[holdnsteady]

Question for the guys with bobcat dogs. Do you use your cat dogs to run coon also? Can they be primarily coon dogs and then when you want to hunt bob cats just put them on the track or do you break them of everything, including coon, and only run them on cats?

 

[snowshoe]

Go see a "shrink" for a check up before you decide to try to train a cathound.

 

[tntelkhntr]

First, I do run some coons with mine, but she flat out loves to run cats! You'll find just about any hound will run a cat track but it takes a special dog with speed to tree, nose to keep everything sorted out, because cats love to circle in the thickest places they can find, and the brains to use their eyes and nose on the tree. Most coon hounds will never find the payoff end to a cat track, and I'm not saying that to downrate anybodies coon hound, but I've seen it play out often enough to know. That's probably why Snowshoe warns you to see a shrink, You may go through a lot of dogs to find a good one. And good ones don't come cheap!

 

[mtncurhunter]

I run coon and squirrel with mine. Most folks might say I am crazy for this but they get the job done.

 

[bobcat]

any hound that can run a coon can run a hot cat track. just very few can keep it long.
mine will run coon and i like to run them sometimes just to keep the dog tuned up. i think my reba dog even prefers a coon. its a great way to start a cat hound. because if they don't pan out on coon they will never work for cats. somethings i've seen with normaly decent coon dogs on cats is false treeing, not being able to sort out the track after it circles a few times, not being able to locate a treed cat that has hit the tree 5 feet up, and not near enough nose or at least drive to scrub out a 7-8 hour old track and turn it into a cat hunt.
i don't break mine from anything but deer and coyote.

 

[Clinton County]

Curs ought to be good at it. Imagine how hard it is to tree a squirrel and they do it with ease.

 

[bobcat]

squirrels are out bouncing around while your hunting them and not layed up a mile away and don't run 3 or 4 circles crossing their track a few times. not that curs don't tree cats. mntcurhunters curs seem to get them just fine. but just because a dog can tree a squirrel don't mean he will be anthing close to a cat hound. a real cat hound can take a last nights track that might be 8 hours old and turn it into a dead cat.
i treed squirrels with my grand dads sheperd dog all the time when i was a kid but he sure wasn't a cat dog.

 

[timberdoodle]

squirels are a lot smaller (less scent) and because of their activity in an area most decent squirrel dogs work off sight rather than scent. If a squirrel dog worked off scent too much it would go crazy given a squirrel being so squirrely

 

[Clinton County]

There is a fellow with some Leopard Curs for sale in Kittaning. Leopards are known to be good cat dogs. Timberdoodle, I do agree that some squirrel dogs use their eyes a lot of probably any good one uses them some but a lot of curs tree mainly by scent. Feists are more prone to use their eyes more. My curs tree mainly by scent. Bobcat did you ever sit in the woods and watch squirrels? Up one tree, down another,across the ground, back up in the trees and timber for a while, lots of times several in the same area. A cur will try to sort them out and find the meat. When they do have the meat they probably had it narrowed down by ground scent and get treed on a tree because they can wind that it is in that tree or one nearby. If you think about it, it isn't an easy task unless it is just a sight dog. I do agree with you that just because they tree squirrels it won't make them a good cat dog. A lot of curs won't stick on the track long enough and a lot of them won't run a cold track. There are some lines that do and do it well. There are lines that are used to hunt mountain lions out west.

 

[bobcat]

i wasn't saying a cur couldn't be a good cat dog. just that being able to tree a tree rat has nothing to do with it. i never owned one but i imagine its like any other breed. some got it some don't. deep snow would hurt them but around here we don't get it too aften. small dogs do better in the brush just becuse they are small. if you could find a line of curs with enough nose to open on a last nights track and trail it to a jump i bet they would work fine.
like said before mntcurhunters got dead cats to prove that. but i doubt i'll be trading my holsteins for a dog that can't even grow a tail

 

[mtncurhunter]

You know that the energy they save not growing a tail goes directly to there brain. That is why they are so smart and well I don't have to finish.

Also those tails just slow them down.

Speaking of being slowed down. I had a car trailer fall on my foot and ankle last night. Multiple broken bones. Looks like I won't be following the dogs anytime soon.

 

[bobcat]

that stinks do you have a tail?

 

[tntelkhntr]

He has to have surgery next week. Pins and screws!!! Hope he's good to go by Dec.

 

[bobcat]

hope he makes out well. i got a femur thats plated together. first year back was rough but now it don't slow me down, just hurts from time to time. he will be the bionic cat man.

 

[Rabbit Runner]

Ouch !!! Brings back bad memories.

I smashed my foot three years ago and was non-weight bearing for three months.
Spet. Oct. and Nov.

Talk about a PAIN for a dog guy.

John L

 

[mtncurhunter]

That is what they told me. 3 months, only for me it is Aug, Sept, Oct. Sounds like I will miss a good chunk of archery, but if I am a good boy I should be all healed up by Nov when the hunting gets good. I just wish i would have more time to work with my pup before the season.

 

[mallardsx2]

Just drop that little doggy off down here. I'll take good care of her.