Pettin dogs

[biseral]

Wat are yalls thoughts on petting/ lovin on ur dogs? My opinion is I do theyre my dogs and buddies I get more satisfaction huntin with a friend than just some dog I got chained out back. They earn that spot still but a dog can still hunt hard and then turn around and play with the family. Infact if he cant do that he wont be here in the first place. Maybe this is inexperience talkun.

[Miller Lite]

na man i play with my dogs every day i respect them an they respect me they know what i have them for .. hell you can take them off the chain in the yard play with them but when you put them in the back of a truck they know what they are about to do ... i hunt them hard but ya i think its okay idk why someone would wanna dog that is halfass skidish an dont wanna come to you ... i want my dogs to come to me when i tell them to an they still catch hogs when i turn them loose so i think its all about the owner

[Reuben]

na man i play with my dogs every day i respect them an they respect me they know what i have them for .. hell you can take them off the chain in the yard play with them but when you put them in the back of a truck they know what they are about to do ... i hunt them hard but ya i think its okay idk why someone would wanna dog that is halfass skidish an dont wanna come to you ... i want my dogs to come to me when i tell them to an they still catch hogs when i turn them loose so i think its all about the owner

I agree...

[halfbreed]

the more you pet and play fetch and go swimmin and wrestle and all that good stuff the better handle you will have on your dogs in the woods some of my best dogs ever were spoiled rotten house broke pets . but when the tail gate dropped it was all buissness .

[Miller Lite]

the more you pet and play fetch and go swimmin and wrestle and all that good stuff the better handle you will have on your dogs in the woods some of my best dogs ever were spoiled rotten house broke pets . but when the tail gate dropped it was all buissness .

x2 I raise all my dogs from puppies an i was always taught make that dog your best friend an teach him the basics before you break him out on hogs

[BRS]

The way i figure it its my dogs job to hunt. I know many of you as well as me have worked for a boss that was always pushing you to do more even during brake time are you still there?  Im not who wants to work for someone that's always business when it ain't the time for bussiness. When its play time its play time when its work time its work time and the dogs will figure it out. So give them as much attention as you can they will work harder for you just my 02 cents worth

[UNDERDOG]

This is a good quote from the other Bryant and how it relates to too much petting....I tend to agree.

I don't agree that petting/handling affects drive.

I didn't say it affects drive, but I do believe it effects a dogs independance.  This is not something I just think...I have observed it MANY times over the years both with dogs I've raised (and screwed up) myself and pups from the same litters that go to people who handle them differently.

Think of it like this.  I know someone who seldom puts their catchdog on a lead.  They can walk the dog 20 yards from a bay, stand there looking at the hog and until the command is given that dog won't go.  Doesn't mean the dog is any less driven, just means it's been trained as such.  Now take a puppy and pet it, play with it and let it think it is okay and proper to stay near you for the first year of it's life.  Now at a year old you take same dog, drop it in the woods and guess what it does.  What you've done even unknowingly is train that dog to stay close.  Doesn't mean it's any less driven, just that it's been conditioned to act the way it is and not necessarily the dogs fault.  Now someone with enough patience may undo what has been accidentally done, but me personally I would rather just not create the issue than have to deal with it later.

As for having the wrong pups, I've seen VERY few good solid lines of dogs that consistantly have the go-yonder hunt that I require in my dogs yet almost any dog can be trained to handle.  I think I'll stick with the hunt.

Again, just my personal observations of what I've seen and done over the years.

[SwampHunter]

I don't really mess with my strike dogs to much as in playing with them or stuff I take then out in a 2 acer pen an let the run an exercise but I don't pet them stuff now my catch dog I play with him all the time , my strike dogs only have one job to go find hogs they are not pets they hunt hogs an that's all they gotta do

My dad always told me they anit pets there here to work , that goes for horses dogs or whatever ,

That's just how I do it donno if it right or wrong but who knows

[T.Burdine]

i tell you what the more you handle your dogs the better they are going to be every dog i have on my yard i trust to be around my kids they are rough but they know there limits hell my 65 pound rednose pitt catch dog might as well be a house dog and my kids can do anything to that big block head and he loves it but when you put that vest and collar on him he knows its show time i cant stand hunting with people that have dogs that they cant control you turn them loose and then you cant catch them every dog i have knows how to sit, lay, and stay and i catch hogs with them all the time.

[halfbreed]

i have NEVER had my  [house dogs ] not hunt for me . of course i expect my dogs to check up when no sign . not go to the next county lookin for sign . as far as independence my dogs hunt with me not vice versa . i am the lead dog in the pack i make the decisions period .

[Miller Lite]

i tell you what the more you handle your dogs the better they are going to be every dog i have on my yard i trust to be around my kids they are rough but they know there limits hell my 65 pound rednose pitt catch dog might as well be a house dog and my kids can do anything to that big block head and he loves it but when you put that vest and collar on him he knows its show time i cant stand hunting with people that have dogs that they cant control you turn them loose and then you cant catch them every dog i have knows how to sit, lay, and stay and i catch hogs with them all the time.

well said i agree 100%

[Miller Lite]

i have NEVER had my  [house dogs ] not hunt for me . of course i expect my dogs to check up when no sign . not go to the next county lookin for sign . as far as independence my dogs hunt with me not vice versa . i am the lead dog in the pack i make the decisions period .

