Ode' to the Tramp

-->

A brindle coat

Covered a heart of gold

The heart of a Champion

Blended with Gladiator might

                                                                  

Always one step ahead

He was the one

To take the lead

Facing

Phantoms

Ghosts if you will..

Becoming

Every hog hunters

Dream

He never backed down

Always in the lead

There for the job

With a grin

At the end of the race

For friendship

Is the most important?

Knowing each other

Is there for the other

Friends forever

No matter what separates?

Pals like these will

Never be forgotten….

Jack the Ranch Dog

Camille and Chunk

They posed, and I was lucky enough to have a camera.

Drum's profile

Gotta love our drummer boy!

A low Blow to hunting with Hounds

I have been watching how this Bill 1221 in California has been slowly turning into a name calling and finger pointing session. I find that there are a lot of lies being said about hound hunting and the people behind this are completely uneducated in the field of hunting period. We are being called drug dealers, black market suppliers and even cub and kitten snatchers. I find this very upsetting. How could we be those things and barely be able to pay our bills. Most of the hunters I know are what I call "dog poor" meaning we love our dogs so much that when they get old we retire them to the comforts of indoor living and hanging on the couch at night watching television. While we go out and get another young dog(s) to work and train in the hopes that they pick up the same traits that the retired senior already knew. Or we bred our best dog to the best we could find and picked a puppy in the hopes that they turn out just like their parents. Training and working a hunting dog, is a tricky thing. I have not mastered it, but I hope to be able to see my dogs working a track or a tree in splendid form.

If you would like to help please call these people and let them know that there are people out there who believe in us.
http://awpw.assembly.ca.gov/membersstaff

Thank you!

Have fun behind your hounds!

That Bill 1221

So the Bill is still going through, so far it has passed the Senate and is on to the Assembly. So here are some links if you want to help out with getting this crazy bill opposed.

http://awpw.assembly.ca.gov/membersstaff 
An Article that explains our side
A great article about a true dog man

Please do all that you can to help out.

New guy on the block

We have a new hound. His name is Havoc's Heart of a Goonie, other wise known as Chunk. Here he is with our boy Drum. Seems they are gonna be best buds.

Bad News guys

So with most of our hunting courses done, HSUS or the Humane society of the US is now locked in a battle with sportsman about the use of hunting with hounds. I find this completely wrong. They say we use GPS collars here in California where it is illegal to use. The senate and HSUS have got together and are trying to ban hound hunting for bears and bobcat, right now. But that will change if they win. Please if you like hunting and know a hounds person or two, stand up with us and fight. The bill is called SB 1221. There is petitions to sign as change.org as well, as other ways to help by contacting your senators and house members in the area. Please help the future and tradition of hunting with our canine companions is at stake!

Here is one of the many petitions that need to be signed:
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-governor-of-ca-stop-sb1221

Here is an article about the Bill SB 1221
http://www.ussportsmen.org/legislative-action/anti-hunting-bill-clears-california-senate-committee/

Please help! Your voice matters!

Update

So we have almost completed the hunter's safety course. Our boy Drum has got and tracked his first coon, with the help of a buddy and his dogs. So we are on track. Here is a picture of the boys to wet your whistle.

Update

As for the humans that are in the midst of taking their test, so far I am passing with good numbers. I have a few more sections to complete. My husband is still waiting to be logged in. So we will be getting there soon I hope!
Have fun and happy hunting!

Diva Camille

Camille went out to Grandma's house to hang out and work on scent training. Anyway I think all of us can seen the size difference between Camille and Jack:) We also worked on stacking which is a term used in the show ring for getting the dog in the right pose for the judge.

So the game plan...

Ok guys we have been working with the pups to get them prep'd for the hunting season. Now for the game plan. Since my husband and I haven't done this we must get a plan in order.

1. Get our hunter safety courses done
2. Get our follow up hunting courses done
3. Get our hunting licenses so that we can go out.
4. Take the pups out and start getting them in the woods:)                                                                                   

Just a Quote and picture for the afternoon:)

“As the big hound is, so will the pup be.”

Irish Proverb

The Boys and their first hunt!

Early Sunday morning my husband, daughter, our friend and his girlfriend got ready to go for a morning hunt. We loaded our two boys Tank and Drum into the dog box that we have, then drove over and picked up our buddy and his girlfriend. That is where we also picked up his two dogs Jed and Scout. Both of those dogs have been out in the woods looking for raccoon, bear and bobcat. They both have a ton of knowledge that we hoped would pass on to the pups. We ran into a coyote early that morning of which none of the boys chased. We were very proud, hunters who's main idea is raccoon or other certain animals, would call coyote trash, and do not want the hounds wasting their time chasing. The fact that both our young boys came right to us when we called was perfect. They periodically checked in like they were supposed to and even found a dried up raccoon body that was near a tree. All of this with the help of Jed and Scout. Teaching young dogs with the aide of an older dog is the best thing I think, it lets them learn by example, and explains to them better then we could without mistakes. All in all it was a good morning for their first time out. Have fun behind our own hound and go for an adventure, it will sure put a smile on your face:)

Fun at Grandma's house

So we took the pups out to my mother's ranch where they could run and have some fun. Their brother Jack lives out there as her guardian dog from coyotes and wayward people. He has done his job. Even alerting her to a rabid skunk that had made it's way into the property looking for water. They all had a blast playing and Grandma even made sure that their manners stayed in tack. I had heard some where that you couldn't train a hound in obedince cause they won't listen. Lol below is a picture that proves otherwise. Happy hunting everyone!

