One Month Coon Hunting Odyssey
Coon hunting can be addictive. It can also be tiring. There’s nothing like the thrill of hearing the bawl of the hounds echo across the darkened countryside as they give chase to ol’ Mr. Ringtail. But staying out the better part of the night when you have to work the next day can definitely take its toll on a person. One night is bad enough, but an entire month of not missing a night of hunting? That leads to a state of exhilaration you’re almost too tired to enjoy.
That was exactly what happened to me when I was training one of my coon hounds, a little female Treeing Walker pup named Verdigris River Witchcraft Ann. Training a pup is a lot of hard work and takes a lot of dedication from both the hound and the owner. Ann had the heart and desire to hunt, so I had to bite the bullet and hold up my end of the deal. So, together, we embarked on a one month basic training that sometimes seemed more like hell week in Navy Seal training to us than anything else.
Sometimes we would go alone, just the two of us, but usually we had either my brother and his dog or someone else and their dog with us. When we started, Ann knew very little and would only venture out with the other dog for a short time before coming back to me. By the end of the month, she was treeing her own coon without any help.
We hunted in nice weather, rain, sleet, and even snow during that month, giving her experience in nearly every condition Oklahoma weather could throw at someone. At times, I think we both thought about not going out on certain nights, evident by her lounging in her house at dark and me lounging in the recliner. When I finally convinced myself to get up, though, and get ready, she was always up and bouncing to go too.
It’s definitely an experience I will never forget, even though I was so tired at times it was hard to remember everything that did happen.
hunting, coon hunting, training, night hunting, treeing walker, Oklahoma
June 5th, 2007 at 9:12 pm
Training any hunting dog is never easy, but the years of enjoyment, after they are trained, are more than worth the effort!
November 21st, 2008 at 4:35 am
Great post , thanks.