Hunting with Redbone Coonhounds
Most people who do not already hunt with their Redbone Coonhounds do not understand how the process of hunting with a coonhound takes place.
Allow me to give you a short visual to better clear up some of the false assumptions.
This is very bare bones but I think you will get the picture. I’ll be covering this in much more detail in my upcoming book on Redbone Coonhounds. (ask me about it)
After a coon hound is properly trained – that is taught to know what animal they are supposed to be hunting – we take the hound out to the woods. 
In this example I’m using the traditional raccoon hunting though coonhounds can be, and often are, used to hunt bears, big cats, coyotes, etc. If they can smell it, they can find it.
Most people who do not already hunt with their Redbone Coonhounds do not understand how the process of hunting with a coonhound takes place.Once in the woods, we give our coonhounds a verbal cue before turning them off their leads. My favorite to use is “get the squeak toy”. Sorry, but I get a chuckle out of that one! 
The dogs generally take off lickity-split after their ‘prey’. Once they locate a track by scent, they will start baying and running onward towards the raccoon.
If the raccoon is spotted on the ground, the coonhound’s job is to chase it up a tree and hold it there. They will stand against the tree up on their hind legs usually and ‘chop’ – a sound only a coonhound can make. It’s a series of short bursts of very deep ‘oowoofs’
If the coon is not on the ground but already in the tree (usually the case), the dog will know this too, thanks to their very sensitive noses. Same scenario follows as above.
That’s it. The rest of the hunt is the hunter’s job. Sometimes they will shoot out the coon, sometimes they won’t. As far as the redbone coonhound is concerned, it’s game over.
Dog 1 – Coon 0
Now, if you’re hunting raccoons in a Nite Hunt competition, you are NOT allowed to shoot the raccoons your dog finds. If the officials so much as catch you with a gun even in your vehicle anywhere on the grounds, it’s an immediate axe to you… you will be ordered to leave. Pronto.
So even if you never want to harm Mr. Raccoon, you can still enjoy every moment of hunting with your Redbone Coonhound. The sounds, the run, the excitement… it will most certainly get your adrenaline pumped and you’ll be begging for more!
