# Bulldogs



## Cutt'em Jack (Feb 17, 2008)

Does anyone have any tips for throwing these lures? I've thrown them quite a bit and haven't had so much as a follow. I'm usually throwing the spring dawgs due to the smaller size and have been using a pull and stop type retrieve. I've also thrown them and used a steady medium retrieve. Anyone throwing the pounders, or god forbid the two pounders? Any tips would be appreciated!


----------



## jshbuckeye (Feb 27, 2005)

Keep throwing lol im in the same boat its just a matter of the right fish at the right time good luck


----------



## jayhoffa01 (Sep 19, 2007)

I have used the Bulldawgs a lot and like them. I usually use the pull and reel in the slack method or a nice slow steady retrieve with an occasional pause. One thing that you will want to have; if you are fishing Bulldawgs is a good quality lighter (wind proof is the best). All it takes is one good hit and your bulldawg is going to be all sliced up. Once its sliced; between the weight of the lure and water resistance the lure will start to ripe apart(I learned this the hard way). Good luck with it!!!!


----------



## esox62 (May 19, 2006)

yeah most guys use the method jay does. i prefer a slow steady retrieve as the whole body rocks back and forth. ive never got one on a spring dawg. only the 9 and 12". ive given up on the mags as they are way too hard to cast. the 9" are much easier. i dont throw em much anymore, they were hot for me 3 yrs ago, not so much now.


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

The pounder and two-pounder were developed as more of a jigging bait rather than a casting lure. I know a lot of guys who use the pounders up in the Detroit River and have great luck on them. I have caught fish on bulldawgs (I prefer the 9" model) and when you do get a fish to strike, they absolutely crush them. A way to step out of the norm is to cruise around the lake until you find a big school of bait. Try tossing a bulldawg into these large schools and I guarantee you will be productive. When a muskie sees a big bulldawg stirring up the shad he's gonna be pissed.


----------



## Muskyman (Jan 30, 2005)

I troll with them too, especially the pounders.


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

Muskyman, that's a great idea as well. Trolling soft plastics brings a whole new edge to trolling. When you are trolling them, do you give the lure any action by jerking the rod, or do you straight troll them? And just out of curiousity, how deep can you get a bulldawg down? I'm sure the pounder can run pretty deep....


----------



## Muskyman (Jan 30, 2005)

MuskieJim said:


> Muskyman, that's a great idea as well. Trolling soft plastics brings a whole new edge to trolling. When you are trolling them, do you give the lure any action by jerking the rod, or do you straight troll them? And just out of curiousity, how deep can you get a bulldawg down? I'm sure the pounder can run pretty deep....


I am always slowing down, speeding up, turning, etc. As far as the depth, I have had the pounder run 20' and with enough line you probably could get them to run 25'. I really like to run one in the prop wash about 3' under the surface. This rod I will jerk, pause, bring it to the surface, etc.


----------



## Muskyman (Jan 30, 2005)

Jim, Like you also said it's fun to cast to open water schools of Shad. I have had better luck with the 9" also. On a a side note a buddy and I was at Cave Run and we were casting into schools of baitfish and we were both up front and he hooked one, it jumped twice and on the second jump, it shook the dawg loose and it CAME FLYING over our heads., scared the sh*t out of us!


----------



## BigDaddy300 (Nov 1, 2004)

Muskyman said:


> Jim, Like you also said it's fun to cast to open water schools of Shad. I have had better luck with the 9" also. On a a side note a buddy and I was at Cave Run and we were casting into schools of baitfish and we were both up front and he hooked one, it jumped twice and on the second jump, it shook the dawg loose and it CAME FLYING over our heads., scared the sh*t out of us!


I believe you guys mentioned a 2 pound version. If so just imagine what that would feel like getting hit in the head with that thing.


----------



## Cutt'em Jack (Feb 17, 2008)

It seems to me that most of you guys are having better luck with the regular sized dawgs then the smaller ones. I guess I should try out the regular dawgs before giving up on them then. Thanks guys!


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

To be quite frank, I wouldn't waste my money on those things!


----------



## Muskyman (Jan 30, 2005)

ShutUpNFish said:


> To be quite frank, I wouldn't waste my money on those things!


Cool! More for me!


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

ShutUpNFish, you must be crazy! Bulldawgs were the hot ticket this past year in the Detroit River. No one, and I mean NO ONE was catching fish on a cold front weekend we were up there, and we hooked into 5 fish, landing 4. Big fish seem to love those things.


----------



## esoxhunter (Apr 7, 2004)

I own one regular size dawg in a walleye color. I once had a follow on it at Leesville. When I went into the figure-8, the fish scoffed at my presentation and crushed BITE-ME's super shad that was FLOATING STILL on the surface at boatside. Whenever I make it back up to D-troit, I'll give it another shot.


