Oak Ridge
UKC Forum Member
Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Indiana
Posts: 6168 |
quote: Originally posted by Camopup
Thanks for the replies!
I'm just trying to find out all I can about Clover. Couple questions that I'm looking to answer are,
What Traits do you guys see in his line?
&
What makes his line popular?
Oak Ridge, I'll be sending you a PM later today, Thanks!
Camopup,
I'll be looking for your PM.
Here is what I see in the "Clover" line.
Clover was a reproducer of coon dogs. They were not necessarily considered "pretty", but they were balanced coon dogs. You will see and hear different people say that they are "more track than tree"....I don't believe that is true...they are BALANCED. The walker breed as a whole went through a transformation several years ago, and the emphasis was put on making tree dogs. Somewhere along the lines someone decided that 140 barks per minute was the goal, and there was a little less emphasis put on having a coon in the tree.
I believe that the guys that were looking for balance still come back to the Clover line of dogs. Just try to find a good Clover female for sale.....you know why you have to search high and low for one....BALANCE. Today's walker breeders now have the 140 barks a minute, get treed every 15 minute dogs that are getting the reputation of not being very accurate. It's losing a little of it's luster, and now they are looking to breed more balance back into the hard tree dogs that are tan headed and blanket backed.
Much of the "slick treeing walker" sensation is based upon a couple of problems. #1. We changed the way we bred dogs in trying to get a good tree dog but we did not change the way we TRAIN dogs that are born with a ton of natural treeing instinct. We are still draggin hot dogs, coon tails, hides, and hanging up caged coon to get our natural born tree dogs to tree.....and that they do They TREE!
#2. When we started breeding for tree dogs, we lost the trait that made Walker dogs what they used to be, the ability to track. A good deal of the slick treeing issue with Walkers today is the inability to move a track. We start teaching puppies early on to "get hooked", and then we feed the adrenaline rush that comes along with treeing hard......so when a young dog can no longer move a track...the do the next best thing....TREE, and we come along, make excuses about not being able to find the coon with our 28 Volt lights, and we scratch them behind the ears, and saddle pat them.....
Back to the Clover line. They may not tree 140 barks per minute, they many not be easy to look at....but normally they are balanced hounds that trail a coon to the tree...not much for gambling on which tree it might be in, they tree, but not many are "blow down" tree dogs....and most importantly, they only tree when there is a coon.
The start as early and easily as any of the other lines of Walkers, but they don't mature as fast. Don't give up on your Clover pup until it's old enough to get good at trailing. Barking up a tree is EASY...trailing a track that is several hours old through the dust, or swamp takes practice.....
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Joe Newlin
UKC Cur Advocate
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