I am a dog guy who has my adult life always had a bulldog - pound /rescue of a sort - they hunt cats and squirrels in the yard and allow me to feel 100% sure that my home and family and yard are safe
they are very well trained in being a protectors and loving freinds and had 2 that were fair bird/rabbit dogs but these 2 wont leave my sight thats how the were trained by me not to - even if I wanted to take em to the woods the wont go far --
back when I was a teen I used to go with a fella to coon hunt competitions- that was a lot of fun
anyhow
I have been hunting in a dog area for a lil while and enjoy the sound of a race - actually had some dogs run a few by me , no shooters though
I was fleeting some thoughts - while swinging in my tree the other day
I would like opinions from both pig hunters and deer hunters
If a guy (me) was to want to get into Dog huntin!
how many dogs ?
whats a proven good dog/dogs gonna cost ?
then what breed /breeds ? probably a whole new debate
radio vs gps collars ?
4wd a must ?
do the dogs always bark / do the neighbors complain ?
how much $ a year do ya have/average a year per dog for vet bills?
any of em actually house pets and hunters ?
I am sure you all will add more stuff I did not think of and such
and I will probably have more to ask later
thanks guys :flag3d
Here's some thoughts from an ex-doghunter
How many dogs and breed kinda depends on how many people who are going to be in your "group." If you are by yourself(which is difficult) keeping up with dogs is a pain in the rear
4-6 dog is a good pack. You can run 2-3 at a time and always (or usually) have fresh/rested dogs. Plus if you get a hot race you can send another fresh dog to it. You need a good trail dog, one with a good cold nose that you can put on a track at daylight and let that dog work it out. Then you need a mixture of younger dogs that can run it
As far a s breed, depends on how many people (in my opinion). Long legged walker hounds can clear a block before you can drive to the other side. Beagles or beagle walker mixes usually are a great dog. Also if you are going to be hunting WMA's that allow dog hunting, there may possibly be dog height restrictions. Mallory Swamp WMA is one that comes to mind.
Good dogs are gonna be a few hundred each. Then you have to have a kennel. Probably two if you want to keep males n females separate(sometimes necessary because they will fight and/or breed). Then you have vet bills. And feed. And a dog box. If you want aluminum, you are looking at +/- $400. or you can build a wooden one. And you have to shovel shartt every day...
Tracking collars are a must, imho. Technology has changed since I did it. We had the "beacon" type ( a tracking box with antenna, and a collar for each dog which sends a signal back to the tracking box. Nowadays everyone uses GPS collars and a handheld GPS unit. They are highly expensive, but sooooooo worth it
There is more, but that is just some things to think about
those are the things I am runnin through my mind
Maybe a guy or 3 will invite me along to see if I can hang/ get the feel for it and maybe start savin some cheese -
noise ??? complaints do they always bark - i just cant remember if my freinds dogs were noisey -
I do remem- they would get riled up when he loaded the dog box :taz
where did you coon hunt? never done it in florida, only indiana.
michigan
