FIRST LION

[dogman68]

Congrats on the cat. Here's another life size.

 

That is a really nice looking mount. I think lions are some of the hardest animals to mount properly, given the number of goofy looking ones I have seen over the years. Some look like they were electricuted. A rug is the safest way to go generally speaking.

 

Josh really paid his dues on this hunt. We pounded the mountains for 5 hard days, daylight to dark in the heat. We covered close to 200 miles during that time. It wasn't your usual, 8 trucks with two way radios looking for a track while the hunter sits in the truck waiting for "the call" and then walks to the tree.

We had an all day trail job one day in some of the roughest country in Arizona. We were both sunburned and baked.

The 6th day we checked a kill but the coyotes had gotten to it and the lion hadn't been back. The 7th day we got a run off another kill and almost didn't catch the lion due to the dry, hard packed ground and heat. (It was 92 degrees that day) Hap pulled that one out of the bag for us. Anyway, it was a trophy well earned. Josh was really into it and that makes the difference.

[dogman68]

Congrats on a beautiful cat! That's awesome you got the whole experience and I'm sure you covered alot of hard miles! It makes it that much sweeter when you work hard for em'! My guys caught and killed one on Fri.............half hour from the start of the track, and a half mile from the truck.....where's the fun in that? Great job to you guys on a well deserved cat and to the pups! JIM>

 

The day we caught the lion was an easy race as far as lion hunting goes. The heat was a factor (92 degrees) but we were pretty lucky. It was the prior 6 days of torture that made the catch so sweet. A lot of people have killed lions but very few people have actually hunted them. Josh worked his tail off and was right in there watching for sign, reading the hounds etc. It always amazes me when people are fortunate enough to take a lion without dogs they say, "lion taken without dogs". In other words, they had an accident and killed a lion. Dry ground lion hunting can be a brutal endeavor at times.

Most lion hunting today is a mechanized affair with radios etc. Josh really earned this one!

It was what some lion hunters would call an "honest lion".

[dogman68]

Yep, that Hap is a stud! I owe the lion I shot last January to Hap, Rusty, Mike, and Roxy. Of course Randy and Josh did there part as well!

 

Congrats on a nice cat!!!

 

Here's a pic of the dogs so every one can see them. Hap is the black one on the top with Rusty right next to him, and Mike and Roxy are on the tail gate. Hopefully I got the right names with the right dogs, it's been over a year since I've seen them.

 

 

You got it right TAM. Thanks for posting the pic. Brings back good memories. That was a pig you killed! Wish we could catch one like that every time. Anyway, it's all about the hunt and not necessarily the kill. Rusty died a month ago. I guess she just wore out. We have 8 hard trailing dogs but nothing that can compete with a half bird dog. (Hap) ha

Take care. What you up to these days?

Doggie boy

[desertsheep]

dogman,

 

Thanks for the compliments on the lion mount. I've got a few to many pickup skulls laying next to him. When I was trying to decide on how I wanted him mounted I looked at a lot of differnt poses. Some of the lion mounts that I've seen look like they been hit between the eyes with a baseball bat or ran over by a truck. I wanted something that showed a lion in a more natural setting. I been lucky to see 15 lions without dogs, But I would love to run one with some dogs. Maybe be can run one together sometime.

[dogman68]

dogman,

 

Thanks for the compliments on the lion mount. I've got a few to many pickup skulls laying next to him. When I was trying to decide on how I wanted him mounted I looked at a lot of differnt poses. Some of the lion mounts that I've seen look like they been hit between the eyes with a baseball bat or ran over by a truck. I wanted something that showed a lion in a more natural setting. I been lucky to see 15 lions without dogs, But I would love to run one with some dogs. Maybe be can run one together sometime.

 

 

Man you are lucky to see that many lions. Maybe I can bump up against you for luck.

I have seen maybe 6 in my life.

I know what you mean by lion mounts. A guy in Flagstaff mounted two big toms for me one time and they looked like the pink panther. The guys having them mounted wouldn't even accept them. Sure put me in the middle.

Running lions with dogs is an "iffy" thing at best. So much to go wrong. Makes it pretty sweet when it all comes together. Surprising, but sweet. ha

[25-06]

Hey Randy, What breed is Hap? Looks kinda like hes got lab in him. Terry

[dogman68]

Hey Randy, What breed is Hap? Looks kinda like hes got lab in him. Terry

Hap is 3/4 hound. Not sure of the parents. I think one might have been bluetick. He is 1/4 German Short Hair.