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

I don't fish the Detroit River, but it may be similar to St. Clair where the bait of preference seems to be the 5 1/2 Wiley killer. They won't even look at the 8 incher which I love to troll in the Kawarthas and close to home. I guess I never felt the need to buy or use Bulldawgs because what I use now, works fine for me. When casting, I generally either use a jerkbait or bucktail.


----------



## Muskyman (Jan 30, 2005)

ShutUpNFish said:


> I don't fish the Detroit River, but it may be similar to St. Clair where the bait of preference seems to be the 5 1/2 Wiley killer. They won't even look at the 8 incher which I love to troll in the Kawarthas and close to home. I guess I never felt the need to buy or use Bulldawgs because what I use now, works fine for me. When casting, I generally either use a jerkbait or bucktail.


I didn't know the smaller Wiley worked better on St. Clair. I have never fished there, but was hoping to someday and was stocking up on both sizes.


----------



## MuskieMan35 (Mar 5, 2008)

I've used the 9in version at Leesville, all I've gotten from it is more practice with my lure snag remover! I did find schooling shad last year there and literally followed them for almost an hour- casting my arse off- nothing to show for it though.


----------



## fishing_marshall (Jun 12, 2004)

I caught this 45incher on a 9in bulldawg at Leesville 2 weeks ago.


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

muskyman,

I'm headed out there June 29th for a week. Got a new 24' boat last year with a sweet cuddy cabin and will be staying on it. One of the pains when going out to St Clair around that time, was finding lodging, booking ahead and hoping the weather would be OK....Now I can simply decide the night before if I want to and stay in the boat at Belle River Marina. I can't wait! We got two fish in the mid fifties within the same hour on the same day there last year. One on a Wiley Killer and the other on a LEO Shayla Shad. The Wiley 6" King Jr. is also a good choice for St. Clair. Tight Lines!

Marshall,

Very nice fish....did you get a weight on that one? I bet she was pushing 30#...Congrats!


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

Proof in the pudding. Great fish fishingmarshall....you don't fish with Mike Toth by any chance, do you?

And I have a lot of success at St. Clair with the 7 inch Wiley jointed headshakers. Love those lures. Went on a guided trip with Steve Jones a few years back, and that is pretty much all he uses. But then again, who doesn't catch fish when you're trolling with 10 rods out.


----------



## fishing_marshall (Jun 12, 2004)

Yeah I fish with Mike, in fact that fish was caught out of his boat. We didn't get a girth measurement, but we estimate that fish at 30lbs or a little over.


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

Yeah Mike and I have been chatting a lot about muskies. I went to Leesville for the first time this past weekend. Nothing trolling, but when we started casting, I hooked a large fish (not like yours!) maybe mid 40's. Hooked the fish on a hellhound, then she jumped about 4 times and when I had her boatside, she headshook the lure loose. SO FRUSTRATING! But hey, that's what keeps me fishing I guess! You guys will have to come up north and fish a few of my spots (Mike knows where  ) and I'll come back down to leesville. We can all fish from my boat no problem. Hope to get in on some action soon.


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

MuskieJim said:


> Proof in the pudding. Great fish fishingmarshall....you don't fish with Mike Toth by any chance, do you?
> 
> And I have a lot of success at St. Clair with the 7 inch Wiley jointed headshakers. Love those lures. Went on a guided trip with Steve Jones a few years back, and that is pretty much all he uses. But then again, who doesn't catch fish when you're trolling with 10 rods out.



10 rods out? So hes fishing with 10 guys (in Canada) or 5 (in the States) on his boat? Sounds to me like something illegal going on....Lucky for, whoever, the law has changed.

I never seem to have any problems catching fish, legally, with one rod per man and some sliders in Canadian waters. And if you know St. Clair, most of the best muskie trolling is in Canada.


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

No doubt about it. The Canadian side has a lot more structure on the bottom and contour lines for the fish to relate to. Steve Jones charters from the US side, and we had 5 guys not including Steve. I took my dad and uncles for a trip two years ago. He runs his boards about 150 feet off each side of the boat, with 4 lines out on each side then two lines right in the prop. It was crazy because the water there is so clear we could see fish come up and take a look at the bucktail in the prop wash. Check him out: http://www.fishpredator.com/index.html

ShutUP, where did you get the 50+ in your profile pic? That is a haus no doubt. Never caught a 50. Had one follow at Chatauqua from a monster fish like that, but never even hooked into one.


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

That is a 52" from the Kawarthas Ontario. It was a memorable fish because I took my wife, then my girlfriend, on a one week trip to Canada. She used the Boga on that fish for me...thats when I knew I had to marry that girl! When she first saw the fish come up from the depths, she just about ran to the front of the boat! The fish ultimatley was released.


----------



## MuskieJim (Apr 11, 2007)

Awesome story! Yeah she's definately a keeper.


----------



## MadMac (May 2, 2005)

Shutupandfish, which lake in the Kawarthas? We went to Pigeon every year when i was a kid and I took my family to Lower buckhorn a couple years ago.


