Please list.........

[Eric]

1) Smarts

2) Natural Insticts of what ever breed they are

3) Mouth

4) Athletic Ability

Every thing else they can learn.

[Mike]

Why is "nose" so far down on everyone's list?

[Wmwendler]

Why is "nose" so far down on everyone's list?

I guess cause we have so many hogs we can just trip over them.  lol.  I figure all dogs have relatively similar ability to smell scent, just some have the instinct to follow weaker scent and some will only follow stronger scent, but both can smell the same.  Kinda like we all can buy the same beer but some of us buy the cheap stuff and some of us only go for the high dollar fancy stuff.  But

-) desire
-) hunt
-) bottom
-)confirmation/athletic abilty/ stamina/ speed its all the same basically
-)Finess/baying ability

In no particular order

Waylon

[Black Gold]

Hunt
Brains
Strength
Speed
Nose

[Cutter Bay Kennels]

Why is "nose" so far down on everyone's list?

I guess cause we have so many hogs we can just trip over them.  lol.  I figure all dogs have relatively similar ability to smell scent, just some have the instinct to follow weaker scent and some will only follow stronger scent, but both can smell the same.  Kinda like we all can buy the same beer but some of us buy the cheap stuff and some of us only go for the high dollar fancy stuff.  But

-) desire
-) hunt
-) bottom
-)confirmation/athletic abilty/ stamina/ speed its all the same basically
-)Finess/baying ability

In no particular order

Waylon

I don't know that I could disagree with you more.  Some dogs can smell a 10 hour track, and others can't smell what walked an hour ago.  On the "confirmation/athletic abilty/ stamina/ speed its all the same basically", they can be linked, but are all totally different in my book.  Confirmation is how a dog is built.  If purebred, does it fit the breed standards?  Athletic ability is all about the springs it has.  Can it cut on a dime.  I have seen plenty of blueticks (that's what I raise, so I feel qualified to use them as an example), that meet breed standards.  Yet, there is nothing athletic about them.  I fit the bill for a human to a "T", but Michael Jordan is athletic, not me.  I hope that makes sense.  Stamina, well, just like a 300 pound body builder most likely can't run a marathon, a heavy built dog is the same.  That being said, a dog that generally gets to run on races for 2-3 hours in going to be in better endurance shape, than one that bays up in 5 minutes everytime.  Someone that runs their dogs daily, would most likely have a dog with more stamina than someone that only hunts twice a month.  As for speed, well that deserves a thread of it's own.  Eventually, without speed, you will find yourself in a hog catching drought.  SPEED KILLS!!!!!!!!!  

[Mike]

I agree 100% on speed... when the terrain allows for it. But, in the thick stuff, all the speed in the world does you no good. I'm not talking about a thicket here and there. I'm talking about hundreds of acres of solid... crap. This is where nose and bottom comes into play.

[clint]

I'm not talking about a thicket here and there. I'm talking about hundreds of acres of solid... crap.

I think your talkin about the places I hunt! 

[Wmwendler]

Cutter bay.....I see what you mean.  I probly need to think outside of my little world.  I hunt Curs only and proper confirmation in a Cur to me is for speed, stamina, and athletic ability thats why I said its the same thing. 

I know that allot of people dont see eye to eye with what I am saying about Nose and thats ok with me.  If you consider the physiological differences like the size of nose and design/build of the nose, then there will be slight differences in how sensitive a dogs nose is.  Obvouisly a blood hound with its long nose and loose skin to gather scent can detect scent better than a Pug with its short nose.  How great a difference that is? I dont know.  But I dont think its as big as most people do. 

To me the difference is in the dogs desire and instinct to follow faint scents, or lack of.  Hounds have the instinct to follow faint scents because that is what they are bred for.  But if you consider breeds like pointers and Labs that find and retrieve birds and they have to have excellent scenting ability.  But you take take some pet bred labs that would not be able to find a down bird or a covey of quial to save his life.  Was his nose bred off of him?, not if you ask me, but his desire to find birds was bred off him because that trait makes him less desireable as a house pet.  I've seen pointer crosses used as hog dogs and you would think they would cold trail like a hound because they have a great "Nose" but generally they hunt fresher scent than a typical hound would, but its not becuase they can smell it its because they dont have the instinct to acnkowledge it.
Just my .02

Waylon
 

[Cutter Bay Kennels]

Waylon,

I see what you're saying about the curs.  As for the nose, I am a firm believer that certain lines within a specific breed have better scenting ability than others.  I'm sure there is also a hint of truth in the back of my mind, that would say, some individuals (dogs) just care more.  They have the "do what it takes to get this thing started" mentality.  Either way, sorry if I came off to strong on my original response.