Really fun dog to hunt with. I have a few hounds that can out trail him, but not by much. In 40 years I have never had a dog that could touch him all around. You almost laugh when you see him work. You just want to say to yourself, "Did I just see that?"

[dogman68]

Nice cat....

 

What did you tree him in? Doesn't look like there is much around there....or did you get him on a ledge?

 

Amanda

 

Hey was up the only tree on the slope,

Amanda

[25-06]

Hey Randy, What breed is Hap? Looks kinda like hes got lab in him. Terry

Hap is 3/4 hound. Not sure of the parents. I think one might have been bluetick. He is 1/4 German Short Hair.

Really fun dog to hunt with. I have a few hounds that can out trail him, but not by much. In 40 years I have never had a dog that could touch him all around. You almost laugh when you see him work. You just want to say to yourself, "Did I just see that?"

I have heard that every now and then a gsp/ bluetick can sometimes make a dinamite cat chasen dog. I know very little about hounds, but I sure like gsp's energy/speed and a dang good nose to boot. What do you think, could this be the next breed for runnin and treeing cats in the desert?

[josh]

Thanks guys all those mounts look great and have really added some new ideas on what to do. Josh

[josh]

Hey Randy, What breed is Hap? Looks kinda like hes got lab in him. Terry

Hap is 3/4 hound. Not sure of the parents. I think one might have been bluetick. He is 1/4 German Short Hair.

Really fun dog to hunt with. I have a few hounds that can out trail him, but not by much. In 40 years I have never had a dog that could touch him all around. You almost laugh when you see him work. You just want to say to yourself, "Did I just see that?"

I have heard that every now and then a gsp/ bluetick can sometimes make a dinamite cat chasen dog. I know very little about hounds, but I sure like gsp's energy/speed and a dang good nose to boot. What do you think, could this be the next breed for runnin and treeing cats in the desert?

 

 

I'll tell you what once you see that dog work it will make you want one or ten. I have been around alot of different breeds of dog but these hounds are something else. The things they will go through to get after those lion's is amazing. We trailed one day in some terrible country for at least five hours in the heat of the day and when we finally caught up with Hap, Roxy ,and Old Mike alls they needed was a drink of water and they would have been ready to go again even with tore up feet and noses Randy had to physically get them kenneled so they would stop trying to track. Randy's very kind to say what I went through to be successful,but as far as I am concerned he went beyond what a guide needs to do to get the job done. Thanks again Randy for making it a hunt I will never forget and for fufilling a dream of mine to take a mountain lion!!

[BowhuntCoues]

Nice tom Josh.

This is a photo of how I'm mounting lion.

[dogman68]

Hey Randy, What breed is Hap? Looks kinda like hes got lab in him. Terry

Hap is 3/4 hound. Not sure of the parents. I think one might have been bluetick. He is 1/4 German Short Hair.

Really fun dog to hunt with. I have a few hounds that can out trail him, but not by much. In 40 years I have never had a dog that could touch him all around. You almost laugh when you see him work. You just want to say to yourself, "Did I just see that?"

I have heard that every now and then a gsp/ bluetick can sometimes make a dinamite cat chasen dog. I know very little about hounds, but I sure like gsp's energy/speed and a dang good nose to boot. What do you think, could this be the next breed for runnin and treeing cats in the desert?

 

A GSH is one of the finest hunting dogs around. Some of them will tree and of course they are natural locators. Their energy and toughness is pretty hard to beat. I think Dave Carlson got the perfect cross when he came up with these dogs. My dog seems to be pretty darn tough.

[hunter4life]

Coues n' Sheep, The trophy room is at my parent's house and contains stuff that our whole family has killed. That is my dads Rocky Mt. bighorn that he shot here in NM about 10 years ago. I don't have any pictures of it on my computer, but I will try to remember to take some next time I am visiting. It nets 190 5/8 B&C.

 

Getting back to lions, I have only seen 2 without dogs in the 17 years that I have been hunting and hiking and they were both only seen for several seconds. Hunting lions with dogs is an awesome experience and I have been lucky to have been on a number of chases with a friends hounds and on one we caught this winter with my brother's jagd terriers.

[TAM]

Hey Dogman it's good to see you're still hanging around here time to time! Sorry to hear about Rusty. I'll bet you'll think about her every time you hear a bell ring. My boys will be sad that she's gone. My 6 year old boy knows all there names and still asks from time to time if Hap and Rusty and Mike and Roxy will help him tree a lion when he's 10.

 

I'm in the process of moving up to Prescott this weekend, so I guess we'll be neighbors...... sort of. I finally have the chance to get out of the heat and congestion of the valley. I can't wait!

 

Take care,

Tim