Registered: Oct 2010
Location:
Posts: 67

I have a couple of questions about curs. I have always raised hounds. This is my first cur. I got him because our places to hunt are shrinking and I don't have the room for long-ranging hounds. He is almost 8 months old. He is a great looking dog, dark brindle. He has a pretty good mouth and is great with my kids.
A couple things that I have noticed - 1) I have been taking him to the woods twice a week for the last few weeks and putting him in the middle of a ton of squirrels. I've watched him practically stumble onto several and it is like he doesn't care much that they're around. I know he is is still very young and I am not expecting much. But it seems like at 8 months he would be developing some prey drive. He seems to have very little interest.
2) He is an absolute wild thing around the house. My wife says he reminds her of the Tasmanian Devil from the cartoons. When he is loose in the yard he runs around like a maniac at top speed doing laps around the house. When we bring him in the house in the evenings he will not sit still. It usually takes him an hour or two just to stop moving when he comes in.
My question is - Is this a typical cur? High strung and slow to show interest in game.
I am not giving up. He will be a year old when the leaves come off the trees and that should be the perfect time to really start him and put a full season under his belt. I'm just curious if this type of behavior is common with curs.

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Registered: Feb 2016
Location:
Posts: 8

I have a half kemmer cur half plott hound. She WAS gonna be a inside dog but could not house break her and she was a absolute terror inside. but she was almost a year old before she could calm her self down enough to hunt. The best thing that happen to her was she actually seen game and was able it was shot out to her. She picked up on it like a champ and about half way to being a finished dog.

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Registered: Sep 2003
Location: Central PA
Posts: 363

My OMCBA never once had an accident in the house. She was naturally housebroken day one. She is the best housedog I could want. You don't even know she's here unless someone pulls in. She isn't the go a mile off the bat dog but she suits me just fine.

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Registered: Dec 2012
Location: Indiana
Posts: 789

All I have at my house are Kemmer bred dogs and the line I have normally starts late but wil be game crazy right out of the womb. I have a male pup that I didn't think was gona make a dog cause he never showed interest in a squirrel. We shot some out to old dogs in front of him and made some hang ups and nothin, I mean nothin. One day, my young female treed a daytime coon and when we shot it out, that 3 month male pup went crazy over the coon. That's when I figured he was just gona start out being a coon dog and so far pleased with him. It's like the bigger the game the better. He wants a fight. I'm gona try and switch him this winter when the coons lay up a bit but for right now he's a coon dog. Most of my dogs aren't really wound up hyper active like what your explaining though. Must be omcba dog.

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Registered: Sep 2003
Location: Central PA
Posts: 363

When you see that he sees a squirrel do you encourage him or hasn't that been possible? I would think he would at least be sniffing around by now. Maybe him being high strung you might need to wear him out enough that he pays attention then maybe when he gets the picture he cold be a real ball of fire. I'd try running the crap out of him several consequative days and see if that does any good. A lot of people are against caged game but maybe if you just caught him one he might get the idea. Never overdo caged game though.

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Registered: Apr 2016
Location: WV
Posts: 118

I think it has a great deal to do with how much exposure the pup has had, age has little to do with maturity in dogs under 18 months old. If it has been loose a lot and been able to explore the woods, pastures, creeks, ect, then you prolly have some reason for concern. If its only chance has been a couple times a week for a few weeks, then its not even sure whats going on. I think there is a difference in instinctive maturity, and mental maturity. Have you noticed the pup watching birds, butterflies, does it look up? I think its great advice to wear him down a bit.(huntsmenbob) The more he is loose, the quicker you will know what you have. We all have different things we look for, and different ways of trying to bring the positives to the surface and subdue the negatives. I think the answer to your question is no, it is not the norm for curs to be slow to show interest. I don't have a problem with caged game in small doses, it can help. If you have a place really heavy with squirrel, don't be afraid to switch the cage thing up. Put the dog in a crate for a while, have him look out from confinement at the squirrels running around. I have had it work, more than once. You cant get anymore out, than what is in there. This is just my opinion, Goodluck

Last edited by bk1977 on 07-30-2016 at 07:59 AM

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