The American Beagler Forum

Through a death, a friend of mine inherited some beagles. He said they have a excellent blood line. the blood line is heavy in field trial. This probably a stupid question but do field trial dogs make good gun dogs ?

Excellent question. In my OPINION, if they are good trial dogs they should have been good gundogs FIRST. Every trialer I know in eastern and central Ky gun over their trial dogs. I haven't trialed in a couple of years. but I didn't keep a hound to trial that I couldn't hunt with. I have seen hounds that were "me too" hounds that weren't good gundogs whose owners took advantage of the rules to make rabbit champions that I wouldn't own, but these are not the rule but the exception. The overwhelming majority (again, in my OPINION) of trialers are looking for the hound that can do it all in whatever format they run in: traits like hunt, brains, foot, go power, desire, nose, good check work, ability to jump a rabbit, ability to keep pressure on it, really in a nutshell everything you want in a good gundog.

Thank you for that info. I've never been to a field trial and I just didn't know. these dogs are about four yrs. old. He's had them out a few times and the first time out they didn't do anything. But each time he takes them they're improving a great deal.

DRamey wrote:Excellent question. In my OPINION, if they are good trial dogs they should have been good gundogs FIRST. Every trialer I know in eastern and central Ky gun over their trial dogs. I haven't trialed in a couple of years. but I didn't keep a hound to trial that I couldn't hunt with. I have seen hounds that were "me too" hounds that weren't good gundogs whose owners took advantage of the rules to make rabbit champions that I wouldn't own, but these are not the rule but the exception. The overwhelming majority (again, in my OPINION) of trialers are looking for the hound that can do it all in whatever format they run in: traits like hunt, brains, foot, go power, desire, nose, good check work, ability to jump a rabbit, ability to keep pressure on it, really in a nutshell everything you want in a good gundog.

very good run and gun.... em...thats what mine are for .........