Kye 77 Posted September 6, 2005 Report Share Posted September 6, 2005 Went up north five hours to camp for three days, and i took my two Staghounds, the wife took her Stag X Grey, and a few terriers...we also had a young lad with us, a son of a friend. Beautiful up there!...real nice coursing ground, tough ground in some spots, but mostly ok ground to run a dog on,...cant wait for some snow so we can spot the yotes!.. Blister had some belting runs, and had two out of three, which isnt bad seems he hasnt done much since last season, its still miserable hot here!,..it was cooler up north, but higher elevation...the last run he had, lasted well over a minute and a half, and he must of turnt that hare a good 12 times...to be honest, i dont know how he didnt get it!...he lost it in heavy cover...the two he got, he carried back perfect though, so i was MORE than happy! Tor, the young bitch of just about 10 months done well too...she was hunting like a hound, and seems to realy like using her nose (which i like)... This was only the second time she had seen game properly, but she new what the game was about...she ran one saturday, and although she tried hard, i felt she wasnt realy trying to kill her game...she is still very much a puppy.. I didnt want to sour her, so i put her up, and let her have all day sunday to think about it...seems to have worked! Me and the young lad (Julian) walked around a small alfalfa paddock, more than anything we where trying to get a Jack for him to shoot with the .17HMR...we spotted one right near the hedge, but as we got closer, it jumped through the hedge and was out of sight...we ran around into the other paddock, and it was going full pelt toward the heavy sage cover! Julian says "I dont wanna shoot it, i want Tor to chase him!"...so i slipped her...the only reason i didnt slip in the first place was because i wanted him to get summat with the gun. So of goes Tor, and its like watching lighting...she had clearly thought about her place in life, and that was having the job of snuffing out the lives of other critters!..lol. she was so determined!...she was rappidly gaining, and she boxed the hare well, keeping it in the small paddock, it was only about four acres, so i new she was in for a hard time! When she dove for the hare the first time, i thought she had killed herself!..her head hit the ground so hard, a cloud of dust came up, and she flipped arse over head, about four feet from the ground...i thought, at the very best, she had broken her neck...she didnt make a sound, up she gets and pushes the hare into the sage which is about three feet high...she is kangaroo jumping, and some how, manages to push him out into the field again!...she turns him one more time, then hes in the cover again...Oh well, you win some and loose some i suppose, i thought...Ole' St.Hubbert must have been happy, because she pushed him out again!...she turnt him twice more, and grabbed him...she took a couple of seconds, to adjust her hold, and came troting back to me, her head was so high, she looked like a giraffe, and she held her tail, like she was lord of the manner...i didnt call her back, just crouched down, and she brought it about five feet from me, then walked in a small circle around me and Julian, and came to hand.."You cant deny her her victory lap!"...i thought to myself, just how right he was!...there was a time, that i would of been pissed off she didnt bring it straight in...but she was happy with herself, and she earnt it...and i couldnt have been more happy for her!...i think i have mellowed a little, and certainly, you dont have to have your dog real obdient over here...there recall is 100%, and they both carry back...Blister will lie down and sit on command, but i have never had to use it, so he 'aint that good...but why train a dog to do summat that they will never do?...as long as they catch game, im happy! The wifes bitch, which we called "Slag" is three years old, and we have only had her about three or four months...just enough to sort her out...she had terrible feet, and was about 10lbs over weight...after getting her weight down, and her feet right, we had got her just about fit enough to have a few runs... she had never seen anything before this last weekend. She is rapid...but she is Staghound (already a very fast type) crossed to a Greyhound...imo, you dont need that much speed, and i told the wife i think she would come to trouble, in the harsh desert.. She goes 100% flat out all the time...she caught and carried back the first THREE hares she has EVER seen, and lost the fourth...so we called it quits with her...she is still very sore and will be lame for about another week...she hasnt damaged herself, she is just a little stiff...nothing a good rub down five or six times a day wont cure and a belly full of good grub...she done well, and the good lady was happy, as its her first Lurcher type of dog...i like the bitch, but cant see her having a long working life...if she gets bred from, it will be back to a good strong Staghound...try and better the feet and give her more distance. I also shot a rattle snake with the shotgun..lol..and we got a few rabbits with the rifle...i dont realy want to shoot them up there though, coz i can run the dogs there...just whacked a few to keep the ranch owner happy...also got in on a badger (USA) with the terrier but it dug away in the loose desert sand. Plenty of game up there, and should be good once they get a drop of snow up there. Kye,.. Quote Link to post
Nobby 65 Posted September 6, 2005 Report Share Posted September 6, 2005 Nice one kye it's good to hear your staghounds are working well Quote Link to post
Guest Doug Posted September 6, 2005 Report Share Posted September 6, 2005 Sounds great all the best to both of you. Quote Link to post
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