Hello Mr. Nesselrodt,

 

  I appreciate you taking the time to write.   You have asked some wonderful questions. 

 

First--Catch dogs and breeds of catch dogs.

 

  The most common catch dog breeds to my knowledge by sheer numbers are in order of how I see it with peoples dogs.   Pit,  Staffordshire Terrier, American Bulldog, and the Dogo.

 

  The pit is the easiest to come by and probably the least expensive.   Next, the Staffordshire Terrier, Alot of people think they have a pit, but in reality they have a Staffordshire Terrier or a pit Staff mix. Next, the American Bulldog, and the newest to the market the Dogo.

 

  I wont go into which ones catch the best and why etc....   The bottom line is the dog has to catch like the owner likes one to catch or hes not worth 2 cents.  I would think these along with bulldog mixes are the favored breeds for a hunter to have as a catch dog as a whole.

 

Second-- How can a 45# pit hold a 200-300# wild boar still by himself and how does a 120# bulldog keep from being killed? . Is there an optimal weight?

 

Well, let me put it this way.  The best catch dog we ever owned weighed 40# on his heaviest day.  I do however believe in having one more catch dog at hand, but understand that hes not the only dog that has ahold of the hog.  If you have 4 baydogs baying the hog, when that pit catches, most of the time all the others with catch at that time also.  So its not like hes doing it all himself.  Next, have you ever had anyone pinch you at your tripezious (I didnt spell that right..haha) that is between your shoulder and your neck?  It doesnt make any difference how big the person is thats squeezing, as long as hes doing it correctly it will take you to your knees.   It kinda works the same way with a catch dog holding on the ears.  If he has a good lock on the ear where it attaches to the head of the hog, with all that pressure, it gets a hogs attention.  Now after saying that, I have seen bull dogs carried off like they were a knat while locked on an ear.  Thats why its a good idea to have a backup catch dog.

 

How does a big catch dog keep from being killed?  Well its the same with any size dog.  Alot of luck I guess.  But with any catch dog, the life saver truely is a good made cut vest placed around your dog.  If your not using a cut vest on your catch dogs, your asking for trouble in keeping dogs healthy.   A vest is not a for sure thing of protection, but it increases the dogs chances 10 fold.  As for the weight of a good catch dog. Thats a matter of opinion.   I personally like one that is about 60#.

 

Third-- Holding location- Most dogs seem to grab an ear, but photographs that I have seen of Presa Canarios they are holding by the jowl. Does one hold control the hog more than the other?

 

I dont know a thing about a Presa Canario, but Im guessing they are some breed of catching dog.  But I personally will take a dog on a good deep ear hold any day.

 

 

Fourth-- Every one has their favorite breed for certain tasks. I have noticed that hunters in Austrailia use Mastiff X or Wolfhound X to hunt with. Are these dogs more capable of tracking, running down and then catching the hog than any one breed that is used here. Americans tend to use specialized breeds for a certain task and then use another for something else.   Or do the hogs found there tend to be smaller than the ones found in the U.S.

 

 

In reguards to your question, I dont know a thing about Australian dogs or hunters Since I live in Texas.   But im sure if they have wolfhound in them, they have speed.  I just got a puppy from a friend that is half plott and half staghound (which are used to run down and catch coyotes).  I figure he will be a dandy or not worth a flip.  Only time will Tell.   

 

  In regards to Americans, Yes, I would say that we mostly use specialized breeds for various games hunted.   Of course everyone from time to time mixes a little of this with a little of that trying to get a better dog.  But the cur breeds, and hound breeds have been bred for years and years to get a specific type of hunting dog.  There are different lines of each of the breeds that will do different things such as.  It is customary for the cur type breeds to run silent on track when hunting, however, some of the breeders didnt want totally silent dogs, and thus not all are silent, but the majority are.  Same with the hound breeds.  Some lines are faster runners than the others, some are fast runners but work a track real slow with their nose.  Some are cold nose some are hot nosed.  Some are silent runners but most are open runners.   It all depends on the strain of dog a person gets.  

 

The bottom line is we all are in search of the ultimate dog, i really dont think there is such a thing, but maybe hes the next breeding around the corner.  When breeding dogs, we should always strive to breed dogs to where the pups will be better dogs than their parents were.   When I mix two pure bred registered dogs, Im taking the things I like from one and mixing it with the things I like from the other and hopefully, if Ive line bred correctly the pups will have the best of both and there fore be better dogs.   Hope you understand What Im trying to get across.

 

In regards to size of hog of Australia compared to US.  Well, once again, Ive never seen a Australian hog other than from pictures, some of them look pretty big and bad to me just like ours to them.  Im sure they have some whoppers in size over there just as we do.  Theres always this thing among hog hunters from different parts of the country on who has the worst hogs to hunt.    Ive always looked at it  like I did back when I rodeoed on the transition from youth rodeos to amateur to pro stock, its always an adjustment and intimidation that some rookie cowboys cant make by having to get on the stock they have heard so much about or riding against the world champions that are their heros.   But, I was told this along time ago and always tried to remember it.   "Jim, a horse is a horse and a bull is a bull, some just buck a little harder than others".   Some say the Russian Runners are the worst, some say the ferals and some say the mixture of the two.   Well, I know the russians can run like a deer and stay in that steady trot for hours and hours and miles and miles.   I also know the ferals usually dont run out of the country like russians but will fight till the end with everything they have in them.  Dogs get cut and killed on them both.   So which ones are the worst?    Well, I guess its depending on the hunt going on at that moment and the wreck your in and trying to get out of at the time....haha     Im just soooooooooo glad I dont have to hunt in the mountains, yall can have that running up and down and cliffs and valleys....haha   I'll take this mosquito infested marshy, gumbo dirt, flat swamp land anytime over those rocks and ride my 4 wheeler and be happy as a lark....  :-)

 

Hope I helped you with your questions.

Thanks again for writing

 

Jim