i'm not an old timer, but here are a few pieces of advice anyways...
#1 - do not bring a dog home until you have the proper facilities to confine it...
pens and kennels need to be dog proof and easy to clean... dogs are known to be diggers, climbers, wire chewers, gate openers,
and the list goes on, make sure your pens/kennels accomodate these dog behaviors... if you have a chain setup, set it up
proper. that means quality chain, snaps, swivels, collars etc. it must be tangle free, with access to a non-spillable source of
water. shade is also a must during summer. check and maintain your chains and snaps and replace as needed. double
collar/double snap collar slippers. it does not take reading many post to see where gyps get accidently bred, dogs get into fights,
or get out and get hit on the highway. though, sometimes it doesn't matter how well you prepare yourself or think you are
prepared these things happen regardless. a quality setup will minimize heartaches and headaches down the road. if you are set
up to keep five dogs safely, do not bring home number six, seven, and eight, until you are setup to keep and use them proper.
#2- know and learn your dog's behaviors. know which of your dogs are growly, know when your gyps are expected to cycle and what
to look for and expect when they do... all gyps are different, so know the dogs you are feeding. there are no reasons to NOT
know your dogs' personalities. knowing and learning these things will keep your dogs out of trouble on the yard further down the
road, becuase you knew better to begin with...
#3- use them. if you want to hunt hogs with dogs, get out and hunt. there are NO substitutes to making your dogs better hog dogs.
you have to hunt them.
these are just a few pointers. i have learned quite a bit through trial and error, and i have learned quite a bit by observing others' triumphs and failures. if you pay enough attention you will learn something about yourself and your dogs everyday, one of these ways or the other. happy hunting...
These are two points that I found out the hard way. One from my wife, and the other from walking out and having gyp stuck to my lead strike dog. When I was getting started I’d jump on a dog that was a good prospect. Didn’t realize what I was getting myself into at the time… but I knew my wife wasn’t happy and let me know too! LOL! Now that I have been through a few dogs I know “kinda” what I’m looking for, and what I’m NOT looking for. This has been one he!! Of a learning experience and is continuing to be that way still. There is so much information on this sport, hobby, and way of life it is ridiculous; and this board is the main source. Well thought out chain set ups are one of my pet peeves… and even when you think that everything is the way you want it there is still a possibility of it messing up. The dogs I am still learning because even knowing a dog for 17 years like I have she’ll still throw out a surprise or too.
I need to get me a calendar to mark my gyps cycles on, and worming routines down. That is a good one, and I will deff be taking that one down in the memory banks. I am always analyzing the dogs, so I’m off to a good start I guess. It seems to be the norm that there is always something else to learn though. AND last, the dog being in the woods, for now, isn’t a problem. They get hunted regularly, and fortunately get put on quite a few hogs, IMO. I am grateful that I have friends/partners that will hunt my dogs in my absence. Thank you for your good points and input.
