what lines do u think are the best??

[magners 107]

Im not saying fox is easy quarry,im saying its easier to get a dog to work fox's than badger,pre ban.I know you do a bit with hounds kevin but your not honestly saying that the dogs of today that work fox on a weekly basis are better than the dogs that worked badger.I have seen first hand the best of fox dogs come away from badger and so did you if your truthfull.I never seen a badger dog come away from fox.Iknow we cant dig them anymore and its a pity cause they were the ultimate challenge for a terrier.Im not trying to stir shit or anything like that with any man or lady who dig fox,but i dont think there that big a challange.jmho.

spot on fat man

[kevin em 342]

Im not saying fox is easy quarry,im saying its easier to get a dog to work fox's than badger,pre ban.I know you do a bit with hounds kevin but your not honestly saying that the dogs of today that work fox on a weekly basis are better than the dogs that worked badger.I have seen first hand the best of fox dogs come away from badger and so did you if your truthfull.I never seen a badger dog come away from fox.Iknow we cant dig them anymore and its a pity cause they were the ultimate challenge for a terrier.Im not trying to stir shit or anything like that with any man or lady who dig fox,but i dont think there that big a challange.jmho.

both you and liam are pickin me up wrong im not sayin the fox is an eguall of the badger im sayin its not as easy as people think to get a good fox dog to work week after week to its always the way people sayin its only a fox a lot of the older lads i know that were diggin badgers pre ban seldom got a fox with there badger diggin dogs

[hack 301]

I agree with SHAMO,i think it all boils down to what the dogs are worked on.I have seen dogs that are worked week in week out on fox,but would they go the distance with badger,PRE BAN of course.I have seen quarry dug one week and released and dug again the following week again,would the fox dogs of today be able to hold one that's been dug a few times,i have my doubt's.I have been lucky enough to have had the pleasure to dig both and in my eyes fox dogs are easy enough come by.It was a whole different ball game to keep consistant badger dogs and dogs that were dug to weekly.There the type of lines i think are best.jmho.

i dont agree fat man too many people under estimate the fox its easy enough to get a dog to work a fox on ten or twelve digs in the season but you push them and work them to foxs a few times a a week and when at xmas the foxs are in full health they can soon sort the wheat from the chaff just my opinion ive seen many a good dog finished by a fox

 

Like Fat Man I have dug both and I never under estimated anything under ground.But my friend consistent badger digging is light years away from digging foxes.If a half deasent dog can get to his fox he should be able to mix it and kill him no matter whether its xmas or not..The fox dont sort out the wheat from the chaff they were chaff before they ever went in to meet him.The badger dog on the other hand goes in to face the best pound for pound fighting animal in the World.His bites cannot harm his foe but one or two mistakes he can lose half his face or his life but the gameness makes him do it anyway.I to have seen dogs finished by fox In my opinion they were never any good anyway it just took a little longer for his yellow streak to show.A footnote to Fat Mans story. Many years ago we had a tagged badger who was dug regular and knew the drill well. We brought plenty of Guinness Diggers who had dogs whose reputations got bigger by the night in the local bar. When the tagged badger heard them coming in to his set the reputation usually went out the window. He was great if you got a dog on trial if he stayed with him and could HOLD him until dug buy the dog immediately.

 

we dug the fox the dog was a mess but carried on digging badger after as for your tagged badger dont make me laugh had many hard digs over the years

[liamdelaney 2,587]

Im not saying fox is easy quarry,im saying its easier to get a dog to work fox's than badger,pre ban.I know you do a bit with hounds kevin but your not honestly saying that the dogs of today that work fox on a weekly basis are better than the dogs that worked badger.I have seen first hand the best of fox dogs come away from badger and so did you if your truthfull.I never seen a badger dog come away from fox.Iknow we cant dig them anymore and its a pity cause they were the ultimate challenge for a terrier.Im not trying to stir shit or anything like that with any man or lady who dig fox,but i dont think there that big a challange.jmho.

both you and liam are pickin me up wrong im not sayin the fox is an eguall of the badger im sayin its not as easy as people think to get a good fox dog to work week after week to its always the way people sayin its only a fox a lot of the older lads i know that were diggin badgers pre ban seldom got a fox with there badger diggin dogs

 

 

Some of my badger dogs(some)were soft on foxes but i had one bitch used to eat them when she killed them. That is her on the left

[liamdelaney 2,587]

