EP 379: GONE TO THE DOGS – PLOTT HOUND FEVER

We are happy to announce Alpha Dog Nutrition as an official sponsor of the Double U Hound Podcast and a new product available at https://www.dusupply.com/alphadog.  We would like to thank them for supporting our hounds, listeners and now our customers. Listen in and get to know the people behind the product and their mission to make sure our dogs have all the tools to succeed in the field for years to come.Things have come a long way for Alpha Dog since things started in Joe’s garage.  Their commitment and reputation of providing the tools our dogs need to perform at a top level has resulted in a very loyal customer base, and some very happy dogs.  With a background in waterfowl hunting, both Joe and Zach know that all dogs can benefit from balanced nutrition, but after one bear hunt Zach knew that hounds were a different breed. His appreciation and respect for what our dogs do sparked a fire for hounds, bringing him back to bear camp year after year. Want to learn more about Alpha Dog Nutrition? Check out https://www.dusupply.com/alphadog www.dusupply.comhttps://alphadognutrition.com/https://www.youtube.com/@DoubleUHuntingSupply/podcasts

Legendary tracker and Big game hunter Rick Labbe has done both. Rick has logged thousands of miles tracking deer through the north woods. He has also run hounds on coon, cat, coyotes and bear. Heath and Rick discuss topics from types of dogs to what Rick sees with animal habits while he’s tracking. This one is jam-packed with training tips, advice, and wild stories. Rick Labbe YouTubeBig woods Bucks Follow our Sponsors:OnX Southern Hound Hunting MagazineDouble U Hunting SupplySubscribe: to the best mapping app on the market by using promo code - K920Join us on the most thrilling fair chase hunt possible at Southern Hound Hunting Magazine. Subscribe at Southernhoundhunting.com Frontline Optics- Duty sunglassesPolarizedNo questions asked replacementCharitable Donation with every pairFree shippingFrontline-Optics.com use promo code - code4https://frontline-optics.com?sca_ref=5672409.03I05MEwyyGet all your hound hunting gear at Double U. Products every hound hunter trusts to keep up with their pack. www.dusupply.com

The boys have closed the damper, swept out the firebox and moved operations to the front porch for remainer of the spring and summer.  Spring peepers and hoot owls will provide ambient sound as the rockers get a workout on the rough-sawn boards at close of day.   But in this episode, the fire is still crackling and the conversation drifts to the subject of multi-purpose dogs, mostly coonhounds operating outside the normal bounds of track and tree.  It’s a good listen and a thought-provoker for anyone bold enough to consider using Old Blue to perform what many would consider unnatural acts.   Lean in and see if you don’t find this to be some interesting stuff.  It will be your last chance to spit on the stove for a while.  

Bear and Becky jump in with both feet on this one. They discuss breeding mistakes in general and how to avoid them. Becky shares her experiences breeding hounds and Bear compares with his notes from breeding racing Alaskan Huskies. If you are considering breeding your own hounds, this is not one you are going to want to miss.

Heath did a turn and burn to Greenville Tn to catch up with some old friends and make several new ones. This episode will bring you into the conversations he had and introduce you to all the people he met. Enjoy this short trip to one of the best hunts of year.  Subscribe to the best mapping app on the market by using promo code - K920Join us on the most thrilling fair chase hunt possible at Southern Hound Hunting Magazine. Subscribe at Southernhoundhunting.com Frontline Optics use promo code - code4Get all your hound hunting gear at Double U. Products every hound hunter trusts to get up with their pack.

Steve is on the road for a couple of weeks to New Jersey for family time and some fly fishing.  The only dogs he’ll see is the daughter’s hound/pit bull mix and the family Dachshund Louie who accompanies Ella everywhere.  But the combined efforts of Ma Bell and Al Gore provide the opportunity to keep Gone To The Dogs on schedule while on the long and winding road. The boys discuss the format, breed breakdowns and the ambiance that makes the TOC the premier coonhound event that it is, an event that boasts a purse of $250,000 distributed among winners at the finals held on the weekend following the airing of this episode.  The overall winner captures $50 grand!  Who would have thunk it?Things get interesting, even humorous, when the boys throw another chunk in the stove to discuss recent posts on the Coon Hunting Conversations Facebook group page.  Moving stud dogs around the country, deep-and-lonely dogs being born that way or manmade and what is seemingly causing smaller heads in some coonhounds.  It’s all here and as the cliched phrase admonishes, “You won’t want to miss this one.”  Heck, we don’t want you to miss any of them.   Give that log a little more air, son.  

The DU Crew made the annual pilgrimage to the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association banquet and had a chance to catch up with Sara Meinert and her husband Chris to talk a little bit about The American Plott Association (APA) and their recent Breed Days event.  Double U always enjoys seeing the APA crew and continuing our longstanding “Shirt war”.We talk about all the events they host including the bear bay, sprint race, nite hunt, water race and more. 

The trio drill down into Fever’s success story discussing the young hound’s progression from a five-month-old puppy to reaching the pinnacle in competition hunting at less than two and one-half years old.  Corey leads the interview leaving few stones unturned in terms of exactly what’s involved in achieving the Grand Nite Champion and other UKC titles.  Fever currently holds titles in Field Trials, Water Races, Nite Hunting, Hunt Tests and Bench Showing in UKC as well as Nite Hunting in Professional Kennel Club events.   The expense, the determination, the challenges and the setbacks are all fair game.  Of particular interest to listeners will be the reasons a confirmed, highly successful Treeing Walker fancier would embark on the arduous journey with a Plott of all available breeds.  Steve wades the murky waters of why Plott hunters may be more prone to breed to dogs in their own backyards.   You expect dog talk at its finest on the Gone To The Dogs Podcast and there’s plenty to enjoy in this episode.   

This past summer Bear and his hounds avoided a natural disaster by the skin of their teeth. Hear about it and what Bear has in his hound-bug-out bag and his plan for getting the hounds out safe and sound. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

The bill comes under the umbrella of anti-trespass legislation and provides exorbitant penalties for hunting dogs and their owners that find themselves afoul of the provisions of the bill, whether advertently or not.   The boys hash out the bill and provide information for hunters in Pennsylvania and elsewhere that want to let their voices be heard before the bill reaches the dangerous environs of the Senate floor.  The conversation takes on a more pleasant vibe as the boys cover the oldest and one of the most-popular breeds of trail and tree hounds, the American Black and Tan Coonhound.  The boys’ love for history is evident as they discuss early history, early founders and a long line of movers and shakers, human and canine, that have played such an important role in the breed’s seemingly timeless reign of popularity.   If you like black dogs, or if you just like to look back over the many years of our tree hound sport, this is a good one for you.  Them ole black dawgs!