Originally Posted by
CYJ
V. Jackson and self started out as young men in the dog game. My name is J. Young. I was his silent partner in the game we met up at H.Teals. He was a Marine Staff Sargent and was transferred from Florida to Paris Island.
V. Jacksons grew up in Texas and lived close To Mayfield. He knew most all the Texas dog men. He knew about all of the Florida dog men along with many of the Georgia dog men and some of the N.C. dog men. Through his connections I got to meet or know a lot of these dog men. Some on just a speaking bases some on a personnel bases.
Where I lived in S.C. there were many other dog persons within a 20 to 60 minute drive in any direction.
As I read some of the thoughts and articles on feeding and dog conditioning of today. I saw that V.J. was way ahead of his time in feeding and working a dog back then. Much of what he did was like Mayfield considered it to be done. Working and feeding as close to the way a Wolf or Coyote would hunt and eat. V.J. made some great improvements over Mayfield's feeding method with a few simple modifications. I might add he did not use a lot of Kibbled dog food.
He learned the correct use and right type of Dex/Azium and the fabled Steroid keep of Ozzie and others of that day. Tried the steroid keep one time and dropped it. Was not worth all the bad side effects. The Dex/Azium combo was not used to dry a dog out. But to protect them during the pulling match and shock afterwards.
Never understood all that talk about drying a dog out. Gave water etc. that was needed right up to six hours of weigh in. If one use plenty of animal fat in the feed keep will be no water problem. A dog gets plenty of work endurance from use of the animal fat in the presence of plenty of water.
We started out with two little Orbie Coplin bitches that were bred up close to Heinzl first Colby/Dibo dogs. One was called Young's Tina and the other was called Jackson's Pokey. The stud dogs we started out with were Jackson's Hank, Mayfield's Snake and Mayfield's Sunshine. V.J. later added another stud dog from Mayfield called Jackson's Banjo off the Snake dog. V.J. had another hell of a dog called Sun Down. We made a big mistake by not breeding to him. He had some staff breeding in him. So V.J. would not use him.
The first breeding off Snake x Tina produced three champions. These dogs were calm and solid. The Hank and Sunshine dogs were also. Biggest arguments between us on the breeding. Was on to much breeding around the Snake dog. To many shy and skittish type dogs were showing up later on. Snake in his last match was winning and in the back end of the other dog. The dog men in that corner started screaming beating on sides of pit. Snake spooked and run. Was what I was told since I was not there.
V.J. matched into Pool Hall Red. Was a tough tight match down to the wire. Was V.J.'s bitch up to scratch. Same crap pulled again. The Pool Hall fans ran around to our corner. When V.J. let go of his bitch. This bunch screamed beat on metal objects etc.. V.J.'s dog stopped about two or three seconds to look at this. Refocused to finish scratch but got counted out before getting all the way across. The way it can be sometimes in another home town with only four of you and a bunch of them. LOL
Later on Pool Hall got her arse handed to her by Mayfield's Easy. Then later Easy got her arse handed to her by Stinson&Golver's Ruby. Saw both of these matches. All were tough dogs to the end of the outcome. Once you leave the local matching into each other events. Step into that fast lane of dog pulling. You are in a whole different world of competition and types of Dog men..
V.J. wanted lots of mouth and ability since he knew how to shape one. Near the end when he bred into his dogs the last of my Carver-Creel/Boudreaux/Mayfield dogs. They started coming a much larger weight size. The earlier breedings without the Carver added were 40 to 30 pound dogs. This line of dogs carried a lot of the Dibo family and Colby breeding. Many were very slow maturing dogs. Need to be at least 28 months old before schooling.
Jackson lost most of the best dogs from my last Carver breedings due to a very personnel problem of a next door neighbor. Neighbor went over and shot my Tango and Cash dogs along with some others. Some other ones got drowned that first year in Texas by a flash flood and others stolen by local Texas dog thieves.
All that was left of that blood line was the Harley dog. Harley was a easy going young dog at 15 months old and showed no desire to take hold of a dog. I told V.J.. to put him too the side till he was at least 3 years old. Breed him if he had too and see how the pups acted and turned out. Use him as his out cross stud dog. Since Tango and Cash were awesome dogs at 15 months old. One looked like Bullyson and the other like Eli Jr. Both were solid black dogs. One other Black and White male owned by D. Jones. That showed good was killed by the H.S. The last male and bitch along with Harley were fawn buckskin and white markings. These two except Harley got drowned in that Flash flood.
Our dogs were no better or less than the other dog families of that era. You get a good one they can get it on. Will have good breathing/wrestling/ and gut back end style fighting. I would put them in the class of the Eli dogs. Best matched in the cold weather with a little more weight in the back end. To much of the Mayfield Snake breeding was the weak link in these dogs.
The blood line cross I wanted to breed in the first dogs we had and blend it. Was Vindicater and Black Friday owned by A.Brewer. Zebo was to far away to travel to. After V.J. beat A. Brewer's Chief dog and Snooty. I used and worked a C. Medlin dog for Braddock named Mr. Clean that won over L.Pratt. We ended up being S.C. rivals against the N.C. rivals. My Young's Tina bitch was bred perfect to cross to the Lonzo line. They knew it and were not to willing to let me get that recipe.
I am hoping that Hammerpits and TarHeel get to make a breeding to McGee's Apostle dog etc.. McGee's has one of the last working old family dogs of my dog era. I could get back in the game but just too old now. I would start back with his line to build my own line.
I am a firm believer that the Colby line was to the dog game like the Hatch blood was to the Chicken men. The Corvino/Tudor was the Claret side that put the mouth and cutting and the Red Nose/Brindle Lightner blood helped balance out the both with added gameness. Not saying that the Colby or Corvino/Tudor dogs lacked gameness.
Just IMHO and all statements are for Old History and entertainment only. I got to live in a great Dog Era that will never be seen again. Lots of good dogs out there today. But no mater how good or bad if you can not shape one. Will still end up in the losing column more than the winning. In my time in the game saw good dogs lose to better conditioned curs due to lack of proper conditioning. Good luck to all.
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