The first bluetick female that I purchased over 20 years ago was the foundation of the dogs that I have today. This female had an interesting habit of carrying every coon she treed back to the pickup. I raised one female for Old Fly that I named Mamie. Mamie was one heck of a hound and also had the habit of carrying every critter back to the truck. Mamie was bred to a male that I purchased and raised on litter. I kept Betty from this litter and she too, was a "packer". I hauled Betty to OK and bred her to one of the top dogs in the country at that time. She raised one litter and I kept Jimmy, Lizzie and Flint from that mating. Lizzie like her ancestors would carry every coon back to the truck.
I have begun to hunt Jill that was sired by my Daisy female and Flint. She is ten months old and really showing signs of making a great hound. I train my dogs to follow me back to the truck after treeing a cat or coon. This helps me to get all of the dogs back together before I start roading them again.
Ten, Daisy and Sally followed me back to the truck after shooting a coon out to them but Jill did not show. I called to her and even gave her a bump on the Tritronics. In a couple of minutes, I could hear her coming and she sounded like she was struggling a little. I shined her and here came the little 40 pound dog carrying a 15 pound coon. I hope she turns out as well as some of her ancestors. I guess there is something to this "genetics" stuff!
Adios,
Gary

Nice story. It's fun seeing and hoping what breedings will bring.

Yeah, as a youngster, I remember hearing the "Old Timers" saying that breeding did not make a dog, it was hunting (training). They had not idea where the dogs that they had came from and most were not sure of the breeding. We just bred our best dogs to the best females and hoped for the best. Most of the bobcat hunters in South Texas continue this practice and they still catch a lot of cats.
What I have found is that training and lots of it by a good trainer can get a dog just so far. Most cat hunters have from 8-12 hounds on the ground and depend on the "pack" to tree cats. Old Sally is a great stike dog and can cold trail a little. Rip is a really good jump dog with lots of speed and Jane is great for picking up a "loose". We have to have Pilot because he is a good tree dog. There are simply not that many great bobcat hounds "that can do it all".
What I have found is that I get a predictable offspring and more uniformity in my pups.
Adios,
Gary

Awesome post! Thanks for sharing! The whole 'genetics' game is a thrill. It makes breeding fun, rewarding and oh-so interesting!

I agree! What is amazing is that if this was not such an unusual trait, you would not know that it ever existed.
Adios,
Gary

Very good post. I am not a coon hunter but Genetics is Genetics and it was cool to see how it passed on from dog to dog.

Way to go Gary...My old hunting bud w/ Virgil Roberson..long deceased..I raised Vaugh bred Blueticks for years and competed
with them..also some Hickory Nut Harry Walkers..Genetics are most
of what every animal is about, including most human ones..Used to
have ladies tell me how SMART..their horse was..never had the heart to explain breeding, ect..or brain to body size..comparing
to a chicken..Keep hunting...it'll make you live longer..Don
Dial, Pipe Creek, Tx

Way to go Gary...My old hunting bud w/ Virgil Roberson..long deceased..I raised Vaughn bred Blueticks for years and competed
with them..also some Hickory Nut Harry Walkers..Genetics are most
of what every animal is about, including most human ones..Used to
have ladies tell me how SMART..their horse was..never had the heart to explain breeding, ect..or brain to body size..comparing
to a chicken..Keep hunting...it'll make you live longer..Don
Dial, Pipe Creek, Tx

Thanks Guys, and Don, I will keep hunting. In fact, I went last night. Had a really good hunt. The last coon I caught was started at a windmill and was pretty hot. The blue girls did not go 200 yards before they jumped and from then until treed the coon ran just like a cat. He squatted just one time and the dogs overran him but Ten picked him up pretty quick and the race was on again. Lots of circling over about 2-3 acres. The nice thing was the tree in a live oak mott right by the road.
Adios,
Gary