EAST TEXAS HOG DOGGERS FORUM

How do you handle a rally? The past few hunts I've been on my dogs bayed up big groups of good hogs. My dogs use to be pretty gritty and would normally bust up the rally, but now I run a mountain cur cross and some bird dogs that seem to hold a rally bayed pretty good. My question is, do ya'll just send your catchdog into the rally and hope they scatter or do you wait until the dogs get one singled out and go from there?

Normally just sending the bulldog is enough to make the rest leave, but that was not the case over the weekend. I was about 40 yards away and sent him to them, and he caught the biggest hog in the group that was a stout red boar hog. Soon as he caught three other big hogs went to town on him. He didn't get cut but twice, but they were sending him for a ride. He ended up coming off the red boar and caught one that was trying to cut him that weighed around 220. I couldn't do nothing but hoop and hollar and try to make them break. Finally the rally split and we got the boar tied, and then had split bays and managed to get another two good sows caught and tied.

Do you ever hunt with multiple catch dogs? I'd prob just release all the CDs I had and pray they don't hit the same one!

I've never done this but i've seen a video a guy had some years ago and it worked pretty good for him. I know it will make the ol butt hole pucker a bit lol BUT it did work for them. They used two bulldogs both tied to lariat ropes and would let the dogs go and grab a hog then pretty much yo-yo the dog and hog out of the pack while their currdogs stayed working the rally, they tied 9 hogs out of the group this way before it busted.

I would be VERY careful sending a bulldog into a rally of hogs, me and a buddy sent 2 bulldogs into a rally of hogs that from what we could see/tell were primarily big sows w/ pigs one night north of jasper and we doctored those two dogs for almost an hour, once they ran in and caught all the other hogs slammed em/ bit em/ cut em, those two poor bulldogs got flat out whooped on. I ended up pulling my pistol and firing it multiple times to get the hogs to break and we managed to catch 3 out of over 30 head but those poor bulldogs got whooped like ive never seen, they had big patched of hair/skin completely missing and im almost 100% sure it was those big sows running into em and biting them while they were caught on another hog. if you aren't prepared a rally can get real western real quick! I know theres a few guys on here that have talked about baying big sounders in the past, hopefully they will see this and give some better insight as to how they do it.

Cut the cd and start hollaring after they lock down.

Sent from my SCH-S738C using Tapatalk

I normally just take one Jimt3, but I can see where two would have been a lot better.

Thanks Justin, I actually have some 30ft tracking leads that I may start taking with me and try out the yo-yo trick lol.

If you're comfortable with shooting around your dogs and you have a good read on how they work/bay, pack a good rifle or shotgun and light them up. A couple good bay dogs and a shooter who knows what to do and you can really put a good whack to them. May not seem like honest dog work to some but seeing two or three cur dogs  hold a group of 20-30 pigs in place for a long period of time while their owner can sneak in and observe the situation and knock some pigs down is a really awesome time. Just takes someone with a lot of trust in their shooting skills and their dogs.

About three years ago I go itno my first rally.  Me and two other buddies had five baydogs on the ground and two bulldogs.  We cut both bulldogs loose and caught two different hogs.  All dogs rolled out and we wnet to the next bay.  This went on and on and on.  Wehn I got to the bay I wasnt sure whos dogs I was going to, we were tieing and moving as fast as we could.  Sometime I went to my bull dog, sometimes I went to the buddies bulldog.  It was cray and it was like work.  Caught 16 hogs by 2:00 and came back later and caught one.  When we sent the bulldogs the first time, we saw what we think was a big boar hog slip out the back.  Every other hog stayed with the rally.  All 17 caught hogs were sows, and little pigs.

I guess faced with a similar situation I would do the same thing again.  I would not turn more bulldogs loose than I had hands hunting with me though.

Hell boys.........Sit back and enjoy a good bay every once in awhile. Tie them catch dogs up and let your baydogs work.

If they won't bust ........try pushing the herd for awoke with a toothpick in your lip.. I promise it will make you smile.

I've heard a few stories from older gentlemen around my area that used to do just that. They would ease in and slowly push the whole herd in the direction they wanted to go, it would be one hell of an accomplishment to successfully make it happen around here nowdays with a cur dog in the back of every truck at the gas station and "hog doggers" literally on almost every corner in the area I live in. unpressured hogs are getting to be the exception not the norm now days but it is what it is and I reckon theres only 2 thing a fella can do and thats either quit hunting or roll with the punches and keep on keepin on, and I got too much invested in these chit eaters to give it up now  ;D

I have only been on a sounder once that bayed. So no experience. The one time we went in shot one with the 30-30 and cut my RCD and buddy's cd loose. Ended up with 3 out of 15 or so. When u run dogs like mine they don't bay sounders. Lol they catch the slowest one in the group. Now if I can get on a sounder of dillo's buddy it is on like donky kong.


