Originally Posted by
Mike Salyards
I hunted bear and cats with scent hounds, ( walkers, plots and a lot of hounds that were mixed breeds including black and tans, redbones and blue and red ticks. ) After 22 years the state I live in outlawed dogs to hunt big game . I normally ran 3 - 4 dogs and spent half of my yearly income hunting them and training them . Everyday! Not all dogs are cut out to hunt big game. A good coon dog may catch a cougar for you and be totally worthless on bears.
Mike, Your post is NO DOUBT spoken from a True Houndsmen! This brought back old memories. Some hounds are GREAT on certain Game, and Not worth a Darn on other. I never did get in to Hunting with Hound dogs myself, I just couldn’t get the Fever for it? But my Dad was VERY AVID, 40 years of it, or there abouts. My Dad loved to Run Winter Bobcat, He had no use for Cougars as they were NO CHALLENGE for a Hound (Not even a Poodle) When “Jumped” a cougar will tree in a Few hundred Yards. A bobcat on the other hand can Take your dogs over Several Mountain Ranges And Completely Burn a Pack of Dogs out, Not all do that, But they Possess that capability! My dad never was much in to Bear hunting either, Bear season was HOT Summer heat, and Hard on Dogs due to it. Over the years My Dad had a few Really good Bear Dogs, But he didn’t try to make them that way, they were naturals at it, While His other Dogs (Cat dogs) would Walk a Bear all over a Mountain and NOT push it, They were NO GOOD on Bear, But PHENOMENAL on Cats. I have 2 Picture albums Full of my Dad’s Hound hunting