You can't beat the determination of a dog

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
My best male got out at 2 yesterday. It was my fault, I have a pup that I let out and he usually goes in this males kennel when I go to feed and plays with him. I wasn't in the mood to mess with the pup yesterday and was trying to crowd him out at the door but he got in. I was pushing him out and my male went out with him. I wasn't real concerned so I kept feeding. I hollered at my male and he came back but just circled the pen. I hollered again and he came back again and again he circled. I should have stopped what I was doing and caught him because the next time her circled he jumped right behind my kennel. I knew I was screwed then.

I took off trying to cut him off but failed so I spent several hours cruising listening. About 9 a friend called about 5 miles as the crow flies said he heard him and I took off that way picking up help along the way. We hear him but he had turned toward the river in a real big block of land that a friend owns. He had already given me permission to go after him but this time of year it is almost impossible to get to him and we lost hearing. I kept riding the perimeter to about 2 but never got close enough to hear him again. He has a very strong homing instinct so I fully expected him to be home shortly after daylight.

Come daylight no Elvis, wasn't really concerned, figured he had laid up in the cool and would show up soon but I was riding the roads looking. Noon came and I was getting concerned. About 30 mins after noon he showed. I walked out to get him and he looked rough. Nose bloody, tail raw the last 6 inches. I had to coax him up and he took 3 steps and collapsed and I knew the game was up, he wasn't going to follow me to the kennel. Then I saw those feet. Pads completely shot, gone, but he had the determination/willpower to get home but wasn't going one inch farther. People that call a hound dumb hasn't owned many. And people that will harm them doesn't understand the bond between an owner and one.

I know this dog probably got somewhere he probably wasn't welcome. But I talked to no less than a dozen people in the past 24 hours. It isn't like it was here 20 years ago but most people still are still courteous. Everyone I talked to and showed them his picture and left my number said they would either catch him and call me or call me if they saw him. I also had a post on FB about him and it was shared by many folks that I didn't know and there were comments saying they would contact me if he was seen.
 

Plottdog

Six Pointer
30 Years ago we would coon hunt or bear hunt with no tracking collars at all. You learned your hounds and learned how to course a dog now if these guys had to run without a GPS they would be lost completely lost. Glad you got your dog back!
 

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
30 Years ago we would coon hunt or bear hunt with no tracking collars at all. You learned your hounds and learned how to course a dog now if these guys had to run without a GPS they would be lost completely lost. Glad you got your dog back!
Yep, I remember when I bought my first tracking system. I bought my first "expensive" dog. A do gooder took her home when she found her "barking up a tree" in a snow storm in Wv. She didn't bother to look on her collar for 4 days. Cost me three extra trips up there and my first tracking system actually got here before the dog did.

Thank you.
 

Plottdog

Six Pointer
Yep, I remember when I bought my first tracking system. I bought my first "expensive" dog. A do gooder took her home when she found her "barking up a tree" in a snow storm in Wv. She didn't bother to look on her collar for 4 days. Cost me three extra trips up there and my first tracking system actually got here before the dog did.

Thank you.
They sure do save a lot of gas! But what fun we used to have staying out all night "catching dogs"
 

Redman6

Four Pointer
Had kennel breaks multiple time in the summer and 99% of the time they come home. Had one 13 month old that I had to pick up one day that didn't make it to HIS home.lol
 

Tipmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
@nccatfisher Id say your dog is as dumb as an average CRC post. ;) ;)

Only a dumb animal would try to escape from a nice comfy, shady kennel where there is ample food and water. Only a dumb animal would run off into the woods and not come back when you called him. And then to run off for days on end because they were too dumb to find a human to haul their sorry butts back home? Yea...dumb. ;) ;)
 

YanceyGreenhorn

Still Not a Moderator
Glad you got him back. Know a few who are really hard on their dogs and can’t seem to figure out why they never return once they escape
 

timber

Twelve Pointer
All dogs dont have that homing instinct or choose not to use it. Before tracking collars how good a dog ran and how goid a mouth they had was top of the list but also bred dogs that had that homing instinct. Have gotten rid of some good dogs over the years that could run the hide off some game but would lay up at the first house they got to.
 

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
Glad your hound came back. A hound getting by us at the kennel is the most likely way one will get out. We try to make sure the alley way doors are shut. Our breeding usually homes good, or did. Haven't had any out in a long time to know if the younger generations will home. I'm betting they will. Well, I know one will. She hasn't escaped in 2 years, since I put a top on her kennel. Got another one that can clear a 6' fence, but she hasn't figured out to go over it, yet! We still coarse our hounds, when hunting but the GPS is why we don't really know if they will home or not. Back years ago if a hound didn't home, you didn't have it for long. What made me decide to get a GPS/e-collar system, I had my entire pack run for 3 days, then laid up for 2 more before they started filtering back. I knew where they where at but I couldn't get to them. I spent 12 days trying to get the young hounds back. The last 2 I caught were walking and giving mouth. They were on the opposite side of a creek. I hollered at them they stopped. They were still there after I ran over a mile back to the truck then drove several miles around to where they were at. The same year I had some more get in the same area, got them all but one, a super young hound that had just clicked. He ran himself to death. Once he bedded down it took me 3 days of trying to get permission to access the property with a GW. We were too late. Have I said I love my Garmin 100/200i. It has saved me a lot of cussings, headache and heartache.
 

Cornbread

Eight Pointer
Years ago me and my neighbor were squirrel hunting a new tract of land, it was very big tract, it was getting toward the end of the day, I had my dogs back but his female didn’t come back, he took his coat off and laid it on the ground came back the next morning and his dog was laying on his coat just waiting on us
 

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Years ago me and my neighbor were squirrel hunting a new tract of land, it was very big tract, it was getting toward the end of the day, I had my dogs back but his female didn’t come back, he took his coat off and laid it on the ground came back the next morning and his dog was laying on his coat just waiting on us
That was how we did dogs for years. Or slid the dog box out and left it for them. You didn’t worry about any harm coming to them. Those days have long past.
 

Ol Copper

Twelve Pointer
Ive got one female, she aint dumb by no means, but she sure does believe that the grass is always greener on the other side of any fence....I figure it will cost me one day. 😞
 
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