Hog hunting with Dogs

[tarponnut]

I had a pretty bad experience hunting for hogs with  dogs today. The guide did his best and we got the hog, but he clearly (and admittedly)was not a bowhunter. It was no cakewalk by any means, with the dog jumping in and out of my shooting lane and the guide telling me to shoot when the hog was facing me,etc.
In the end, it's my own fault for not asking the right questions and letting him know my capabilities and limitations.
At one point during the melee the guide asked me if I could make the shot from 25 yards.
Normally the answer would be yes, but not with a $2000 dog running back and forth between me and the hog.
Has anyone had similar or hopefully better experiences hunting hogs with a dog(s)?
Next time it's stand or stalk or nothing.

[Leo L.]

Gun hunters.....They'll never understand.

[jamie2778]

i haven't tried bowhunting hogs with dogs but here downunder our dogs grab hold of the hog and then we grab the hog and finish it off with a knife by stabbing it in the heart

[tarponnut]

This dog would locate the hog in the thick palmettos and then bay him. It wouldn't attack the hog but would distract him enough to allow a shot.
I felt like I could have gotten a lot closer(like 5 yards) to the hog for a shot but the guide kept offering unrealistic shot angles and distances. Live and learn, I guess.
They do the "catch dog" knife hunts here in Florida,as well,it's not for me.

[geno]

Where did you hunt. What ranch. I have killed a few over dogs before with pistols. I am pretty sure I would have found a shot with my bow. It is some pretty fast action though..A little thought for some more UPFRONT conversation next time. You should try the dogs again.

[tukudu]

My experience with good dog handlers is that they will let you get in close and then you are looking at a 10 yard max shot. I am not sure why he would not go that route as its in his best interest as it really decreases the chances of the dog getting stuck with an arrow. I have some good memories down in florida over dogs. Great dog work and close and personal game shots. tom

[tarponnut]

I went to the same place about a year ago with a friend and he got within 5 yards for his shot(s)and got his first trad kill.
Obviously, every hog is different though.
I have had good luck at this ranch from stands
but have since found a much better place.

[CSUkid]

The trick with hog hunting with dogs is getting the right dogs. If you are hunting with dogs that are constantly jumping around or actually attacking the pig instead of baying, then bowhunting can get really dangerous really fast for the dogs. However, I do use dogs to hunt pigs in Florida, but I bring my own dog from here in Colorado. I have a Vizsla pointer that loves to bay pigs almost as much as he does hunting pheasants. The difference is he won't attack the pig ever. He will stand there growl and bark his head off and he knows to stay out of my way which works out pretty well most of the time.

[tarponnut]

I also have a Vizsla (but only use her for birds). The right dog would have made a big  difference. The last thing I wanted was to hurt the dog. Thanks for the input.

[Leland]

I've hunted hogs with dogs many times and found it's how the dog is trained.This fella had dogs that would be all over the hog,distracting it.When we would sneak into shooting range,then he would give a command and the dogs would back off 15-20 feet.I love hunting with dogs.   Leland

[CSUkid]

Thats impressive that all you have to do is call off your dogs and they will listen while pining down a pig. That would take a lot of training but if you put in the time those would be some pretty amazing dogs

[J-dog]

Hunted them woth dogs and had a blast, only killed one hog that way myself though I have been in on many kills. It can be hectic and your guide shouldn't be pushy, but he is trying to get the hog killed before the hog wounds or kills a dog while your trying to kill the hog and not a dog (make sense?)

It is fun, but yeah you need to be sure the guide understands what bowhunting is. Your paying him, just tell him what you are confident with.

Spot and stalk is much better, bushwackin at its finest.

I can realy some real horror stories about guys that come to run dogs when I was doing it so much! Give me a whole new respect for how much a hog can tote in wounds.

J

[J-dog]

Yeah Jaime, we had catch dogs as well, one really good one that just hated a hog, he would grab and wrench down most any size hog. Course those dogs never lived to die of old age either.

J

[CSUkid]

One thing that never has seemed to be a problem is snakes. I have done spot and stalk and hunted with dogs in Florida and Georgia and I have never encountered any snakes and niether has my dogs or other dogs i have hunted with. You would think that dogs would get bit more often running through the swamps. Maybe Ive ben lucky I don't know.

[Don Stokes]

CSUkid, you've been lucky. Florida has plenty of diamondbacks and pygmies. My buddy who lives on the outskirts of Orlando kills them in his yard regularly, and his labs have been bitten twice, in the yard.

[CSUkid]

Ya its probably because I don't live down there that ive so fortunate

[Mint]

I've hunted on a ranch south of Orlando for six years. Great time hunting with the dogs and all shots have been close. Sometimes the hog doesn't go with the program but the dogs usually bay it up nicely. As for snakes, it all that time i've only seen one snake crossing the road. I think since this ranch has so many hogs they eat the snakes.

[Biggie Hoffman]

I don't get it. If you use dogs, you're not doing the hunting, the dogs are. You're just the killer.
I guess lots of guys get excited about the "chase" and all that but as far as bowhunting goes, I can't seem to stretch the concept that far.

[pdk25]

I don't know what goes on with these hunts in general.  I've only seen video on ***tube.  I don't consider myself soft-hearted, but maybe I'm wrong.  Don't mind hunting and killing at all, but these guys who are killing hogs with a knife on the videos that I saw were essentially having a pack of dogs attack the hog.  It was almost like seeing a pack of wolves attack something.  Really tearing the hogs up.  On some of the videos the dogs got tore up.  On one of the videos after a hog was really getting chewed up bad the pack kinda fell over a rise with the hog.  One of the dogs got trapped under the hog and you could hear the dog got pinned and was getting tore up by the hog.  The guys sure rushed in then but previously were content to watch the dogs tear into the pig for several minutes before that.  I gotta admit that at that point I was rooting for the pig.  I hope that isn't what normally goes on in a hunt, but if it is, this type of hunting is definitely not for me.

[JESSE69]

IT IS ROUGH THATS FOR SURE,THE DOGS DON'T ALWAYS WIN.I'VE SEEN BIG BOARS LEAVIN DEAD DOGS LYIN IN HIS TRAIL