----------



## vc1111 (Apr 13, 2004)

> I once had a follow on it at Leesville. When I went into the figure-8, the fish scoffed at my presentation and crushed BITE-ME's super shad that was FLOATING STILL on the surface at boatside


Lol, this one gave me a big smile. You gotta love muskies. Few other creatures have so much sass and attitude. If you fish for these beasts long enough, you wind up having several great episodes like yours and you never forget them.

Great story and thanks for sharing it.


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

MadMac,

I stayed at Green Acres on Pigeon Lake since the mid eighties. In the past 10 years or so, we began trailering/exploring some of the other lakes. I fished CHemong, Balsam, Sturgeon, Stoney, Clear, Chemong Big Bald, Little Bald and more....that particular fish came from Chemong Lake. Now days, I stay on either Sturgeon or Balsam Lakes...I found that the size of the fish are generally bigger on average there. I have met many people around the US who have gone to Pigeon Lake on fishing trips over the years...its a neat place with much history...I love it there!


----------



## Muskie_Guy (Mar 14, 2007)

Kawartha's rule ! John McBride is a friend of mine ( the owner of green acres ). I stay on Buckhorn at Scotsman point, My favorite is Chemong a trollers dream flat and weedy. I also have fished all the lakes you mentioned. What a variety in such a short distance. Have you ever fished Sandy lake ? It's the one with blue water that looks like the ocean. I fished it but no luck.. anyway I personally have had 5+ fish days on Chemong and one year we put 11 in the boat in one day ! Not counting the ones that got off. The biggest I've gotten up there was my 47 on Chemong..... His tail was bigger than my head !





ShutUpNFish said:


> MadMac,
> 
> I stayed at Green Acres on Pigeon Lake since the mid eighties. In the past 10 years or so, we began trailering/exploring some of the other lakes. I fished CHemong, Balsam, Sturgeon, Stoney, Clear, Chemong Big Bald, Little Bald and more....that particular fish came from Chemong Lake. Now days, I stay on either Sturgeon or Balsam Lakes...I found that the size of the fish are generally bigger on average there. I have met many people around the US who have gone to Pigeon Lake on fishing trips over the years...its a neat place with much history...I love it there!


----------



## Muskie_Guy (Mar 14, 2007)

Here is a few more Chemong fish......


----------



## ShutUpNFish (Apr 17, 2007)

Muskie_Guy said:


> Kawartha's rule ! John McBride is a friend of mine ( the owner of green acres ). I stay on Buckhorn at Scotsman point, My favorite is Chemong a trollers dream flat and weedy. I also have fished all the lakes you mentioned. What a variety in such a short distance. Have you ever fished Sandy lake ? It's the one with blue water that looks like the ocean. I fished it but no luck.. anyway I personally have had 5+ fish days on Chemong and one year we put 11 in the boat in one day ! Not counting the ones that got off. The biggest I've gotten up there was my 47 on Chemong..... His tail was bigger than my head !


MuskieGuy:

Awesome pics....I love the Kawarthas and have been fishing there for nearly 20 years. Never fished Sandy though. You should have been there in the late eighties when Chemong had the perfect weeds....only grew to about 4 to 5 feet below the surface and very patchy. We caught many a fish just shortline trolling over all the weedbeds around Kelly Isl...Now its pretty much choked up. McBride is also a good friend of mine...great family and we've fished many tournaments together. It took me nearly 6 years of hard muskie fishing before I got my first 50" and it came from Sturgeon/Kawarthas. It was a 52 1/2" She resides on my wall today. The only muskie I ever killed...first and last. The Kawarthas have been very good to me since...producing five fish over 50" since. Here is a pic of the 52 1/2"









Neat story: A friend of mine and I had a 12 fish day on Sturgeon one year by lunchtime....We fished the same weed edge which was about 300 yds long and kept drifting back over the same water and kept catching/hooking/raising fish. It was awesome....something I've never experienced anywhere else. In my opinion the Kawarthas are, hands down, the best muskie waters in the world.


----------



## Muskie_Guy (Mar 14, 2007)

Nice fish !
Yeah when they are on they are on fire up there. What I found amazing is the water clairity in the Bobcaygon River and Big Bald .. you can see the bottom clearly in 15 ft. On Chemong I troll from Kelly's Island to the Causeway ( some good fish along the causway ) and down the other side of the Causeway to where the lake ends. I've caught fish all over that lake. And I have spots that produce each time. I've only been on Sturgeon a few times and It's kinda big. Balsam is killer too but I have yet to score big there. I've been catching a few on Buckhorn too the last few times


----------



## obrien040362 (Oct 11, 2005)

School of Shad

*How do you visually locate the school of shad?* I fish CC and can never "see" the shad on the surface. I find alot of fish on my fishfinder mainly at the mouth of the coves but I don't "see" shad breaking the surface.
Maybe these cove fish I find arn't shad of my fish finder but (say) crappies or something else. 

At CJ I once targeted an area where seagulls were diving and hit a school of White Bass who were probally chasing shad. That is the best I have done in finding a school with feeder fish.


----------

