Educate me on Coon Dogs/ coon hunting

[Circle C]

Can you effectively hunt with one dog? 

When the dog is treed, how does the dog know if the coon is still in that tree, or if he has traveled through the canopy to another tree?

Do you typically shoot a coon while the dog is treed, or do you tie the dog off somewhere prior to shooting?  Or do you lead the dog away, so you can tree the coon another night?

I hear about people hunting coons with both curs and hounds, but it seems to be dominated by the hounds.  Is there a reason for this?  Do coons not leave much scent, therefore needing a colder trailing nose to locate?

[UNDERDOG]

Chris, I will try to answer you IMO tonight,gotta run, daughter is sick and we are heading for the doctor.

[big D]

you can run one dog. I run two though but if it is a young dog it is better to either poke the coon out or shoot him and let the dogs have him.

[Bump]

Can you effectively hunt with one dog? 

When the dog is treed, how does the dog know if the coon is still in that tree, or if he has traveled through the canopy to another tree?

Do you typically shoot a coon while the dog is treed, or do you tie the dog off somewhere prior to shooting?  Or do you lead the dog away, so you can tree the coon another night?

I hear about people hunting coons with both curs and hounds, but it seems to be dominated by the hounds.  Is there a reason for this?  Do coons not leave much scent, therefore needing a colder trailing nose to locate?

Im sure you can effictively hunt with one dog but listening to the race is a lot of the concept in contrast to hog hunting. It is pretty much the same concept as hog hunting.

A good coon dog is suppose to circle the tree and check for the coon. However...some coons will get a little skittish and start walking trees. For the most part they climb and stay put.

What you do with the coon once it is treed is preference...just like these different styles of hog hunting. Some people shoot them out to the dogs for a reward...some shake them out to the dogs for a reward...some tie the dogs and squall or shake the coon out to run again and some leave the coon.

In a contest the coon is left in the tree and scored depending how the dog did and how the handler calls his dog. Each dog is given points on striking the hog and treeing the hog depending what order they bark and how the handler calls his dog. Then he is timed and scored upon arrival of the coon or no coon.

Not sure why coon hunting is primarily hounds but for many years all the major kennel registries only recognized the 7 breeds of coonhounds and therefore could only hunt those breeds in the contests. I dont know about the scent they leave but a hound is primarily open and the open dogs push the coon to tree...not to mention again...the mountain music the put out on track.

A good coon dog is suppose to circle the tree and check for the coon. However...some coons will get a little skittish and start walking trees. For the most part they climb and stay put.

What you do with the coon once it is treed is preference...just like these different styles of hog hunting. Some people shoot them out to the dogs for a reward...some shake them out to the dogs for a reward...some tie the dogs and squall or shake the coon out to run again and some leave the coon.

In a contest the coon is left in the tree and scored depending how the dog did and how the handler calls his dog. Each dog is given points on striking the hog and treeing the hog depending what order they bark and how the handler calls his dog. Then he is timed and scored upon arrival of the coon or no coon.

Not sure why coon hunting is primarily hounds but for many years all the major kennel registries only recognized the 7 breeds of coonhounds and therefore could only hunt those breeds in the contests. I dont know about the scent they leave but a hound is primarily open and the open dogs push the coon to tree...not to mention again...the mountain music the put out on track.

[matt_aggie04]

Rex you been hog hunting too long.......

"strike the hog and tree the hog" 

[Circle C]

Thanks for the info guys.  I have never been coon hunting, but sure like the sounds of it.  A couple things have me interested in it. Right now every one of my dogs(except my catch dogs) is on injured reserve, as much as I want to turn them out, I really need to give them some more time. So it would be nice to have one dog on the feed bill that I could use for something other than hogs.  I can't think of anything else that I would hunt at night, so that is why I have the coon dog questions


If you were shopping for a coon dog, what questions would you ask the seller?  How long should one stay treed?  Where would one look for a sure enough good coon dog? and what kind of money should someone expect to pay for an honest coon dog that can find it's own coon, and stay treed, without having to weed through a bunch of BS?

[kp]

"One out" coon hunting... novel idea! 

kp

[UNDERDOG]

Chris, Bump was pretty acurate...I''ll give ya my thoughts.

Can you effectively hunt with one dog? 

Yes, w/o a doubt. I usually have a pair or a young dog working tho.

When the dog is treed, how does the dog know if the coon is still in that tree, or if he has traveled through the canopy to another tree?

Most will tree were they are sure the coon went up,do the dogs know if the coon limbed out or not? I don't know if the dogs know or not,some that can wind well will tree under the game or were the smell it strongest but I see that in more curs than hounds. It falls on the hunter to find the coon,when the muscie dime grapes are ripe the dogs go nuts and just about tree every were and I always have trouble finding coon in the when you have a 150yd muscie dime vine loaded in some big tree tops.

