Alot of hoghunters are unfamiliar with the unique qualities of "game bred" bulldogs and how those specific traits translate into what makes a good catchdog. What a gamedog man would consider to be a well bred bulldog, in many instances DO NOT make good catchdogs. There has been much talk on this thread about game bloodlines. I owned gamedogs for 20 years (but haven't owned one in several years and don't have any use for one). I have also been a hoghunter for several years. I can tell you from experience that most super well bred gamedogs (and I'm talking about the ones out of the sure-nuff bad SOB's) DO NOT make good catchdogs in most cases. Now let me emphasize "MOST CASES". There are exceptions to the rule.
However, generally speaking . . a true gamedog would be too "fight crazy" to make a good catchdog. They have been bred to fight . . . PERIOD. They don't socialize with other dogs very well at all. Some of them can be groomed from a very young age, and with a whole lot of socializing and a whole lot of luck, can turn out to be good catchdogs. But most likley what you get is a dog that will catch a hog, and then when the hog is dead, he might let go and jump on the first baydog he sees because he's turned on and just wants to put his mouth on something. Also, I've seen more times than not, a real game bred dog will want to "fight" a hog instead of hold a hog. They have a tendancy to let go of one hold to get what they instinctively feel is a better hold (or better spot). For instance, I've seen them let go of an ear, and shoot back to the stifle (that's the back ham). Or I've seen them let go of an ear and go for a leg hold and SHAKE instead of hold. Then you have to worry about can they get along with the baydogs on the back of a 4 wheeler? If a baydog growls at them, most times its on. Or what happens when the hog breaks the bay and runs and you've already turned the catchdog loose. I've seen gamedogs run straight to the first dog they see and fight, because they couldn't see the hog. When you break a gamedog off a hog, whether its a stuck hog or a tied hog, now you've got this crazy bulldog that's wanting to fight anything that moves and he's lunging at every baydog that gets close because gamedogs get "wound up" and don't know when to turn it on and turn it off. In my opinion . . A true gamedog is more of a PROBLEM than a good catchdog.
What qualities make up a good catchdog? It's real simple. They first need to catch and hold on the ear and stay caught and have no quit. But more important to me, they need to get along with the rest of the pack and not cause problems, and they need to have some brains too. Most gamedogs are not real heavy on the brains department. They have only two speeds and thats wide open or on the chain.
Now I have seen some real gamebred dogs that made good catchdogs. I contend that they are the exception . . Not the rule. I would say this, if I am looking for a catchdog, I'm not seeking out a well bred gamedog as my first choice. If the dog happens to be a gamebred dog, then that's OK. Its just not what I would be looking for. The old "watered down" bloodlines that have been discussed on this thread are actually better catchdogs in most cases. I saw a thread a while back where someone posted a picture of GR CH MACHOBUCK and people were replying saying . . "thats what I want, a dog like that". Well actually, if you're hunting hogs you probably DONT want that. You may thing you do, but you're probably gonna have problems. The best catchdogs I've seen were a blend of just scatter bred (non-game) bulldogs with a splash of game blood thrown in the mix. It seems when they are bred like this, they still have some brains and can be socialized, but that little shot of gameblood gives them that extra "KICK" with added heart and NO QUIT attitude. Also, most true game blooded dogs are small (in hog hunter terms). A 55 lb gamedog would be at the very top end of the spectrum and would be difficult to even find a match for. Most gamedogs will weigh somewhere from the mid 30's to the mid 40's. To me, a good 55 to 65 lb dog that's athletic is perfect for hogs. This size dog can handle any hog in the woods, cause he has the body mass to handle the big ones. Its just a personal preference, but I don't want a 40 lb catchdog. A friend of mine had a 34 lb gamebred bitch. She was awsome to see catch a hog, but a big hog could run and spin with her hanging on like an earring. She would eventually get the hog stopped, but to me it just seemed like she was overmatched all the time due to her small size.
I would say if you have a bulldog that catches good and it gets along with the other dogs, then that is what makes a good catchdog. Breeding a bunch of fighting blood into it just so you can have some famous bulldogs in the pedigree aint gonna make it catch hogs better. Most any bulldog that will play tug-o-war with a towell or work a spring pole or hide, can be taught to catch hogs with a little encouragement. I have a 14 week old puppy right now that's catching litte baby pigs and having a blast. She will make a good catchdog, and she has NO GAME BLOOD so she'll most likley get along with everything else. It just seems to me, that when you're staring out with something that has been bred to fight, you're staring out in the hole, cause now you've got a whole other problem you've got to worry about surfacing down the road. Remember this . . if a dog has been bred to fight and that's his first instinct, its harder to break him from wanting to fight than you may think it is. On the other hand, its pretty easy to get any old scatter bred bulldog to catch a hog.
Just an opinion
Good post ...agree with a lot you said there..
First time I put my little "game" pit in pen she didn't do anything so we stuck her in trailer where she had to fight.
Put my buddies patterdale in there to show her what to do and get her excited cut her loose and she latched onto the patterdale lol. Her temperament is excellent. Don't know if I got lucky or what but she beats carrying a 80lb bulldog around.
