BigGameHoundsmen.com

Thank you Mark

I am with Andy, there sure is a lot of over thinking here. Every body is entitled to their opinion even if it is not how sone one else sees it. Bottom line some people can catch cats on the ground and some can't. Some tree a lot of cats and realize how little they know and some tree a few and know it all. In the long run it is just whats so. We all make it up any way. Have fun and good hunting Dewey

I don't know anything im a young guy. I do catch a few old blind crippled cats with a few culls of mine and a few from others. I would rather have good hair then tree. I would rather have a dog that trailed good and treed poorly.. Im at Dallas Safari Show right now and you guys are keeping my day going. I have no idea the amount of cats us brushy coast guys run a month. I do feel some brushy guys run more in two months then them Montana dogs see a season. I dont mean anything negative by that only thinking a dog with more game is going to be better and have a better average threw out life giving more people a better understanding what a dog can do. Some dogs catch some dogs trail.

I have had a few dogs (not a bunch) that could start a hot track with three or four other dogs and very shortly would be running alone 200 or 300 yards head of the pack. On a looping track, I would occasionally be at the tree before the other dogs would arrive. I do not remember either of these dogs ever catching a critter on the ground. The two that did catch regularly, while they were fast, did not demonstrate this type of outstanding speed. Why did the speed demons never catch if they wanted to catch???

BTW I am on the east coast.It is 12:38 AM. I just got in from letting a slipping dodging cat make my dogs look silly for the best part of an hour before I called them off. Good hunting to all.

mark wrote:I also wonder in heavy brush if you guys can tell for sure when one is jumped.

You have got to be kidding me!!!! That statement says alot about how little you know. Throw that garmin away and find some place to go hunt in the dark! Then get back to us in 6 months with your findings.

When I ran a bobcat with Art within sight of the ocean. It was obviously a jumped race because we saw it cross the road twice not far in front of the dogs. Virtually all my Montana cold trail races are faster than that race was. If i would've not had a dog in the race I would've considered Art as owning the most worthless dogs on the planet. A while ago there was a discussion on one of these forums about when a race is a jumped race. I couldn't believe it but after the Coast I can see why that can be debatable.

Nobody in Montana catches anywhere close to 150 bobcats a year. You need good cold trail dogs to consistently catch Montana bobcats. I firmly believe it would be impossible to cold trail a bobcat 10 miles on the coast because you would bump into to many other bobcats on the way.

Barksalot, I kinda have a similar experience. I sold a good rig dog to a guy the dog trailed nice but would get dumped out on jumps. I told the guy every pro and con about the dog. I got calls back time and time again telling me how he stuck right in on all the jumps and was always dog 1 or 2 at the tree. The man caught a few cat. But how could he catch game with out that male being tossed out of a race and I couldnt have a race with him being with in 400 yards of the lead dog.

Now I'm going to bed stressed out why my dogs can't ground catch a cat in my area of Montana andvif I really have a few finished dogs at 20 or under bobcats a season thanks a lot cat wizards lol! Andy

When it comes to Cold trailing there is a whole bigger world out there. Then what most people could imagine.

Mark, I am the first to admit that I don't know squat about hunting your country. In fact I am still learning about my country.

If I would listen to my Dad's advice to smarten up get rid of my dogs, get married, and raise him some grandkids I would probably be better off anyway. Meanwhile I will just keep wallowing in my ignorance. Until some coast guy shows up with a heated girdle and shows me how to catch Montana bobcats on the ground

Andy you cant go to bed yet, and Duane thats probably not something you want to wish for. I know someone that sends dogs to Montana regularly that flat out Murder that country. Im not going to throw names out there he produces dogs that catch game. Some if not the best Cold Trailers i have seen came from a family who runs brush dogs. Pups thst flat out left seasoned dogs behind where a person would have thought pups were running trash. But to only tree a Cat miles later.

Merlo, I started this post to explain about Montana jump races. It devolved into the apparent fact that my dogs don't run to catch. I would really like to see it done in my country to know if it can. I don't have a problem catching a jumped Montana bobcat so if someone shows up and catches a bunch of cats on the ground I would would probably not be to interested in the dogs as I would be limited to hunting during our 3 week kill season or else I would have a lot of pissed trappers and hunters.

I am however all ears on cold nosed dogs. I am color blind to dogs to if there are dogs out there colder nosed than what I got I will pay good money to get some of that line. The Montana hound community is fairly small and I know hunters all over the state. I know of several hunters that have gotten dogs from the coast but I haven't heard of them catching big numbers. I am very interested in who you are referring too. Can you PM me?

I am unlike some hunters I will turn loose with anybody anytime as long as they don't have tree fighters.

The dogs I run are not out of bobcat lines. There ancestors have caught bobcats from time to time but were not owned by "bobcat hunters". I believe that in good bred dogs good traits can be buried and developed by the right hunter. I do however believe that dogs specifically bred for bobcats for generations are probably better.

Duane, if you truly want to find out if your dogs run to catch, I mean if that is important for you to know, I have a sure fire way for you to find out.

Let me know and I can set you up in an area where the races will last until the cat is caught on the ground; be it 20 minutes or 6 hours.

It is in a northern climate so you can even have snow. There is a little hotel in the area And if I still have a job I can help you with your room if you want to do it. The out of state fees are very reasonable, and I will even help you with that if you need it. Andy, if you want to sleep better, the offer is there for you also.

If you do it and catch one of these cats on the ground; I promise to leave you both alone when you guys insult other hunters about wanting to try two complimentary dogs or a silent dog to help with catch rates, or your dog is a cull unless it is like mine. Have at it.

Until then....

Man I slept good and I thought I would have not lol. Andy

[quote="david"]



My theory was my way of trying to understand why my dogs would never catch cats in areas where cats do not climb. When I acted on my theory to test it, I started catching cats to the point it became boring for me.

David would you mind sharing with us where you got this line of dogs that caught cats on the ground, to point it became boring for you? Also what breed were those dogs? Don/t believe I would ever get bored with that line of dog. I have enjoyed reading this post, have not read any comments that offended me, after all we have just exchanged opinions based on our own experience. Take care Al