Monday, April 11, 2011

Trash Breaking Hounds

I have the misfortune of owning some of the most head strong, trashy hounds that I have ever seen. I have also had dogs that you couldn't get to chase a deer or moose. The problem was they wouldn't chase anything else either. The biggest misconception is that a hound will instinctively know what to hunt and what not to. The hard truth is that hounds will instinctively hunt anything that will run. It is up to you to mould the dog and focus them on what you want to pursue. This will be an ongoing process and may never have to perfect results you had hoped for.
I have hunted lion without snow but the majority of my time is spent in the fresh stuff. I know that when hunting in absence of good tracking conditions I pay extra attention to how my dogs are behaving and reacting to scent. I use this base of experience to analyze and correct unwanted behaviour in the field.
I was talking with a fellow houndsmen from Colorado about a possible hunting trip in the fall. This guy is very experienced and hunts primarily on dry ground in arid desert country. We spoke about breaking hounds off of "trash" and the amount of time spent keeping a hound clean. I estimate that I spend at least 15 minutes exposing my hounds to unwanted scent for every hour out, on the ground, hunting. This includes exercising my dogs where there are large concentrations of deer and moose, letting them out of the box after observing wildlife and various other methods.
I recently read my Walk with Wick books again. John Wick was no doubt a pioneer in the field of hunting with hounds. His methods were, in my opinion harsh at times but effective. He didn't have access to today’s technology which allows the houndsmen to establish what the dog is doing and correct a hounds behaviour from several hundred yards or miles away so he did what he could. When I started with hounds I didn't have this luxury either. I tried my best to head off a deer and moose chase and scold the dogs so they wouldn't repeat the behaviour. More often than not they did and the scolding only taught them not to mind me when off the leash. As a result, I put down some hounds that had great potential.
Your best investment is the time teaching your hounds what is acceptable and what isn't. When the time comes to utilize the talents of your pack on the lion, hog, bear or coon of a lifetime you want to know how your dogs will react and what to do if they stray. So when you get the itch to go out and hunt, plan a trip into the field getting to know your pack and educating them on unwanted game.

1 comment:

  1. i've been told its almost impossible to completely break dogs from trash races...i noticed its worse around the rut and other hormone filled seasons.....after the rut was over this year most the dogs seem to be back on track..especially mine

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