jb, you're on to a good system right there. With one of our FC, when he was a pup just after he had started, I would have the wife hold him back on a leash, allowing him to see the rabbit. I would walk to the rabbit and force it to run into cover. I would point to the ground and yell "check it", as she released him and he would haul butt to where it had been, grab the scent and go.
Solo work is the best medicine for a young dog. You see so many hounds in a trial who are not independent at all, and rely on other hounds to save them. A hound who has been solo'd enough will rely on himself first, yet honor other hounds.