As I haven't updated this blog in awhile there is a lot to catch ya'll up on. Hunting season is in full swing here in VA, and the dogs have been running non-stop since the week after general firearms season opened. I had an exciting bow-season, and although I didn't harvest any deer, I did see on several occasions two bucks whom I would give my left arm for. In muzzle-loading season I fared much better, harvesting two bucks of trophy quality, a 13pter, and a large typical 8pt. General firearms season has found me out of the treestands and in the cockpit of my truck, maneuvering through logging roads and hunting trails. My dogs have been performing exceptionally well this season, and I already have my two spring litters of pups sold depending on how many she has.
Most of the puppies from the past spring are running already with the older dogs. I've only had to keep one dog at home (Rebel) because of a foot infection that is taking forever to heal properly. (good hound health is essential to owning hounds that can hunt consistantly and perform well) Reb's littermate Jeb (Jebro) is coming along well, and has the physique necessary to traverse the rugged terrain of central VA. I've purposefully begun selectively breeding a taller beagle (17-18") with a nose for colder trails, and with the ability to check it's own track. I started by breeding my top male Lucky (D-08) with a taller blue-ticked beagle female Dixie. She had 11 pups, 10 survived, and I kept 3, Reb, Jeb, and Peanut. This spring I am going to breed my best short female Ladybelle (15") with my tallest/best long distance running male B.G. (17 1/2")
I'm also going to breed Jeb back to my female Cookie or her sister Shithead (pronounced Shi-Theed) but haven't finalized that one yet. I'm also interested in breeding my Warfield Red Beagle male Louie V to a full War. Red bitch in exchange for pick of the litter. As these little red suckers are pretty rare, and a good running one even harder to find, I still haven't had any luck with this. I'll add more info later, and feel free to contact me with info.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Field Trial Season
So I finally found a competitive field trial club for deer-beagles. The VOBA Virginia Outside Beagle Association is a group of collective members who compete at club sanctioned trials. The first trial was September 19, at Spring Creek Hunt Club. A total of 232 dogs competed in the trial, which lasted 4 hours and covered an area of several thousand acres. Although due to casting site issues, and a lack of judges, we ended up not scoring any dogs. However, our dogs performed well and I was very proud of and pleased with their hunting. We were busy with the dogs so we didn't get too many pictures. The next trial is in January after hunting season, and I will definitely cover the whole process and include many more pictures.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Summertime Blues...and Tri-Coloreds
So this summer I'll be running my dogs at least bi-monthly, if not once a week. The trick is to run them from 11pm to 5am on a weekday night on the most remote land you can find. A nice cool night is ideal, so the dogs don't get over-heated, and track a little better. I prefer to run males and females seperately just to keep the dogs focused this time of year, and a cast of 6 max is golden. Too many dogs at night and the dogs will learn to follow a dog track, try to cast dogs in pairs or trios, save the big pack hunts for the fall when youn have extra hands to catch them up.
We wait until after does have weaned fawns because we never want the dogs to accidentally run a fawn. I've begun fishing for white bass and bream on the river and discarding the cull-fish to liven up the area for coons, that way I can run my bluetick without always relying on a caged coon, as she is still learning and has no older dog to accompany her. She has got the general idea after several caged coons, and has treed 3 in a row. I'm hesitant to hunt her with any other dogs until I know they won't reverse countless hours of training. I'm working extensively on her tracking, trying to get her to follow the trail and not the scent in the air. By using a dead coon I've been able to show her that she needs to follow the trail by dragging the carcass by a t-handle then hanging it 4-5 feet up a tree.
I've also started putting out my digital scouting cameras, overlooking a salt/mineral lick in a bedding area. We've already begun to count the does feeding in the food-plots, and the fawns are everywhere due to a relatively warm winter and wet spring. I've begun to re-fresh our salt/mineral licks with a few scoops of fine mineral stock salt from Tractor Supply. Not only does the salt attract the deer making them photographable, but the minerals consumed by the bucks supply essential rack building minerals during a critical time of year. The salt mentioned is relatively inexpensive and goes a long way. More to come....
We wait until after does have weaned fawns because we never want the dogs to accidentally run a fawn. I've begun fishing for white bass and bream on the river and discarding the cull-fish to liven up the area for coons, that way I can run my bluetick without always relying on a caged coon, as she is still learning and has no older dog to accompany her. She has got the general idea after several caged coons, and has treed 3 in a row. I'm hesitant to hunt her with any other dogs until I know they won't reverse countless hours of training. I'm working extensively on her tracking, trying to get her to follow the trail and not the scent in the air. By using a dead coon I've been able to show her that she needs to follow the trail by dragging the carcass by a t-handle then hanging it 4-5 feet up a tree.
