tenderfeet?

[Warner5]

If your close enough, take your dogs to the beach. It works. Thank you. John.

[dwalton]

Dog feet vary. Some dogs do better than others. Ice, lava rocks and other thing can cut and damage a dogs feet. If you have never had a dog with sore feet you have not hunted much in adverse conditions. I have seen a lot of blood in the snow threw the years and if those dogs are not cared for they are going to lose some hunting time. This year I hunted them from 4 to 14 days strait, 10 to 16 hours a day and never saw a dog limp but did see some blood. Those dogs were cared for that night and hunted the next day. The toughest feet I have seen on dogs is my Leopard Curs. I get the chlorhexidine from a vet friend, try your feed store they maybe able to order it. Most feed stores carry Navolsan [sp] it is the brand name that cost a lot more than the generic. You will get out of the dogs what you put into them. Dewey

[Ker_man]

[url]Larry I used to think all light colored pads was a sure sign of potential sore feet. Have discovered that is not always the case. Have had some dogs with the dark pads that did not hold up to roading on the sharp gravel roads, then running tough races as well as some with the light colored pads. That being said I still like dogs feet to be tight, dark pads,& lots of hair between the toes. But with enough hard runs with little rest between runs most will still show some tenderness at times. Just my experience Thanks Al baldwin Over the years I/ve been known to hunt the best i could afford and bred was not an issue.


Last edited by al baldwin on Thu Mar 29, 2012 7:22 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Mr Baldwin, I agree with your idea of good feet!

I think Mr Leonard mentioned thick skin, a lot of truth in this statement. A lot of running walkers have some pink and hold up or would have been culled.

Mr D. Walton, if the leopard's feet out last the running dogs feet I'm impressed!

Larry your going to bust off all the buttons on your shirt

I very much enjoyed this post, much knowledge and info. Methods and observations. A lot of truth in the conditioning theories.

One thing I did not see mentioned (or I missed it) is some dogs are hard on them selves. A friend of mine discribes them as pounders They pound the ground, are not light on their feet and won't go around bad spots.

Thanks all, Terry

[henpeck]

I almost thought a few important facts were not going to come up. But they did. One being genetics - so many people breed hounds without feet even being a factor or consideration. Two being desire- ( gameness )how much a hound puts out for you.And three being physical ability.( If light on or not. ) All play a big part in amount of pre-conditioning that you may or may not do. (jmo)About every breed I've fed over the years have had some sort of issue with there pads, if you let the desire heavily out weigh the others. I too prefer a thick black pad also, but have wrecked my fair share on my end. Terrain, conditions and don't forget who's company. Let another pack or two join in your nice pleasure fox race and it may become a battle royal on open land. The pressure can get intense. Most every hound pushing hard for some fresher scent up in the front of the pac. I keep special googles for my hounds to them from getting mud in their eyes.


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[Mr.pacojack]

Larry is right. Many Walkers do have bad feet, and it has given the Walker Breed a bad name. Many people think that all Walkers and all pink or white feet have bad feet which is simply not true.
Many strains within the different breeds have bad feet and Walkers are the easiest to find. This is a Man made problem, No conditioning or salves or snake oils is going to correct this problem. A dog with bad feet should not be bred, this just passes on the problem and creates a bigger problem for the breed and you.
If you have a dog with bad feet and think you are going to breed this out of them then you might as well start to try and breed the Stupid out of yourself. lol Just dont breed the damn dog, simple as that. If you think this is the only dog in the world or the only good dog, you are just plain not looking beyond your nose.
The Black foot White foot issue is a wives tale and has been proven to be not true in horses and dogs. The bad footed animal is that way because it's make up, usually a lack of Bioten, that is produced in the gut.
I hunt my Walkers 4 to 5 months solid everday on bear and have no issues ( all pink footed). I would not concider it the toughest conditions but I have also hunted Utah and Nevada in some very tough conditions and never had a problem. I am not beating on my chest simply saying, when looking for a breed of dog ( Any Breed) Go hunt with them, do your home work on the strain of dog within the breed. Do not go off what people recomend, when they themselves have never hunted with the dog (s) or breed. Right Mike?

[Warner5]

I have yet to see foot problems with dogs that have been started right. What I mean by that is when they are pups work them, make them road with the older dogs or follow you around on the 4-wheeler or something. Dont let them sit on the chain or in the kennel until their a year old or more. Start making a dog out of them before that, it will make for a tougher, better dog. With that said I have seen dogs with a heavy footed running style that put alot of abuse on their feet. This post not intended to single anyone out, just ranting.Thanks. John.

[iinvno1]

The above mentioned it all true. However, some dogs just have junk feet! I have noticed it mostly in walkers. I own a walker with pink feet and her feet have been flawless. That being said I don't have the answer as to why some pink footed dogs get sored up and some don't but I know that some dogs feet are just junk. I know a walker guy who is a diehard but crosses occationally with black and tans in order to keep their feet solid. It has worked for him for many many years take it for what it's worth. Also know of a hi-tan with black feet and they are also junk... so go figure. Don't have the answers thats only my experience so far.