Do you typically shoot a coon while the dog is treed, or do you tie the dog off somewhere prior to shooting?  Or do you lead the dog away, so you can tree the coon another night?

It all depends on the paticular situation,if I have a young dog along who did some work I like to reward them w/ a coon.Some time the place I am hunting wants the coon gone so a good "head count" at the end of a hunt helps some time.I do like to leash a dog at the tree tho as I teaches them to be solid and stay at the tree.

I hear about people hunting coons with both curs and hounds, but it seems to be dominated by the hounds.  Is there a reason for this?  Do coons not leave much scent, therefore needing a colder trailing nose to locate?

Chris, the honds vs cur thing similar to the same on hogs,some like the hounds and others like the curs.There are plenty of good coon cur dogs,and competitions for them as well and some were there are all breeds hound,cur n feist competing against each other.I hunted and competed w/ hounds for along time but the last 15 years or so I have mainly hunted w/ curs and feist and enjoy them over the hounds a bit more. I love a good hound but w/ a hound comes them hound things ya know? I like them easy going cur tree dogs these days,I tree just as many and don't have to work near as hard.

[UNDERDOG]

Chris, this little dog was a Sq. CH,Bench CH and a third place win away from a Nt.CH.

My old little Girl dog.



This is the bluetick I had along time ago....







And you have seen plenty pics of Peanut treed.

[UNDERDOG]

If you were shopping for a coon dog, what questions would you ask the seller?  How long should one stay treed?  Where would one look for a sure enough good coon dog? and what kind of money should someone expect to pay for an honest coon dog that can find it's own coon, and stay treed, without having to weed through a bunch of BS?

Chris, you can get a great one for free depending on who you know or pay as much as you can think of. You will need to figure out if you want a open or silent dog,close,med or long range. Do you want to drop the tailgate,wait an hour or so and start tracking or ride the buggie tooling around and have a good race and tree and get home at a resonable hour.If you get real serious about wanting one I will ask a few friends and see what they may have.

[matt_aggie04]

Bryant if you can find a solid, fiest/cur that will tree squirrels in the day and coons at night while cruising around in the mule or walking but will come in and load up when you are ready to leave I would sure like to know about it.  This little fiest dog I have needs a teacher, and I could use one too    Papers and comp wins don't mean much, just a pleasure dog.....

[Circle C]

Bryant thanks for the info.   I would like to go on a handful of hunts with different types of dogs, so that I can see what I like.  I know that the first hog dogs I hunted behind are nothing like the kind I use today. It took a lot of hunts to figure out what I wanted...I can only assume the same will be the case with coons.

BTW, we used the winter cover on the box last weekend. The dogs thank you!  Works so nice, that we are going to have on made to fit the trailer too.

[aladatrot]

Bryant,

I told chris if I'm gonna be feeding a coon dawg he better have some big beautiful ears.

Cheers
M

[UNDERDOG]

Bryant if you can find a solid, fiest/cur that will tree squirrels in the day and coons at night while cruising around in the mule or walking but will come in and load up when you are ready to leave I would sure like to know about it.  This little fiest dog I have needs a teacher, and I could use one too    Papers and comp wins don't mean much, just a pleasure dog.....

Matt,check w/ Alton...tell him what you want and give him time,he can fix you up w/ just that.

Bryant thanks for the info.   I would like to go on a handful of hunts with different types of dogs, so that I can see what I like.  I know that the first hog dogs I hunted behind are nothing like the kind I use today. It took a lot of hunts to figure out what I wanted...I can only assume the same will be the case with coons.

BTW, we used the winter cover on the box last weekend. The dogs thank you!  Works so nice, that we are going to have on made to fit the trailer too.

Chris, them hounds sound great and are the "traditional" way to go....but when the screw up they do it big lol and sometimes they can range farther than the woods you have. I have a feeling you will like the cur tree dogs better,you can still have a open trailing dog w/ way more handle.Hopefully we can make that trip as planed and you can see Peanut work or maybe hit my spot Sat. night.

I am sure glad the box cover worked out,I was worried it wouldnt fit or something.

Bryant,

I told chris if I'm gonna be feeding a coon dawg he better have some big beautiful ears.

Cheers
M

That all depends on what you call "big" 

[matt_aggie04]

I will get with Alton....as soon as you tell me who Alton is 

[UNDERDOG]

I will get with Alton....as soon as you tell me who Alton is 

LOL...sorry PM sent.

[Bump]

Rex you been hog hunting too long.......

"strike the hog and tree the hog" 

you mean yalls hogs dont climb trees? 

[Circle C]

you mean yalls hogs dont climb trees?

The hogs I hunt don't need to climb trees, they have wings...

[aladatrot]

By screwing up, are you talking deer?

Cheers
M

[UNDERDOG]

By screwing up, are you talking deer?

Cheers
M

Yea,or hogs for that matter if your COON hunting...specially if the dogs are tri colored