A little background on treeing fiests

[mizzippi jb]

Back in the mid 70s, my uncle Luke had a sho nuff squirrel dog. ole Joe. He was a red and white dog that people in SE ga called a fiest. Small stature, long legged, athletic little dogswho would tree game and bay a hog. Uncle Luke and Aunt Neddie were in a bad accident around 1978 and my uncle was killed. Remember it well although I was only 4 or 5. He had an orange-white-orange custom deluxe Chevrolet and it was t boned by a log truck who ran a stop sign down around Cochran Ga. My dad agreed to take care of Joe while my aunt recovered from partial paralysis. So we had ole Joe the fiest for a little while until we found him a home. I remember he was gritty and a tad bit mean. Not exactly a family pet. Just so happens my dad's cousin, George Cauley, had a little gyp from the pound that would tree a squirrel. George came up and picked up Joe (who was old and past his prime) and let him Breed his little female. That's the start of how this line of treeing fiests was started. My "uncle" George is a founding member of the American Treeing Fiest Association. My family has hunted this line of dogs for generations. I have older than me uncles and cousins hunting them as well as younger than me cousins. They have been both pleasure dogs and competition dogs. Squirrel treeing, hog baying, deer trailing.....you name it, they can get it done. And in squirrel hunting circles, people know these dogs and most are pretty fond of them. Lots of them bred from the Cauley line all around the country treeing squirrels, coons, cats, possums,and whatever else climbs a tree. Anyway.....just thought I'd type this up while its fresh in my mind.
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[catchdogs]

Saw a interview he did for full cry I think
And he talked about that dog and how he started line out of him. Did he have any leads on pups?

 

[NE GA Pappy]

i have hunted with and against a lot of Cauley bred dogs in AFBA hunts. Most of the ones I have hunted against did their owners proud. I was hunting mostly Boggs Creek dogs at the time, and them Cauleys could sure give you a run for your money.

 

[mizzippi jb]

Saw a interview he did for full cry I think
And he talked about that dog and how he started line out of him. Did he have any leads on pups?

He has several dogs at his place right now. Most are started young dogs. I can sure find out or get you in touch with him when you're ready

 

[catchdogs]

He has several dogs at his place right now. Most are started young dogs. I can sure find out or get you in touch with him when you're ready

Thanks I will be in touch.

 

[Timberman]

Got a Cauley bred fiest on my lap as I type this. She’s Jaybird bred thru Billy Laster and thus George Cauley. Interesting story. FYI they’re still gritty and a tad bit mean lol.

 

[dslc6487]

So glad you posted this. I have a long haired feist out of Mr. Cauley's line of feists.
Got her from a friend of mine that had gotten the dog from Mr. Cauley. I got her when she was about 8 months old. When I got her, she was hard headed and would not mind. Trained her on a rope and then a shock collar until she learned to obey me.
Her name is Dixie, charcoal and white. She is retired now, about 16 years old. She is the BEST squirrel dog that I have ever hunted with and I have hunted with many. First day we took her, we killed 23 with her. When she treed, there was a squirrel in the tree somewhere. And, she was a very aggressive hunter. She would tackle anything. Bayed a sough with piglets one time and was actually attacking the hog. When I got to them, I think the hog had just about had enough and was right before sending Dixie to doggy heaven. I shot and killed the hog. Also shook a big coon out on her one day and, man, it was a fight to see. They fell down a bank into the creek and the coon got on top of Dixie. I jumped down in the creek and shot the coon at point blank range. I know that coon was going to drown her. Dixie has brought me many, many happy and fun filled days in the woods. She is about blind now, her hair is thin, and she has a lot of arthritis problems. But, she is still just as happy as she can be. I have another feist squirrel dog, Pat, that stays in the pen with her. Pat is good, but not as good as Dixie was. I know one day she will pass away, but as long as she is happy, I intend on keeping her around. And, when I do lose her, I am going to have her cremated and she will be going in the ground with me when my time comes.
Thank you so much for this post. Good to know how the Cauley line got started.

 

[mizzippi jb]

Jaybird was a good one. Prob the most famous. He had another one. Ole Tom. Was a road hunter pretty much. Cruising the roads on a golf cart and the dog wod work both sides of the road due to George and his buds getting older and not able to walk several miles

 

[Timberman]

I had a gyp before this one that got run over before she blossomed. Liver and white she went back to Red Bluff Rock and Swift Legs I think. My recollection is hazey so don’t hold me to it. Got her from Mr. Billy as well.

 

[mizzippi jb]

Red bluff creek. All my folks are buried at the church over there in lothair. My paw paw told me many stories about coon hunting ole rock the back and tan on red bluff creek

 

[Mexican Squealer]

Great stuff JB...

 

[Timberman]

Here’s my first dogs lineage written in Mr Billy’s hand. She was Lasters CandyXRed Bluff Rock. You may can expand on it.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

Didn't I hear that the River run feist was started in a strange way ? The gentleman found a dog at the trash pile and he made a top notch dog that ended up being the foundation stock ? I'm thinking his name was "JD" ? The gentleman would offer a $100 bet that he would get treed first when all were cut loose. Am I remembering that right ? Can some of the older gentleman on here relay the story.

 

[NE GA Pappy]

my experiences with River Run dogs was that they were late bloomers... didn't tree at an early age. The first couple years most were hit and miss....

Hero's today in the woods, and zeros tomorrow.. but about year 3... they would turn it up a couple notches and make a hunter

 

[NE GA Pappy]

Boggs Creek seemed to be late bloomers too, but not so much as the River Run line

 

[Al Medcalf]

I had 3 dogs out of Laster's Jaybird. Two were littermates from a Jaybird X Plott cross. The other was 3/4 Feist and 1/4 Mt. Cur. The two dogs that treed this bobcat were Jaybird pups. I coonhunted mine.

 

[stonecreek]

Had a fiest that was heavy Jaybird line named Billy Jack. For some reason started slow and I kept thinking it just aint gonna happen with this pup. Then... one day the stars lined up and he treed and kept treeing for the next 6 years. Every dog since then I have measured against ole Billy Jack. He was a good one. Richard

 

[mizzippi jb]

Here’s my first dogs lineage written in Mr Billy’s hand. She was Lasters CandyXRed Bluff Rock. You may can expand on it.View attachment 954289View attachment 954289View attachment 954290View attachment 954291

All that documentation shows you how serious folks are about keeping up and promoting the breed! That's awesome. I'll take a closer look when I get get on a bigger screen.

 

[mizzippi jb]

Saw a interview he did for full cry I think
And he talked about that dog and how he started line out of him. Did he have any leads on pups?

I'll most likely have more than a lead (a litter) here in the next few months. One of George's real nice females and my dad's male dog.

 

[Para Bellum]

Cool stuff brother.