a good response for my wife no doubt. That’s one of my biggest concerns is not being able to devote enough time to each dog. I’ve had good dogs in the past and I think they only turned out the way they were because I’d spend every moment with them.

Beebout - that’s another good point. In the end my wife is very helpful with the dogs and will pull through when needed but generally the dogs go everywhere with me.

I’m lucky to have a job where I can bring dogs to work.
scrubrunner
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby scrubrunner » Fri Nov 12, 2021 3:45 am

Got mine in a 100’x 100’ pen divided in half, females in one side males in the other. It’s about 100 yards from the house, wife don’t know how many dogs are out there and don’t care.
Yes sometimes I do get frustrated and sometimes I do get rid of some, if one barks to much in the pen, if it’s growly, mean or fights, or has a habit of crapping or peeing in the water bucket, dog house or my truck.
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Rowdy Fitz » Fri Nov 12, 2021 12:53 pm

“Beebout-it: If it wasn't for my wife and sin I wouldn't be able to have as many as I do, all summer long im leaving the house by 4am and not home till 8pm so they do all the feeding, cleaning, shots. If my wife had it her way our 20 acres would be a hound retirement facility for old dogs. I'm very lucky that she loves the dogs, and what they are bred for even though she only likes to go out running cats a few times a year. You know that you got it good when its Valentine's day and your wife says the girls haven't caught a lion in a few days you better take them out today! She also has 2 house dogs so there's a dozen dogs and she would gladly have a 100 if I'd let her.”

I’m in a similar situation, I wouldn’t be able to have a single animal if it wasn’t for my wife. I’m gone for weeks at a time, during the summer due to work. On a regular shift, I’m gone 4 days a week. So I would say that having a spouse or someone who that can be trusted to take care of the animals is a must. Stuff happens and having the space to keep them while gone, is a must.
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Vicks_PeakGS » Fri Nov 12, 2021 4:38 pm

Having 22 hounds and 2 retired heelers is tough but I completely second the family support comments. I fight wild fires in the summer so I’m gone often for 2-3 weeks at a time in the summer. My wife and daughters pick up my slack thankfully.
We just bought a new house and when we were looking at places I wouldn’t settle for a place that wouldn’t aid us in keeping our dogs and mules/horses.
The new house has a 40x50 shop/barn. One 50 foot wall is already made into stalls for the horses. On the other wall I will make dog houses that will resemble a counter top. With dog doors to exterior kennels with a canopy and misters with a cement floor and a large drain system so they can be cleaned with a pressure washer. That should cover 10-12 of my oldest dogs and my breeder females.
Additionally the house came with a large cement Slab for an rv I plan on putting a canopy over top of that and putting another 10-12 dogs there.
I’ve learned that the hardest thing about having this many dogs is not hunting them or handling them, it’s the effort it takes to keep them taken care of every day even when not being hunted.
We are pretty excited to see the kennel idea come through to fruition.

I’ll probably start a thread over on the kennel forum so folks can follow along and maybe critique things they may do differently.

Happy hunting.


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Sureshotshane
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby Sureshotshane » Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:08 am

Holy smokes 22 hounds. This clearly is no flippant hobby for you. My wife might help me out a week or weekend here and there with a couple dogs but she wouldn’t ever go for that. My boys to young still to be of much help.

It’s interesting because most people grew up with a family dog, maybe two, maybe three. I’d bet most of the family dogs didn’t work, hunt for them, or do much of anything so the thought of handfuls of dogs I’m sure seems foreign. And would be if they had no purpose. For my wife at least it’s hard for her to understand that it’s a lot more transactional than emotional. Not that I don’t love my dogs but if one doesn’t work out, is ill toward humans or other dogs, than it’s getting sent down the road. Or the opposite - it’s such a great dog that someone will buy it for way more than it’s worth. Many would claim they would never sell their dogs for any price. I believe it with some folks but most have a price. All this would seem very callous to folks just looking for a family pet. Not to say I haven’t gotten attached to dogs that probably would be culls in other peoples minds.
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Re: How do ya’ll keep so many dogs

Postby perk » Fri Nov 19, 2021 3:19 pm

Sureshotshane, normally size of the pack you own relates to what you hunt, where you hunt, how you were taught, what you believe, why you hunt hounds and the culture of the territory you live, I could show you plenty of dog pens with 30 dogs in my part the country, it's all cultural and what a man can pay for. And sureshotshane, I've never sold a puppy, a dog, or a breeding. I given away dogs worth little and dogs worth more, I've given away as many pups as I ever trained, I'll never take a dollar for a dog or pup, there isn't cash to buy from my pack, hounds are not about money to me or my family, not that my dogs are great or set a benchmark, but one thing will never be said about me or my family is that I took a penny for a hound.
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