Peace out,
Josh

[BarrNinja]

1. Natural Hunt/Drive/bottom. 

All in the same and #1 with me.  If a dog don't have #1 , 2 through 5 just dont matter to me.

2, 3, 4, and 5? The order can float a little per dog as long as they hunt hard to begin with! lol.

Nose, speed/athletic ability, brains, and, temperament are what I look for after #1

[buddylee]

 1 brains cause I HATE a stupid dog
 2 hunt and handle are tied in my book, what good is hunt if they won't come when called and vise versa...
 3 nose
 4 endurance for the long hot hunts
 5 speed to run a runner down

[jhy]

1. Conformation/ has to be able to handle the job physically

2. Brains/ Dumb dogs dont do anything but irritate me and they dont live long

3. Heart/ Is the difference between a great dog and average dog

4. Hunt and desire to take a track

5. Nose/  I believe all dogs can smell the same, just some dont choose to use their nose as much as others.

[Cutter Bay Kennels]

btt

[rafterfpuncher]

1. Brains- if they aint smart they wont last long
2. Athletic ability- again, if they aint got it they wont last long
3. Grit/Bottom- both are the same as far as i'm concerned
4. Handle- if they aint got any handle, all that other don't matter anyway
5. Nose- if they didn't already have all the other, this one wouldn't help them

[Purebreedcolt]

1 Handle-Dont want a dog i have to worry about first and formost
2&3 speed/drive if it has drive it can always be a help dog
4 comformation
cant really think of a 5th one everything else is just kinda lumped togather in 5 for me

[Crazy8]

very well said rowdy/its the way i want my dogs

[pig snatcher]

1 nose
2 hunt/drive
3 bottom
4 gritt or correct ammount that is.

It is hard to put the first three in an order because they are all pretty equally important to me.  Got to have bottom, dont like a quitter. Sometimes a dog with a lot of go can outperforme a colder nosed dog that doesnt try as hard.  Too much gritt is worse than not enough, I like a dog that isnt going to catch everything and bust bays but has the gritt to eat ones but off if necissary.

Got to have the rite tools before they can do the job.

[scdogman]

1) Nose or Hunt/Drive  Having both is good, but I can get by with just either one.  See below
2. Grit - not to little not too much -  dog needs to hunt waaaaay more than it is layed up
2. Speed - not sight speed, most dog have enough in open sight.  I mean the ability to use his nose and close the gap.
4. Bottom- dont use just hate the 5 minute dogs.

I could care less about looks or sound as long as it produces.  I would love to try one of them cape hunting dogs of africa.  Ugly as sin.


All dogs I keep is expected to have basic handle so this is not listed.  I have seen dogs that guys have that could probally drive a car. I would love to develop this, but I am either lazy, a poor trainer or don't have the time.  As long as I can call them and have them come and they are not crazy I can work with them.

Nose -  I expected all dogs to be able to run a hot or jumped track with not alot of effort.  Now the speed they do it is something else.  When I say nose, i am meaning the drive and ability to work out older tracks.  Dogs without the the abiltity to use their nose to cold trail can overcome this by hustling and covering more ground in search of hot tracks or jumped game or by winding alot.

This is seen in competition coon hunting.  The dogs that cold trail most often usually dont win.  These dogs are beaten by dogs that bypass the colder tracks in search of hotter tracks to run. Walkers tend to do this more often that the black and tans and blueticks.   If the hogs are thick, hunt may out produce dogs with alot of nose that want to cold trail.  Have you ever got a dog stuck on a old track that you wanted to catch, but he wont quit and you know where the hogs are located.  

[pig snatcher]

"Have you ever got a dog stuck on a old track that you wanted to catch, but he wont quit and you know where the hogs are located. "

Leave his but trailing, go catch a hog or two w/ the other dogs than go catch his..

[scdogman]

Patrick,

You know a fella like me only got one good dog, so I got to wait on him.  And that dog is a C level compared to my buddies from South Carolina.