I agree with SHAMO,i think it all boils down to what the dogs are worked on.I have seen dogs that are worked week in week out on fox,but would they go the distance with badger,PRE BAN of course.I have seen quarry dug one week and released and dug again the following week again,would the fox dogs of today be able to hold one that's been dug a few times,i have my doubt's.I have been lucky enough to have had the pleasure to dig both and in my eyes fox dogs are easy enough come by.It was a whole different ball game to keep consistant badger dogs and dogs that were dug to weekly.There the type of lines i think are best.jmho.

i dont agree fat man too many people under estimate the fox its easy enough to get a dog to work a fox on ten or twelve digs in the season but you push them and work them to foxs a few times a a week and when at xmas the foxs are in full health they can soon sort the wheat from the chaff just my opinion ive seen many a good dog finished by a fox

 

Like Fat Man I have dug both and I never under estimated anything under ground.But my friend consistent badger digging is light years away from digging foxes.If a half deasent dog can get to his fox he should be able to mix it and kill him no matter whether its xmas or not..The fox dont sort out the wheat from the chaff they were chaff before they ever went in to meet him.The badger dog on the other hand goes in to face the best pound for pound fighting animal in the World.His bites cannot harm his foe but one or two mistakes he can lose half his face or his life but the gameness makes him do it anyway.I to have seen dogs finished by fox In my opinion they were never any good anyway it just took a little longer for his yellow streak to show.A footnote to Fat Mans story. Many years ago we had a tagged badger who was dug regular and knew the drill well. We brought plenty of Guinness Diggers who had dogs whose reputations got bigger by the night in the local bar. When the tagged badger heard them coming in to his set the reputation usually went out the window. He was great if you got a dog on trial if he stayed with him and could HOLD him until dug buy the dog immediately.

 

we dug the fox the dog was a mess but carried on digging badger after as for your tagged badger dont make me laugh had many hard digs over the years

 

Did I say something funny because I am not trying to make you laugh?

[hack 301]

I agree with SHAMO,i think it all boils down to what the dogs are worked on.I have seen dogs that are worked week in week out on fox,but would they go the distance with badger,PRE BAN of course.I have seen quarry dug one week and released and dug again the following week again,would the fox dogs of today be able to hold one that's been dug a few times,i have my doubt's.I have been lucky enough to have had the pleasure to dig both and in my eyes fox dogs are easy enough come by.It was a whole different ball game to keep consistant badger dogs and dogs that were dug to weekly.There the type of lines i think are best.jmho.

i dont agree fat man too many people under estimate the fox its easy enough to get a dog to work a fox on ten or twelve digs in the season but you push them and work them to foxs a few times a a week and when at xmas the foxs are in full health they can soon sort the wheat from the chaff just my opinion ive seen many a good dog finished by a fox

 

Like Fat Man I have dug both and I never under estimated anything under ground.But my friend consistent badger digging is light years away from digging foxes.If a half deasent dog can get to his fox he should be able to mix it and kill him no matter whether its xmas or not..The fox dont sort out the wheat from the chaff they were chaff before they ever went in to meet him.The badger dog on the other hand goes in to face the best pound for pound fighting animal in the World.His bites cannot harm his foe but one or two mistakes he can lose half his face or his life but the gameness makes him do it anyway.I to have seen dogs finished by fox In my opinion they were never any good anyway it just took a little longer for his yellow streak to show.A footnote to Fat Mans story. Many years ago we had a tagged badger who was dug regular and knew the drill well. We brought plenty of Guinness Diggers who had dogs whose reputations got bigger by the night in the local bar. When the tagged badger heard them coming in to his set the reputation usually went out the window. He was great if you got a dog on trial if he stayed with him and could HOLD him until dug buy the dog immediately.

 

we dug the fox the dog was a mess but carried on digging badger after as for your tagged badger dont make me laugh had many hard digs over the years

 

Did I say something funny because I am not trying to make you laugh?

 

would have loved a go at your tagged one but anyway nice pair of dogs

[Guest dee mac]

quick question pre ban was breeding from a fox only bitch frowned on by the lads that dug the bigger game as i ve talked too a few old timers that stated they d only breed from a bitch that worked all game and that lads breeding from fox only bitches were contributing too the poor standard of some of the terriers being produced .

