The high temp in Phoenix, AZ today was 67 degrees and the locals were complaining about how cold it was! I guess everything is relative, but this could take a bit of getting used to! Due to job-related move, I’m now calling the Phoenix, AZ area home. To answer the most commonly asked question I’ve had to respond to lately, no, there is no coonhunting in the Phoenix area. There is traffic, heat, a steady paycheck and an opportunity to learn with and work for a stable and growing company. So, until further notice, the address for me under the Officers and Directors link to the left is where you can reach me. If any readers live out this way and do some big game hunting in the northern part of Arizona with hounds, shoot me an email or give me a call if you wouldn’t mind someone tagging along sometime!

Ch. Gr. Nt. Ch. ‘PR’ Boogar Hollow Mojo, owned by TWB&FA members Scott Engle and Robert Raxter, repeated as UKC’s Triple Crown Champion, becoming the first hound in history to do so. Mojo has had quite a run in his young competition hunting career, winning the 2008 Spring Jr. Super Stakes Championship, 2008 UKC Triple Crown, 2009 Spring Senior Super Stakes Championship and 2009 UKC Triple Crown. Mojo is out of Gr. Nt. Ch. ‘PR’ Davis’ Stylish Harry’s Hammer and Gr. Nt. Ch. ‘PR’ Horse Range Stylish J-Lo and just turned three on October 6^th of this year. Congratulations, Scott and Robert, on another title and a heck of a run (so far!) with Mojo.

As the holiday season heats up, many of you are finding out exactly how accurate your young dogs are with the leaves off and the frost on. One of the most popular debates going in recent years is whether the Walker breed has increasingly been producing dogs with “too much tree” in them. Everyone seems to have an opinion on this topic, which is what makes it such an interesting debate. Many hunters who have been at it for decades will argue that the average coondog “back in the old days” had a colder nose and was more accurate. Many from the younger generation will argue that today’s hounds won’t spend all night working a bad track and are ultimately going to tree you more coon. Regardless of your thoughts on the subject, I think everyone can agree that finding the REALLY good ones is as tough today as it was twenty or thirty years ago. Perhaps the best thing we can all do for the breed is simply be brutally honest with ourselves about the ability of the dogs we are hunting and whether or not they should be bred.

If you have a picture and/or story about your hound or a friend’s hound, please shoot me an email or send me a letter and I’ll be sure to get it included in an upcoming column.

Well, this wraps up the year as far as TWB&FA columns go, so here’s wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year later this month! The TWB&FA would like to thank you for your continued support! On behalf of the Directors and Officers, we all look forward to seeing you at a hunt or show somewhere around the country in 2010!

The deadline to submit yearbook ads for the TWB&FA Annual Yearbook will be in early January, so please get yours submitted to a TWB&FA officer or director soon. Yearbook ads are $75 for a full page black and white ad and $125 for a full page color ad (limited supply).

Membership Dues: If you would like to join the TWB&FA or renew your membership, you can do so by contacting me, Grant Noeske, at 815-275-6233, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 9680 W. Northern Ave, #3306, Peoria, AZ 85345. You may also join or renew at any Walker Sectional or Major Event where the Association has a booth set up. Membership dues are $20 and include a spouse and children under 16 years of age still living at home. Our membership runs from January 1^st through December 31^st.

Walker Sectionals: If your club would like to host a Treeing Walker Sectional, please contact our Sectional Chairman, Jody Scott, at 731-656-2669, 731-501-6970 or 105 Archers Chapel Road, Halls, TN 38040.

Single Registration: Single registration is open year around and the fee is $55 for all members. You must be a member to single register a dog and Melvin Myers is the person you need to contact. Melvin’s phone number is 918-667-3603 and his address is Route 1 Box 4A, Boley, OK 74829.

Finally, if you have internet access, please visit our website at www.treeingwalkerbreeders.com and browse around a bit. We’ll be working on the site as we move forward, but it’s just another way for you to follow the goings on of the TWB&FA.