I've also started putting out my digital scouting cameras, overlooking a salt/mineral lick in a bedding area. We've already begun to count the does feeding in the food-plots, and the fawns are everywhere due to a relatively warm winter and wet spring. I've begun to re-fresh our salt/mineral licks with a few scoops of fine mineral stock salt from Tractor Supply. Not only does the salt attract the deer making them photographable, but the minerals consumed by the bucks supply essential rack building minerals during a critical time of year. The salt mentioned is relatively inexpensive and goes a long way. More to come....
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
A Tracking I Will Go
So I just bought a Wildlife Tracking Systems Box, antenna, and 6 collars, 220 frequency. I have 12 running deer-beagles now, one bluetick coonhound, and one rabbit beagle puppy. I'm excited to be able to track my own dogs now with my own equipment. Whether your deer hunting with beagles or hounds, coon-hunting, bear hunting, rabbit, fox, etc, its nice to know where your dogs are. I'm still very curious about the new GPS dog-tracking-systems, I still need to see it in action, but their concept is genius.
I will be testing this tracking system 100% in all weather conditions, in all kinds of terrain. I will use it on my coonhound Pearl as well as all my deer beagles. I've been out of work for going on three weeks now so I've had a lot of time to post, but I promise to keep you updated on all our hunting, fishing, and outdoor adventures.
Lucky was a purebred tri-color bench-legged beagle I picked up after he darted out in front of my truck being saved by my quick braking. He was obviously some one's lost house pet, or perhaps he was discarded after he continually chased deer, either way he was an extremely affectionate and loyal companion who's love for hunting rivaled the most determined walker hound. In fact, on many a cold December night we'd gather to listen to the various dogs still out hunting, who by nature pack up with any other hounds that are trailing the same deer. Among a half dozen tried and true, serious walker deer hound hunters I was alone in my love for beagles, but when all the dogs gathered up those nights, the first dog to strike, and the leader of the pack for the majority of the chase wasn't a long-legged walker, it was Lucky, and those guys knew it. It was undeniable, unmistakable, that low mournful bellow followed in unison by a melee of high pitched squeals and yips from the walkers. Lucky was in the lead, every time. Eventually the guys gave in and gave Lucky the due credit. They all admired the little male who would often run until his feet bled, you literally had to run and catch him off the track, he'd barely be able to walk but his nose never left the ground. We killed numerous deer in front of Lucky who didn't run considerably faster than the walkers, but he never lost a hot track, and always kept his nose to the ground. By all counts, he was an excellent hunter who I miss deeply. However, I find comfort in knowing that ten of his offspring are in happy homes where they can hunt the way their father did. The male puppy Rebel followed his mom out of the yard at 3 months when she caught wind of some deer behind the house. He didn't return home for an hour, and was a full twenty minutes behind his mother, but I feel he has the gift.
The mother Dixie is a skittish female that I picked up as a stray. She had ticks on her face and eyes and she hadn't eaten regular dog food in months. It took me about six-months to conquer her shyness by handling her daily and hand feeding her treats. When she finally came around I had to put her on a cable tie-out until I made room for her at my old house. She pulled off the stake and ran down in the woods several hundred yards until she became entangled in some vines, twisting and squirming as the cable attached to her nylon collar tightened more and more, cutting off her air supply. This is how I found her, squeaking and shaking. I quickly unbuckled her collar and put her in a pen with Lucky, hence the puppies. Ever since then she has been extremely loyal and guarding of me, even letting my wife and I handle all her newborn pups. She hunts well within a small pack or by herself, but her social nature preoccupies her in large packs or around new dogs.
Lucky's running mate 99% of the time was my male B.G. (Big Guy, B Gizzle). B.G. is a beautiful tri-color male (pictured above) who I also picked up as a stray although I believe he was dropped because of his eagerness to hunt deer. He is extremely loyal and loving, and when called in at the end of the hunt comes running. A solid tracking sure-footed dog with the stamina to trail for great distances and for long periods of time. All my dogs are conditioned throughout the year so as to be able to hunt them the maximum amount of days during season without downtime for rest.
I will be testing this tracking system 100% in all weather conditions, in all kinds of terrain. I will use it on my coonhound Pearl as well as all my deer beagles. I've been out of work for going on three weeks now so I've had a lot of time to post, but I promise to keep you updated on all our hunting, fishing, and outdoor adventures.
We've just finished our winter/spring litters, and so all the females are kept on heat watch. Dixie is a bitch that mothered a litter of eleven puppies Nov. 25. One puppy was still-born, but the other ten are all still alive and growing in their respective homes. I kept 3, 2 big tri-color males (one with ticking) and the runt of the litter, a female who is almost identical to the mother. We named the runt Peanut and I'm starting her on rabbits. Her two male brothers Rebel and Jeb are looking and sounding more and more like their father Lucky, who was hit by a truck and killed this past fall. 