[fat man 4,741]

A lot of men i knew that dug badger consistanly would try and keep there dogs away from fox for obvious reasons.Not every fox is easy dug but that's down to the ground your working not the dog that is with it.If a fox can push a terrier when the presure is on then that terrier is questionable.We all here in eire have to settle for what we can legaly dig now and that is fox,but i still say they are no match for a desent terrier.I see some of the dogs that are been bred nowadays and have seen big lumps of dogs been drove back by fox how would these fare out against badger,they would'nt.Fair play to any one that works there dogs to fox 3or4 times a week,but lets face it there sounders cause if they were geting stuck in each time out they would not be out 3or4 times a week.Kevin what has xmas got to do with diging a fox,the only diff i see is weather wise,colder and ground harder with frost.Have you still got that dodgy knee keven haha i think your a bit like meself too fond of the spuds and bacon.

[fat man 4,741]

Nice pair of terriers liam,that bitch looks the buisness.

[fat man 4,741]

quick question pre ban was breeding from a fox only bitch frowned on by the lads that dug the bigger game as i ve talked too a few old timers that stated they d only breed from a bitch that worked all game and that lads breeding from fox only bitches were contributing too the poor standard of some of the terriers being produced .

If she were only a fox bitch i would not breed from her cause i would not keep her,unless she had done her time on badger for a good number of year.

[Guest dee mac]

the proper terriers pre ban would work anything put in front of them this thing off keeping them off foxes i think was pure nonsense granted some were a little big for regular work too them but most off the old timers that i ve spoken too did nt get big numbers of fox too there dogs simply because they were nt looking for them and when they did come on them there dogs dealt with them with relish .

[fish 148]

the proper terriers pre ban would work anything put in front of them this thing off keeping them off foxes i think was pure nonsense granted some were a little big for regular work too them but most off the old timers that i ve spoken too did nt get big numbers of fox too there dogs simply because they were nt looking for them and when they did come on them there dogs dealt with them with relish .

best reply to this post so far

[hack 301]

the proper terriers pre ban would work anything put in front of them this thing off keeping them off foxes i think was pure nonsense granted some were a little big for regular work too them but most off the old timers that i ve spoken too did nt get big numbers of fox too there dogs simply because they were nt looking for them and when they did come on them there dogs dealt with them with relish .

 

 

they would work anything mate but the fact is they where big strong dogs and i said earlier nearly lost one to a fox not due to the dog but to the size he probally took constant strikes just digging to get to it so its not the case they couldnt deal with it plus like you say wasnt looking for them

[Guest dee mac]

the proper terriers pre ban would work anything put in front of them this thing off keeping them off foxes i think was pure nonsense granted some were a little big for regular work too them but most off the old timers that i ve spoken too did nt get big numbers of fox too there dogs simply because they were nt looking for them and when they did come on them there dogs dealt with them with relish .

 

 

they would work anything mate but the fact is they where big strong dogs and i said earlier nearly lost one to a fox not due to the dog but to the size he probally took constant strikes just digging to get to it so its not the case they couldnt deal with it plus like you say wasnt looking for them

fair point hack but it was nt because of the fox itself it was because of the circumstance the dog found itself in and because it was a determine worker that worked too a far superior animal most of the time the fact of being so close yet so far from the fox it probably got so excited it forgot the way in which it usually worked and threw caution too the wind bit like an excited child opening presents on a christmas morning

[p3d 879]

quick question pre ban was breeding from a fox only bitch frowned on by the lads that dug the bigger game as i ve talked too a few old timers that stated they d only breed from a bitch that worked all game and that lads breeding from fox only bitches were contributing too the poor standard of some of the terriers being produced .

 

Pre-ban a bitch that only worked fox would not be kept in my experience,

Some of these bitches (and dogs) would be handed down to hunt terrier men.

If they bred from these bitches it was for there own use.

They had no problem using baying/bolting terriers. To say that these men weakened the terriers we have today

might be overstating things.

There were 2 grades of terrier for 2 types of quarry.

I agree with Fat man that badger dogs were kept away from fox.

I have seen several occasions where a small earth stinking of fox would be skipped over.

We were after different quarry and would not spend the time at these earths. Most (but not all) of the dogs I came across that worked badger would have had some bull in there breeding.

If they would not kill a fox (or make a dammed good attempt) there would have been some raised eyebrows around the dig.

We did dig fox on occasion, I thought they were a good test for any dog. But there was a difference.

JMO

 

Edited to add photos of typical dogs you could have seen pre-ban.

 

 

As you can tell they were not kept for their looks!

All this talk of lines sounds an awful lot like;

I'VE GOT IT! AND YOU DON'T BULLSH1T.

 

Guys who had successful yards, had certain things in common.

They were never afraid to cull, or move on to a lower grade work.

They would travel any distance to get a dog on trial.

If the dog proved itself while on trial, they would pay what was asked. No complaints.

Edited April 1, 2011 by p3d