Catching solo

[sheimer]

Question for you all......

How much weight do you put on a dog being able to catch solo? Is it something that is only for good dogs to be able to do? Is it what all dogs should be able to do? Is it a "right of passage" before a dog is considered worthy of your pack?

Just wondering what your opinion is.

Scott

[horshur]

i guess it would depend how they went about it rather than whether. A pretty sorry dog can catch......I've owned some.

a shitzu can tree a lion.

[doghunter]

if it is your catch dog then he better catch solo. there is no subsitute for a catch dog. I only ever use one catch dog. and only turn him lose when it is time to catch. alot of the time when he gets there the bay dog will leave and be getting another hog while you tie the hog.

also to have a #1 catch dog he also should let go on comand or when you throw the hog and not keep trying to catch after the hog is dead or tied.

I have always found the gang method of catching a hog just gets dogs cut.

[larry]

they all better be capable by the time they are of age. why hunt an adult dog that can't catch game? i give all my young dogs there own track every year after they've seen a couple. One good dog and a bunch of tagalongs doesn't get much done if your one good dog goes down.

[Big Horn Posse]

Any hound that can run down a lion track should be able to do so without help from another dog. No, I am not saying they have to do it everytime you turn them loose on a track, some are more difficult for certain dogs, but if you are talking an overnight track in good conditions there should be no reason a dog can't run it on it's own. JMO

[twist]

I agree with Larry. If a person is training a new pup or two after the better part of the seaon they should also be able to put up a good part of the tracks they are turned on for the most part. Now remember I are talking cougars in the area I hunt may be different in other areas and other conditions of hunting.

[George Streepy]

When it comes to lions I would agree with Larry and Twist, but it would depend on the quality of the track. In the area I hunt, lions are fairly easy for the dogs to catch compared to what they are normally hunting. I look for dogs that compliment each other and bring something to contribute to the pack. I don't expect any one dog to do it alone. I expect the dogs to honor each other and for each to bring its own special quality to the chase. If you constantly have dogs that are exceeding each other or where each dog takes its turn leading the race, is when I think their doing their best. That is what a pack is all about.

[sheimer]

I was thinking that it must be something that most dogs can do with a little style by a year or so.(given a diecent track)

Scott

[raxntrax]

A dog should be able to catch lions by themselves after a couple of seasons. The main problem with that around here is that if you lose them in this rough country(for a day or so) and they are solo and they catch the lion you will probably carry home a bloody empty collar. There is a good portion of these lions that are pretty tough to handle with a good pack of dogs let alone a dog that is solo.

[houndnem]

they all better be capable by the time they are of age. why hunt an adult dog that can't catch game? i give all my young dogs there own track every year after they've seen a couple. One good dog and a bunch of tagalongs doesn't get much done if your one good dog goes down.

X 2 !

Most every dog I have could split a chase and catch their own and they have. A smart dog that catches a lion solo is sometimes safer than if they have a bunch of exited dogs surrounding the cat. I've seen dogs crowd other dogs off cliffs, or make it hard for a dog to bite and move, thats when dogs get hurt/killed. If a solo dog bays up a nasty one, they had better know how to win the fight and make it go up the tree.