Lucky was a purebred tri-color bench-legged beagle I picked up after he darted out in front of my truck being saved by my quick braking. He was obviously some one's lost house pet, or perhaps he was discarded after he continually chased deer, either way he was an extremely affectionate and loyal companion who's love for hunting rivaled the most determined walker hound. In fact, on many a cold December night we'd gather to listen to the various dogs still out hunting, who by nature pack up with any other hounds that are trailing the same deer. Among a half dozen tried and true, serious walker deer hound hunters I was alone in my love for beagles, but when all the dogs gathered up those nights, the first dog to strike, and the leader of the pack for the majority of the chase wasn't a long-legged walker, it was Lucky, and those guys knew it. It was undeniable, unmistakable, that low mournful bellow followed in unison by a melee of high pitched squeals and yips from the walkers. Lucky was in the lead, every time. Eventually the guys gave in and gave Lucky the due credit. They all admired the little male who would often run until his feet bled, you literally had to run and catch him off the track, he'd barely be able to walk but his nose never left the ground. We killed numerous deer in front of Lucky who didn't run considerably faster than the walkers, but he never lost a hot track, and always kept his nose to the ground. By all counts, he was an excellent hunter who I miss deeply. However, I find comfort in knowing that ten of his offspring are in happy homes where they can hunt the way their father did. The male puppy Rebel followed his mom out of the yard at 3 months when she caught wind of some deer behind the house. He didn't return home for an hour, and was a full twenty minutes behind his mother, but I feel he has the gift.
The mother Dixie is a skittish female that I picked up as a stray. She had ticks on her face and eyes and she hadn't eaten regular dog food in months. It took me about six-months to conquer her shyness by handling her daily and hand feeding her treats. When she finally came around I had to put her on a cable tie-out until I made room for her at my old house. She pulled off the stake and ran down in the woods several hundred yards until she became entangled in some vines, twisting and squirming as the cable attached to her nylon collar tightened more and more, cutting off her air supply. This is how I found her, squeaking and shaking. I quickly unbuckled her collar and put her in a pen with Lucky, hence the puppies. Ever since then she has been extremely loyal and guarding of me, even letting my wife and I handle all her newborn pups. She hunts well within a small pack or by herself, but her social nature preoccupies her in large packs or around new dogs.
Lucky's running mate 99% of the time was my male B.G. (Big Guy, B Gizzle). B.G. is a beautiful tri-color male (pictured above) who I also picked up as a stray although I believe he was dropped because of his eagerness to hunt deer. He is extremely loyal and loving, and when called in at the end of the hunt comes running. A solid tracking sure-footed dog with the stamina to trail for great distances and for long periods of time. All my dogs are conditioned throughout the year so as to be able to hunt them the maximum amount of days during season without downtime for rest.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Turkey Season 09
Turkeys Turkey Turkeys
This spring has been one of my most memorable hunting seasons ever. On opening morning I was able to arrow a nice Jake at 28yds, my first bow-killed turkey. I followed that hunt up with a few unsucessfull mornings both with my Pops and I alone, as well as a few mornings spent taking a close friend and his 12 yr old son and initiating them both into the art of turkey hunting.
I was lucky enough to bag another more mature gobbler the last weekend in April. I'll post the story up later as well as the video footage of that hunt.
We have continued to work tirelessly at getting my friend's son a gobbler, but to no avail SO FAR! We still have a week or so left in the season so hopefully we can pull something together. I'm partially out of comission due to a work-related back injury.
I will also begin a sub blog within this blog to document my attempt to create the best new sub-breed of hunting beagle. A Perfect Ten Kennels ( a fully licensed kennel)
I was lucky enough to bag another more mature gobbler the last weekend in April. I'll post the story up later as well as the video footage of that hunt.
We have continued to work tirelessly at getting my friend's son a gobbler, but to no avail SO FAR! We still have a week or so left in the season so hopefully we can pull something together. I'm partially out of comission due to a work-related back injury.
I will also begin a sub blog within this blog to document my attempt to create the best new sub-breed of hunting beagle. A Perfect Ten Kennels ( a fully licensed kennel)
Hunting Stories, Tactics, Photos, Tips and Tricks
This blog is a journal of my trips afield, the stories and tips from fellow hunters, and photos & videos of both. I welcome any submissions, but will not guarantee it's publication on the blog. Also all stories and photos without due recognition to the owners are property of Trackin and Trailin Blog, and may not be reproduced or displayed elsewhere without expressed written consent of Matt Craig (owner).
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