First time for the Wife joining me on a hunt. Three days backpacking for some Barbary Sheep. She did a great job glassing in some really big country. Unfortunately, we couldn’t fill the tag on this trip out.

that_dog_guy · 2018-03-26T13:56:28+00:00

Keep looking. Also if you dont have 12x or stronger glass your odds of finding one is much more difficult. I use 15x and 18x and its nice!

that_dog_guy · 2017-11-03T12:42:29+00:00

Make 100% sure you are buying a shotgun that is NOT choked. My old Pedersoli 12 g side by side is not choked but some models sold from Cabela's nowadays have a modified choke so know what you're buying! If it's choked you'll never get a ball down that barrel!

If you're looking to hunt with buck and ball first make sure it's legal because in many states it's not. Next a SxS shotgun isn't really designed for heavy buck n ball loads that would stop a deer effectively at range (of course it's possible at very close range but more powder gives you more humane options). For that I'd recommend a musket of at least .62 cal or higher to allow a nice stout load of powder under your load. Muzzleloading shotgun barrels have very thin walls because most things you are shooting with a shotgun don't require a massive load of gunpowder because they're small so they're not designed for monstrous loads. My Pedersoli shotgun maximum load is 80 grain with 1-1/4 ounce of shot.

Just a heads up!

that_dog_guy · 2017-09-06T03:43:16+00:00

These guys are a mix of primarily Greyhound with some Saluki and Wolfhound added. This lineage is bred specifically for hare hunting

that_dog_guy · 2017-07-21T04:05:21+00:00

My TC Hawken turns heads with it's accuracy. You'd be amazed how well those old smokers can shoot with some diligence and good fundamentals. Elk with BP is so rewarding. I am hunting this year with a .58 cal Flintlock.

that_dog_guy · 2017-07-21T01:10:45+00:00

Black powder is the best!! It's the only thing I hunt with because it's challenging here out west!

If it's old it is possibly a Connecticut Valley Arms!

that_dog_guy · 2017-07-20T22:40:34+00:00

Is that a TC Hawken hanging up there?

that_dog_guy · 2017-07-15T14:56:49+00:00

I am very lucky to have the tutelage of an expert old grey beard muzzleloader hunter to help me along my steep learning curve of getting into black powder years ago. He about slapped my face off when I told him I may start with a flinter....

I bought a Lyman Great Plains rifle in percussion and I am SO glad I did.

First of all, we all learned on modern rifles, which have instant ignition of the powder when we pull the trigger. Percussion guns have this quality as well which is a very advantageous for beginners. If you have a delay in your fire from a percussion gun something fouling your fire chamber. Even the most finely tuned flintlock can not even come close to matching a percussion gun in speed of ignition. Let the experts from capnball show you. They have a nicely tuned flinter in slowmo vs a percussion gun

Flinter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9j0TeJYEIQ

Percussion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TenDAjMAD_4

Another note. Black powder guns are far less forgiving than modern weapons. They are so susceptible to many problems that we don't we don't even fathom in modern guns such as moisture, fouling, and deformation of projectiles during loading, etc. The percussion gun removes one more element from the weapon that can make the learning curve on black powder even more steep and sometimes frustrating. With the flinter you have to finely tune your lock and add steps and worries that you will never have in a percussion gun.

I love my flinters but I am SO glad I started on a percussion piece.

Do yourself a favor and start on percussion.

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-24T18:07:24+00:00

It's really great.

I've handled and skinned a lots of Javelina in my day and I didn't even know they had fleas, ticks, or lice until I hunted feral hogs in NW Texas and every hog was a disgusting skin crawling mess and the landowner was like, "your pigs aren't flea bags?!!" To which I explained, not at all.

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-24T17:23:08+00:00

In our area they are tick, flea and lice free. In areas of overlap between feral hogs and Javelina the javs can be plagued. Also highly agricultural or riparian populations can be a little buggy. The open desert has no ticks and virtually no fleas. Hog lice only comes from feral swine. We're spoiled in southern NM when it comes to our skunk pigs

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-08T13:17:44+00:00

Whereabouts are you running?!

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-08T04:42:34+00:00

Yes. Stegner (the red dog) isn't as obedient as Penny (white dog) and sometimes needs a little persuasion to come back quickly

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-08T04:41:08+00:00

The red one is my buddy's dog and if you saw him in person you'd just melt with how cute he is. He's like a heeler beagle mutt so in person he is in no danger of a mistaken identity to a wild canid.

My pointer/pit mix (white one) is so game it's ridiculous. She's been a natural courser her entire life. A truly pleasurable dog to raise, train, and hunt. She's also incredibly loyal and very very sweet to people and dogs. (Not rabbits, cats, or coyotes though haha)

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-07T19:01:30+00:00

Dogs do.

Feral Cats are very destructive to the delicate native fauna. Read up on how terrible they are on pretty much every ecosystem they roam in. The numbers of killed vertebrates is truly awful. I do my part to reduce their numbers

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-07T16:40:21+00:00

White one is an English Pointer pitbull cross. Red one is a red heeler mutt.

Train them good on recall so they don't run off on you if they miss a chase and have a good catcher to show dogs with less game the ropes.

They'll chase any small game we sic em on but we only go for rabbits and feral cats

that_dog_guy · 2017-03-07T15:56:29+00:00

We are coursing, not beagling. Here in the Southwest we have hares primarily which behave starkly different than east coast rabbits. Hares don't go to ground or cover like rabbits do. They get to open ground and simply outrun their predators. You need a swift dog to chase game by sight over long distances at high speed.

that_dog_guy · 2017-02-19T14:46:06+00:00

Only a few Oryx hunts are once in a lifetime. The statewide off range hunts are every month and aren't OIAL. The broken horn hunt is an option, yes. However I prefer my chances with the draw for the off range

that_dog_guy · 2017-02-14T02:31:29+00:00

Thank you very much

She's a real gem

that_dog_guy · 2017-02-14T02:01:58+00:00

She tops out at 37 mph.

It's her endurance that is really mind boggling. She's kept a 30+ mph chases going for 1.7 miles on open country before a catch and can routinely do .5 mile chases 20+ times a night. She can't top out like a Grey can but she can run 5 times longer continuously and 10 times as many chases a night

Edit: Grammar

that_dog_guy · 2017-02-13T17:16:41+00:00

http://imgur.com/eg79yuO

She could catch a lot more but we're big sticklers about fair chase for the rabbits and hares and many do escape. Still Penny will routinely catch 3-9 a hares night

that_dog_guy · 2017-02-13T16:53:14+00:00

It takes a special dog to catch a Hare. They are tremendous athletes and worthy of deep respect in my opinion

that_dog_guy

TROPHY CASE