 

i agree with this too ... the best dog i ever owned was a free range dog i didn't care what she did but when you dropped the tailgate you didn't have to say load up or anything she would get in the truck an lay down an when you dropped the tailgate just hoop an hollar a lil bit an she is comin out an gettin ahead .... now days i can't let my dogs run free between the punks that live around me who will steal one in a heartbeat ... i gotta have them penned an chained unless they are with me

[Reuben]

to me well socialized is the best way...but I let them roam in my back yard as little pups...the yard is not big at all but it is 2 lots and fenced in...I let the pups run and play and I do call them to me and pet them...Once they know this I greet them when they come by and then I ignore them so that they can go on and play or whatever...I want them to trust me and come up to me but don't want to be tripping over them. I also take them out and let them range out but I do this mostly to find out who is a natural to get gone...

it is a pain working with a shy dog that you have to be careful when handling it. Fire a gun and the dog will be waiting at the truck for you...if you can catch him you can load him up.

but petting dogs is part of it. the dog must trust you. never call the dog to you to descipline or correct him. never give a command that you know he won't comply with. always best if it is in a controlled environment to correct. don't over correct. when corrected, the dog will circle around you or come to you and he will want to lick your hand. give the hand to let him lick it and this is his way of asking for forgiveness and your hand is accepting it. this way the dog trusts you and understands it was only a correction. This is how I understand it or my interpretation of what I see and it works for me.

[Miller Lite]

i agree reuben i hunted with a fella an his dogs ran a deer well instead of heading them off an findin the track an waitin for them to come out he kept calling them then whooped them when they came to him i was like wtf that dog thinks it just got whooped for coming to you i agree with what you said 100% thats how i was taught myself

[Millman]

I didn't say it affects drive, but I do believe it effects a dogs independance.  This is not something I just think...I have observed it MANY times over the years both with dogs I've raised (and screwed up) myself and pups from the same litters that go to people who handle them differently.

Think of it like this.  I know someone who seldom puts their catchdog on a lead.  They can walk the dog 20 yards from a bay, stand there looking at the hog and until the command is given that dog won't go.  Doesn't mean the dog is any less driven, just means it's been trained as such.  Now take a puppy and pet it, play with it and let it think it is okay and proper to stay near you for the first year of it's life.  Now at a year old you take same dog, drop it in the woods and guess what it does.  What you've done even unknowingly is train that dog to stay close.  Doesn't mean it's any less driven, just that it's been conditioned to act the way it is and not necessarily the dogs fault.  Now someone with enough patience may undo what has been accidentally done, but me personally I would rather just not create the issue than have to deal with it later.

As for having the wrong pups, I've seen VERY few good solid lines of dogs that consistantly have the go-yonder hunt that I require in my dogs yet almost any dog can be trained to handle.  I think I'll stick with the hunt.

Again, just my personal observations of what I've seen and done over the years.

[/quote]

I agree with this 100%

[biseral]

I dont want far rangin dogs I walk. Wen I get home I pet em talk to em let em off chain and then im done and they no it. Their my buddies not dependents if u get wat I mean.

[Miller Lite]

I dont want far rangin dogs I walk. Wen I get home I pet em talk to em let em off chain and then im done and they no it. Their my buddies not dependents if u get wat I mean.

I walk hunt 90% of the time too an my dog better not worry about how far i walk it better get ahead an go bay a hog i'll worry about the walk

[Bryant]

I dont want far rangin dogs I walk.

I walk hunt 90% of the time too an my dog better not worry about how far i walk it better get ahead an go bay a hog i'll worry about the walk

Well there you go.  Don't take this as offensive because I'm not trying to be, but it takes a whole different dog...bred and hunted a whole different way to be able to drop him/her from the tailgate and that dog go make a 1/2 to a mile loop ALONE-MEANING WITHOUT YOU in cold sign while you wait and listen than it does a dog that just eases along with you in the woods while your walking.  Just personal preference, but if the latter type of dog is what a person desires, you better keep your hands off 'em when they're pups.

[Hog_Hunter_57]

I dont want far rangin dogs I walk.

I walk hunt 90% of the time too an my dog better not worry about how far i walk it better get ahead an go bay a hog i'll worry about the walk

Well there you go.  Don't take this as offensive because I'm not trying to be, but it takes a whole different dog...bred and hunted a whole different way to be able to drop him/her from the tailgate and that dog go make a 1/2 to a mile loop ALONE-MEANING WITHOUT YOU in cold sign while you wait and listen than it does a dog that just eases along with you in the woods while your walking.  Just personal preference, but if the latter type of dog is what a person desires, you better keep your hands off 'em when they're pups.

I used to think this way until i saw some dang good dogs work that would come to their name being called even if thay were running a hog. they would go to the end of the earth for a hog. All i can say is if you tell me your dog cant have a good handle because it wont hunt? i will stick to my dogs that have a handle.

[Reuben]

a good hunting dog can be well socialized...but when the tailgate drops he is all business and the range...he is born with it.