Orso,
I would be glad to answer your questions as best I can...
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What does "gritty" mean? ###Do you mean tough and willing to scrap it out with a hog?[/b]
Many people interchange "gritty" with "aggressive". I feel that there is an important distinction between the two. I define being gritty as the willingness to stick to something. It may mean not quitting a long, arduous and challenging race, being wounded but continuing to bay or having to bay a hog or bear in thick brush. To my mind, gritty reflects the overall character of the dog and its overwhelming desire to hunt above anything else. Aggressive, on the other hand, indicates how willing a dog is to physically engage with the hog.
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When you say "wide open on track" are you refering to the dogs barking?[/b]
Yes, "open" is the term used to denote that the dog barks while running the animal as opposed to being a "silent" or "still-mouthed" dog that won't bark until bayed or treed.
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If I get a pup (or even 2 pups), what would you suggest is the best way to get the dogs started on the hogs? Should I try to find someone with hounds who would be willing to let my dogs run with theirs? Would another houndsman want strange pups running with his dogs?[/b]
The first thing I would after deciding that I am willing to commit myself entirely to this sport is to learn all I can about it. You do not want to have to learn as you go while you are having to train your first dogs; they may suffer as a result of your ignorance and lack of experience. I got started back in sixth grade where I was fortunate enough to meet a new kid at my school whose dad was a houndsman. I hunted with them for two years before I felt ready to own my own hounds. I have been doing it for 16 years, owned several good dogs and have enjoyed a good deal of success and notoriety. Yet in all this time, I have never pretended to have the sport mastered or know all the answers; it's a continual learning process. That is one of the many wonderful things about this sport; you can take it as far as you are capable of.
I would recommend that you try to meet some dog hunters in your area. Many older hunters in their 60's and 70's like a younger guy who can handle the dogs and go to the treed or bayed game for them. This would be an excellent opportunity for you to learn the ropes, meet some hunters and get some hands on experience under your belt all at the same time. Once you have proven yourself to be reliable, your new hunting buddy would probably encourage you to get a dog or two of your own.
I won't lie to you about being able to start hunting with someone else right away. For all the wonderful aspects of the sport, houndsmen are notoriously fraternal, keeping to themselves more often than not. It may be difficult for you to break into the "inner circle" but any houndsmen worth your time would hopefully recognize the good he would be doing his sport by offering to help you along.
I would also begin subscribing to some magazines that would help you gain a better idea of what's involved with the sport. Gaining insight on what people are saying about each of the breeds will help you decide what breed suits you. Some you might look into would be Bayed Solid, BoarHunter and Full Cry.
Pups can be trained without other hounds around, provided you have some knowledge of how to go about things. The better the breeding of the pup and the more effort you put into its training, the more likely the dog will turn out to be a keeper. My number one rule is: EXPOSE IT TO GAME. Get the dog on as many hogs as possible so that it can learn its craft. If at all possible, put it out on only sows or small boars; we don't want to traumitize it right out of the gate. Let him build up some confidence and get quite a few hogs under his collar before asking him to hold a rank ol' boar for ya. However, if you suspect that you have an inferior animal on your hands and have exhausted all efforts only to meet with failure time and time again, do not let your pride or the sentimentality of your first dog get in the way. Do what is right for you, the dog and the breed that you choose to adopt as your own. Learn from your mistakes, cut your losses and move on. The quality of the dogs you choose to keep in your pen will reflect your own character. In the world of hound hunting, you are judged not by the color of your skin, but by the content of the character of your dogs.
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I read where guys in Texas will rent out their 50acre pens (I know size of the pens vary, it just happened that the advertisement I read said 50acres) for you to run your dogs on their hogs? Is that a good way to start? Do guys in CA. rent pens?[/b]
Putting your dogs on penned hogs is an excellent training tool. You are assured of being able to physically expose your dogs to game time and time again. This is the most critical factor in the training of a well-bred dog that has potential. Unfortunately, running hogs with dogs is not nearly as popular here in California as it is in Texas and I know of no pens created for that purpose.
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Do you guys have your dogs in pens during the day when you're at work, or do you let them roam your property?[/b]
My dogs stay in the kennel unless they are being hunted. I hunt Walker hounds primarily, who were born, built and bred to hunt. They have a wanderlust that does not make them ideally suited as a "porch dog" that will stick around the house until it is time to go hunting. Many of the cur breeds lend themselves well to this lifestyle, but I have never owned nor been around hounds that could be trusted not to wander off.
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If I am running my dogs on the weekends and I get the dogs out for exercise in the AM before work and then in the PM after work, will the dogs be OK with being in the kennel during the day during the week?[/b]
I personally keep my dogs in the kennel at all times except when hunting. I want my dogs to know that when the kennel doors open and they are given the OK command, that they are to head straight to my dogbox and load up. They do not get their exercise around my place; they get it when I take them out. There are many instances where I don't take them hunting per se, I will just road them along 10 miles of local levee road.
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Would it be alright to have the dogs work hogs and bears or should I just stick with one game animal?[/b]
I personally prefer a dog that will run anything I want it to. I hunt in country that has bear, hog, coon, bobcat and fox and I want to be able to run whatever I can, whenever I can. I personally do not think that this "jack of all trades" approach will detract from the quality of my dogs as some do. You will find that some dogs either make better varmint dogs (fox and cat) while others make better big game or coon dogs. The mentality necessary to be the best are very different between the types of game. My dogs can run bobcat well and fox only so so, but they are excellent for running hogs and bear. In fact, my dogs would rather run hogs than anything else. I even had a dog that left a treed bobcat to go bay two boars.
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What do you guys think of Catahoula Leopard dogs?[/b]
I have a dog that is 1/4 Catahoula who is an excellent hog and bear dog. He is well-built, fast, has a good mouth and a lot of endurance. He is the first non-Walker I have ever owned and taken pride in.