BigGameHoundsmen.com

I don’t know how to say a lot of things without just being blunt and straightforward, so that’s what I’m going to do and hope that people get where I’m coming from. EVERYONE on this forum has two things in common. We all love dogs and we all love to hunt. I myself could talk dogs in some shape form or fashion all day everyday, just ask my family lol. It doesn’t matter what you are hunting, what style, what breed of dog, how old you are, where you hunt, etc., most all of it can be related to by others even if they don’t do it exactly the same. I’ll be 50 in just a few months and I’ve been hunting my own dogs the biggest part of it. I’ve been around good dog hunters ALL my life. I feel blessed and honored for that. Thing is, I don’t know everything there is to know and I never will. I have learned good and bad and I have learned both from new and old hunters. I feel like we have an obligation to each other though to share. We have a real tendency in this country to complain and belly ache about one thing or another. A hunter sees another old hunting buddy and naturally they start talking dogs or what not and then they are talking about some young hunter(s) and the way they do things or the way they take care of their dogs etc. etc. My thing is, a lot of what we do as dog hunters should be a common sense issue (which is almost non existent these days) or be done with good ethics being the determining factor. No way in the world everyone is going to agree and for sure not all the time. We can’t get better though if the people that know things and have experience don’t share. Too many people have the “let them learn it the way I learned it…the hard way” mentality or they are worried about sounding like a know it all. This is a different day and time. Learning some of the lessons we learned along the way can cause some real issues this day and time. Talking about and telling our experiences can eliminate some trouble for others, sometimes other people’s trouble has a trickle effect that could effect a much larger pool of people than just that individual. We like to complain about poor quality dogs and poor quality dogs being bred but we don’t share with them to help them get better. They may or may not take your advice, that’s up to them but at least you tried and did your part. Now if you complain about them you can at least know you did try. It’s kinda like voting, if you don’t vote then you have no right to complain. If you did vote then you can complain all you want just like I do. We have to quit worrying about sounding like know it all’s or rejection and share our knowledge. I personally don’t care what people think about me sharing info. If they don’t agree then don’t use it. If they don’t like my postings then skip over them and don’t read them. It’s that simple. We should all be trying to help each other because the writing is in the wall, we don’t have a very bright future as dog hunters if we don’t stick together as a whole try to make each other better. You older guys can say well that doesn’t matter because I’ll be dead and gone. Maybe so but man that’s selfish and disrespectful to a past time that has been such a good and rewarding way of life for you. I hog hunt but I love to read about cat, bear, or whatever else type hunting. There is something to learn from all of it. Listening to the different mind sets and styles is fascinating to me. Learning one person or another has come to have the dogs they have. We gotta do better and this forum is as good a place as any to start. If you won’t help or advise or share then don’t complain either, on this site or under your breath. So much knowledge and experience on here and nobody shares it.


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I agree, all the old farts are too tight lipped.

I agree it has been slow on the forum lately but hunting seasons/training seasons have started or about to start so some people could be busy but can't speak for everyone. Also, I think some form of social media in one way or another has taken the place of what forums used to be. I am definitely not a old fart but do enjoy dog conversations or reading about it. So it definitely is nice to see when people add to the forum because I do not use the social media platforms. I just want to add another point of view maybe you are not asking the right questions to create length discussions or conversations. I think everyone can say they have a few houndsman that they encountered that really didn't say much unless the right questions were asked, just my two cents

GVBEAR I don’t use the social media platforms either. You are probably correct in assuming that they have hurt the forums. I understand too what you’re saying about right questions. My thing though is that people need to take initiative and just jump in. Maybe I’m thinking too much.


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I’m 81 but really don’t feel like an old fart. I don’t see social media as a substitute for the forum. Face book has a easy way to post video which is about the only thing I enjoy. Talk really doesn’t interest old farts very much. I drop my dogs in front of the truck, blow my truck horn and idle down the road till they start something. Pull over pour a cup of coffee and listen till they lose it, put it in a hole, up a tree or bay it. Its not really hard at all to do what I do and it is extremely easy to train a pack to do this if interested. If there was a way to post video I think there would be more interest. Maby there is a way and I just don’t know how.

Mule man I know you’re right about what you said, but I can promise you that there are lots little things that you have learned in your first 81 years on this earth. If guys like you or of your era don’t chime in, then a lot of knowledge gets lost. If knowledge gets lost then your next 81 years is gonna be aggravating as all get out to you whenever you read, hear, or interact with the lesser experienced doggers. One of my closest friends lives about 12-13 hours from me in Florida. He’s 85 and we talk pretty much every week. Not all dog talk but a lot of it is. I could listen to his stories, and do, all day lol.


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You can hear a lot from other hunters but you won’t learn a lot till you trial and error on your own. You’ll figure out pretty quick what’s works best for you.

Social media definitely cut into these type of platforms which is sad. The amount of knowledge u can find here is irreplaceable not to mention u can interact with REAL houndsman. I myself am off fakebook & only have a profile with no pics on instasham to keep an eye on my teenagers per say. I don't think that anything good can come from it especially with the dogs. Possibly u meet a dude or 2 but for the most part it's only the uneducated, unexperienced who must b cat lovers that end up on your page lol Heading to the Rockies end of Sept & I will try to b on here to share what I learn or to ask questions! I appreciate all the info. keep on doggin!

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