I got into coon hunting in 2008 when I returned from Afghanistan. I was reading Where the Red Fern grows to my children, my son who was 8 at the time suggested we try coon hunting. Not wanting to dissapoint him, I asked around the community to see if anyone had dogs and would let us tag along. Come to find out an aquaintance from church had a dog and hunted nearby, he invited us to tag along one Friday night. We met up just after dark and piled in the truck with his english dog.(just looked like a regular ole dog to me at the time). We cut her loose a few miles down the road, where our "guide" had permission to hunt. Once she struck in on a track I was hooked, we didn't find the coon that night, but started looking for a dog the next morning. We came across a guy giving away a register bluetick, said he wouldn't run a track. My new friend killed me and my kids a coon, and we spent the afternoons dragging a hide around and attempting to train Ole Blue.(we got our training tips from Where the Red Fern Grows also!) After a week of doing this, we loaded him up in the homemade wooden dog box we constructed and were off to the woods. It didn't all come together on that first hunt, but Ole Blue got the hang of it not long after and we hunted hard that first season. That Old Blue dog and coon hunting carried me and my kids through some tough times including a divorce, and helped me and the kids build a wonderful relationship. I have since remarried and my good friend that took us along on that first hunt now cares for Blue and carries my kids hunting while I am currently deployed to Kosovo. I will always be grateful for the relationships that were formed from reading that childrens book and trying something new. My daughter who is now 6 has decided that we will be getting a redbone when I come home, so if you are planning on a litter in about 6 months or so, I may be interested! I really enjoy the site, it keeps me in the hunt even if it is just reading about it!

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Greg

Drive on!

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you are a great father!

thats a wonderful story thanks for sharing it .

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Loved that story. Thanks for sharing, and thanks for your service.

Great story thanks for sharing it, and also thank you for the service!

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Redbones's tree em loud and proud

Normally I don't read these stories but I am glad I did tonight. May God bless you and your family and many thanks for your service.

thats the best story ever.