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dhostetler,

I got to agree with you. Also, it's been my experience that one really good catch/bay dog will make the others look fantastic. Without out it, they are usually just there.

warrenj,
If the dogs do as you describe and start, run and tree bear you are halfway there. With dogs like that in WI, you'll tree 75% of the bear you come across. The other 25% (or less) which are usually the good ones, are going to take a little more dog. It's better to have some OK dogs than some that do nothing. I'd just keep trying to get something that is better than what you've got and then you can decide what you want to do with them.

We all want to have a lockdown pack of studs, but most of us have a work in progress. It takes a lot of time and dogs to get to that point and most of us don't have much of either. If you really want only top dogs, you better get ready to cycle through a pile of them to get what you want. And be prepared to maybe not get there. There ain't any shortcuts besides getting dogs out of good dogs and putting them in the woods.

the bear guys tell me the slow starters usualy are the best dogs at 3 or 4 some of the bear lines throw slow starters and they know the lines that do i would see what they do on a coon
i dont know but i have seen a big male that had to be dragged over to a dead bear and he would almost cower well he is big and fast in front at 4 smokin past the early starters
i would see if they will go for a caged coon if not hmm

lifreediver,

Is that 4 yearold a bay dog?

I have seen very fast dogs that lost sudden interest once it stopped on the ground.

dods werent scared of this 531lbs bear i got sunday treed real good, thinks are looking up with these young dogs:)

big change in these young dogs didnt have a problem with them treeing a 531lbs bear on sunday

Wow that's great. I didn't figure a bear that size would tree.