First time at the pond

So we took the pups to their first time to see water. The adventure was great! They all got introduced to something that they are going to have to get used to water. I would hope one day that they become swimmers like I have seen in swim races for other hound dogs, that would be awesome! Anyway they did get their feet wet, so that is a start.:)

And Finally Tank

Tank is my husband's dog. Both of them had a bond from the start. Tank was one of the biggest of the litter. My husband and Tank had one of those instant bonds. At and early age Tank was one of the most rowdiest of them, and always had the head of the line for food. As you can see by his three week old picture here he was a talker.

Tank flew threw his obedience training like a champ. He is willing to try anything at anytime. My husband and him are great friends, he is the go to dog for just about everything my husband wants to do. They became a lot closer in June of last year when my husband's other best friend a Queensland heeler named Daisy Ann who was just turning three was inhumanely poisoned while staying at his mother's house, where in fact all the mother and brother of Daisy Ann were also poisoned by a vindictive neighbor who did not like animals of any kind. Needless to say that case is still being investigated.

Anyway Tank and my husband (pictured above) are enjoying each other's company and plan on tons of future hunting trips of all kinds. Tank is a very sweet and loving dog with excellent manners. He is a dominate type of dog that looks forward to a good challenge. Tank will be an excellent addition to the pack and brings with him a ton of courage and boundless energy.

Introducing Kaname aka "Boogers"

Kaname (Khan-a-mae) is my daughter's dog actually, but she is part of the pack so I will include her in this journey. She was born second in the litter and weighed average. She is a perfect mirror image of her mother. Right down to her odd little mohawk that goes from the base of her skull right down to the middle of her neck.

As a young pup at about 6 1/2 weeks old she broke her right hind femur with what the vet called a "green stick" break. She was kenneled and given some heavy medication to keep her calm while she healed. A little more then a month into her healing process she showed signs of improvement. Medication was stopped and she began to have a full recovery. My daughter at this time took it upon herself to be her nurse when school was not involved. That was a big job for a 12 year old at the time. The first three days that she was home my daughter slept right next to her kennel to keep her company and to be there for her. They have a great bond. The picture above is of her in the chair waiting for my daughter to come home from school.

Boogers as she is lovingly known is a total couch potato and failed all of the obedience training unless of course you include treats of some kind, then she is all stomach. Manners is not the first thing on her mind food or loving is first and foremost on her agenda. I plan on hopefully getting her to do some field work, but with the leg she already has and the bond with my daughter, her process will be very slow indeed.

Introducing Drum

The next one in line to be introduced is Drum. He was born toward the begining of the litter with average weight. He is what other houndsman consider a pack dog. Drum enjoys being part of a group human or canine. He is not the sharpest tool in the shed where obedience is concerned as heal and down where two of his hardest to understand. But he makes up for his faults with a willingness to try anything once or twice.

The best part about Drum is his nose and his singing voice. Other houndsman with years more experience then I have said that Drum is what they call a rig dog, or a striker. That means they would put him on their truck and wait for him to catch wind of whatever prey they are looking for. Drum having a sharp nose out on a scent would be the first one to sound off or open up. Hearing him set loose his open mouthed bawl is a joy to hear.
I look forward to the day that we are able to put his great nose to work doing what his mama was bred to do. For now he is my goof ball who always finding weird ways to get stuck.

Introductions Begin

I would like to introduce all of you to the pups that I will be working with. First off I would like to start in alphabetical order.

Camille is the first one on the list. She was born in the middle of the litter and was on the smaller end in weight. She picked me from the start. This was her at about three weeks old leaving her litter mates to come be with me. Camille is very intelligent and has a active thought process that in some cases can lead her to trouble. During her obedience training she preformed like a champion. Her sit, down, and heal are perfect. Coming when called is good unless there is something that perks her interest more. Camille is a what is known as a silent hunter, she does not make a sound while on a scent or even in the back yard unless there is reason. She is a very easy going dog, though she will show her independence in a comfortable setting, and be a nervous ninny in one that she is not use to. My goal for Camille is to make her into a confident silent hunter and the perfect house dog.

Welcome Everyone!

Hello! I would like to start off this blog by introducing you to my hounds. Cypress was out first, my husband found her on the side of the road. Bringing her home we did not know how much of an impact it would make on our life. She was very skinny, and very loving. We found out about a month later that she was pregnant, also that she had gotten heart worm. Heart worm disease is easily preventable, but for what ever reason she was not so lucky. Cypress had a huge infection of it in her heart, the kind that can cause death. The puppies were born on 1/1/11. There was 11 total. Odd how numbers start popping up. 7 weeks into the their growth, and for some reason or another Cypress turned her aggression on other members of our canine family including one of her own puppies. Complications to her heart and pain had caused this.

We were hurt by this and decided to keep four of her puppies, these puppies I have decided to work and train to be the hunting dogs that their mother had been bred for. Also I found that in my family tree, my grandfather on my mom's side was an avid hounds man as well as his before him. Not to mention that on my father's side they too kept a kennel of hounds. So in keeping a family tradition and to honor Cypress's passing I am on a mission to train these puppies for what they were bred to do.