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Starting Puppies

I'm curious as to the different strategies people invoke in order to start their puppies. What's your favorite method? I will define puppy as anything 3-12 months old. Drags, caged coon, be very specific with your answers. Let's hear it!

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Corey Gruver
Greenville, PA
(724) 456-6813

To start with long walks in the morning in woods with a lot of game that pup will tell you a lot about himself if you watch.



Tar

quote:

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Originally posted by yadkintar
To start with long walks in the morning in woods with a lot of game that pup will tell you a lot about himself if you watch.



Tar

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quote:

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Originally posted by 2nd Mac
Finally. Something we agree upon. lol

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let them run loose is the single most important thing to getting one started.. It allows them to mature mentally and physically.

I'm just curious to see all of the different ways people start pups out there. Obviously, I have my own thoughts on the subject, but I'm more interested in hearing from everyone out in coonhound land! lol

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Corey Gruver
Greenville, PA
(724) 456-6813

quote:

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Originally posted by Corey Gruver
I'm just curious to see all of the different ways people start pups out there. Obviously, I have my own thoughts on the subject, but I'm more interested in hearing from everyone out in coonhound land! lol

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Take it out in the woods plenty during the daylight it will get used to the smells and sounds and how to move around and over obstacles, it Might even get to chase a squirrel or deer by sight. Take it out at night after it’s been to the woods before during the day light and let it do it’s thing. A dog with natural ability will start doing things on their own. They might not make a world beater because of many different things but a pup that has natural ability and has been exposed will do things on their own. Cage coons and drags are over rated.

pups

Take them to the woods and unsnap the lead. If they have what it takes, they will start themselves. I break them mostly alone.

Corey

I bought 2 pups of different breeds same DOB @ AO 2019. I'm not a pup trainer, but here is what I have done. Pups have been kenneled together to this day. Every day they were turned out while I done chores. (4 hrs daily) They played with the old dogs & cats sometimes ruff. Learned the steers kick and chase. How to get under electric fence. @ 10 wks. I got a coon in live trap. Turned the pups out, both barked @ it then 1 got a stick to play with the other stayed for 40 mins. Then I started chore time walks down the lane and thru a wooded area. @ 5 months started taking them out with old dogs. 1st rifle cracked 1 disappeared and 1 dove into the coon. The 1 that disappeared came to meet me when we pulled in my drive that night. So @ that point I had a coon getter (pupB) and a gun shy pup(A). Pup B started going out 150 - 200 yds Pup A stayed close. B started treeing with old dogs and had no reverse when fighting a coon. Pup A had tobe leashed and petted when knocking out coon. Finally after about 10 coon pup A didn't need leashed. As season progress B was hunting out and running track and treeing with old dogs. A finally wanted in on tree action & started fighting coon @ the close of kill season. When season ended I went back to walks once a day sometimes 2 times. Neighbors started live trapping coon for me. I would take them to my patch of woods. Hr. or so later I would take pups for walk and let them find the caged coon. As they bayed the coon I petted and encouraged them. Then turned coon loose. The chase was on. as the coon would start to climb they would pull it down. Finally coon would get up tree. Both pups treed their hearts out. Done this 5 or 6 times. Then kenneled them at the side of my hay barn. Sow coon raises kittens in round bales every year. Couple of the kittens tried to steal dog food about 2 wks apart. Both were layed @ the gate for me to dispose of. Together they will run and tree. Almost nightly they tree on the ole sow coon as she makes her rounds. I'm looking forward to the Ohio kill season with them. Its been a unique training I know but thats how it happened. Pups were never at the same stage of training. But they have the blood line to be coonhounds if I have the patience. I know I left out a lot But think I got the main parts.

Hope this is what you are looking for.

Randi Bidlack

I’m not a coon hunter but if I were...
I prefer starting more than I pup early on and then cut down from there...I watch every move...winding, ranging, how they do with first time experiences...

At a young age I turn them out with the older dogs so they can get used to them...

I set up winding and finding scenarios at 8 to ten weeks of age...I use meat treats so I condition them to like them for my advantage...

I break them to gunfire at 8 to ten weeks of age using meat treats...at 16 weeks a refresher course for insurance...

I would put them on a roll cage 3 or 4 times starting at 12 weeks or so...add an older pup or dog to get them fired up...observing how they act and react why baying...

At about 5 months fee them up on coon and then turn coon loose ahead of pups...on the first times I would have a tree dog with them...one that will stay treed...I think it is important for pups to start right...so a tree dog would be helpful in this scenario...

I wouldn’t take pup for walks...I would take them straight from dog box to woods and turn them out and get back in truck or 4 wheeler and ignore pups...hopefully the pups will roll out on their own...or at least give them the chance to get bored...and then they will hopefully roll out...

Once they roll out you can then take them for a walk...encourage them to work tracks and hunt...

I break them off of deer at 4 to 5 months old... I want them broke off of hog and deer before I hunt them...

I want them to find and tree a coon a few times before I use a training collar on them...breaking them off of rabbit and possum isn’t that hard to break...deer and hog is...

The pups are now ready to be hunted and they are deathly afraid of hog and deer...

Easiest way I know to start a pup once they have been through the above training...

Cast the coon dog...once the coon dog opens on a coon turn the pup in...the pup needs to be old enough to keep up...after a few times the pup is ready to be casted with the experienced dog...a few more times and it’s time to hunt the pup alone...

For me it’s about raising my own pups, testing and hunting them...it’s not really training...it is mostly exposing pups to different conditions

You want to create an atmosphere where the pups see the training as interesting and fun games instead of over doing the sessions to the point the pups loose interest...

You want them to want more...

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Training dogs is not so much about quantity, it's more about timing, and the right situations...After that it's up to the dog....A hunting dog is born...

Lots of good ideas but the main thing is this no pup ever learned anything on the chain or in a pen.

__________________
The more laws a nation has the more corrupt the nation.

When the law of the land becomes unjust outlaws will rise to take their place in history.

quote:

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Originally posted by Bryan K Webb
let them run loose is the single most important thing to getting one started.. It allows them to mature mentally and physically.

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quote:

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Originally posted by Bryan K Webb
let them run loose is the single most important thing to getting one started.. It allows them to mature mentally and physically.

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Tom Wood