Shotgun
Arkansas

this is what I do. But I like watching good dog work more than hogs

Cut the catch dog loose and shoot the rest.

I bayed a group of hogs this morning and dogs had one caught an hogs still didn't run off. I just made a lot of Racket coming thru lol. But couple years ago me n some buddies bayed a big wod of hogs at night an we literally walked right up to them 10yds away an watched them seem like forever only had one catch dog turned him loose an he caught hogs still rattled around each other an we literally walked up an grabbed a couple while ther backs were turned. We caught 3 of those an only one was caught by a dog

Stand back and watch. Catch your dogs after a minute and scatter the group yourself. If you don't hav anywhere to be then turn your dogs loose again and they'll single one out usually

Great question OP


Sonny

Thank ya'll. As luck would have it we bayed another big group of hogs Saturday morning making that 3 hunts in a row that we've had a good rally going. We let them bay for about 30 minutes and they never would split. There were about 15 good size hogs, nothing real big, but there were 5 or 6 real pretty blue hogs around 150-200lbs. We videoed them for a little while and decided to send the bulldog. He caught a fat black pregnant sow about 230 and the bay dogs caught three other smaller hogs once the hogs split. Going back next weekend to try to catch some of them blues!

I'm a smilin....

I hoop and holler make them break and dogs will single out a hog or 2. Sounders can and will woop up on a cd. Now the dogs I run just catch and I haul butt to them hoop and holler if I have to

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I547 using Tapatalk

That's honest dog work to me.  Would have to have some honest shooting skills that carry some weight as well.  >:D

We have done that rope trick in the water before. Works by clipping the lead to CD and when it catches pull it on back in

Congrats on getting rid of your bay busters.  Most people never see the light.  Enjoy those rallies.  They are the exception not the norm now days as someone else pointed out.  I Just watch them from down wind and stay still.  Keep your catch dog ready and when the lead sow charges out, put em on her.  The rest of the hogs will be  more apt to become confused and easier to catch with out their leader.

Waylon

Had a group break up once a while back after we cut the cd loose ad he ran after one an the bay dogs after another. My two gyps an a buddy's male had a young boar bayed in a swamp so my buddy held his light in its eyes and I walked through the water slowly behind and legge that sucker and the bay dogs helped me out and caught on. Even my loose female caught for once in her life. Guess she knew I wouldn't mind the help. Was a good rush!

Man, bayed up a group of 15 or so this morning... Only one experienced find dog and a few pups. Really pumped for em. Didn't really know what to do with it so we released the catch dogs... They musta broke right before or something. Not really sure what happened but we chased on pig for over 2 miles... DIDNT CATCH A SINGLE HOG. First time my dogs have ever bayed multiple hogs in one sitting... But I'd heard sometimes if the catch dogs don't have a specific pig to aim at sometimes they'll miss. Well mine did... And I'm sore over it lol

Y'all ever had the same experience?

Boar Collector on this sight is the master at this, give him a shout out.

Wait till you have a sounder with 60+ and that bulldog runs in and disappears behind a wall of hogs that just absorb him.
Sounders can be tricky and dangerous on your catching power if not approached and handled correctly.

One trick i have witnessed and successfully pulled off was putting your catchdog on a long rope and you and your buddies yoyo him in to pick off the outskirt hogs one at a time and drag them back away from the sounder.

Crazy sounding but it works like a charm .....if ya got some heavy rope or lasso.

Dog is gonna take some licks though until you pull them free away from the guard boars and sows that charge out a ways to protect the caught and squeeling one.

Also.....hope yall got some help on that rope ....fun as all get out .......but snatching three or four 200+ and dragging them and the dog 30 or 40 ft is a workout. 

Sounders (we just refer to them as "mobs") as a general rule here are more common in areas where piglets are predated by dingoes.  In the western and northern parts.  If its open country and theres not a rifle around we have ridden into the mob on a quad to split them up a bit or get them "lined out" to let the dogs have a better crack at them.

Monday afternoon my pups were on a solo hunt. Struck and bayed a group of 12. Couldn't have been more happier. I was by myself. Let them work for a good while then rode up there horseback as I had no catch dog. Decided I'd rope one. Rode around them hogs 5 or 6 times real tight, less than 5 yards. Drug out the rope, fixin to start my swing when the lead sow bolted. Them pups didn't give her nothing they caught her less than 75 yards. She did make it in the pond though. As she went under dogs came off, and when she came back up I roped her and drug her out. Flipped and tied by myself. I really wanted to rope, drag, and tie as many as I could. But I knew I had to get that one for the pups morale. I did watch the rest of the sounder as I rode over to the pond.....they just walked off like nothing ever happened.

Fun times right there brotha.  ;)

Hey yellow black mask remember that time we rallied about 75 head on the side of the hill? We just watched,they was sure loud! 

Yessir...  was a pile that night. Man couldn't hear himself think.

Yep, thats how we do it