Starting Two New Whitetail Deer Blood Tracking Dogs

Here are a couple of hard working Louisiana Catahoula blood tracking dogs.



The one with the blue collar is one year old, and the one on the right is a two year old and they are learning the ins and outs of tracking blood.

Here is where the one year old was at this time last year.




Bear in mind, being born November 15th, her first taste of solid food was raw deer meat and her and the siblings were helping momma clean up some bones after my first track of the season.

A few weeks after that, I laid out some some blood trails starting at or near the puppy kennel, opened the gate and led the puppies to the point of first blood and here is what happened.




They not only put their nose down and followed the scent trail, they crossed the water, picked up the trail on the other side, and kept right on going!


So... make sure they are involved in the entire process, including being witness and beneficiary of the skinning shed back at the camp.




Don't worry about them getting confused on hogs, rabbit, squirrel, or birds. They will learn to focus on the target in time.




For now they are puppies, and they are curious about everything and all the goings on in and around their surroundings.


Take them everywhere you go, and let them smell and analyse as many different scenarios as possible.




The broader their horizons, the better.


Don't worry Simon, you are gonna get some!

If you have any questions about training or you need professional tracking services, you can call me at 337 298 2630. You can also visit my main site at: www.bloodtraildogs.com

More Important Than Genetics

Below is a post from Facebook

If you need tracking services in Michigan you can call Rob at 810 240 4891



michigandeertracknhounds.blogspot.com


This my tracking dog Scout. He is a 4 year old mini dachshund and does not come from hunting stock or show lines. His breeder only breeds for house pets. He is a stellar tracking dog with over 30+ recoveries.

He is a very slow methodical tracker very easy to read and does not leave a cold trail to just chase hot game. He has very little prey drive. He simply loves to track and especially loves to please me.

This buck in the photograph was recovered over a distance of 2 miles. The buck was jumped from his wound bed and we continued to push him because we delt it was a single lung hit. After 1.5 miles the buck crossed a fairly deep river and at this point I called the track off until morning. It was 12.40 a.m.

The following morning at 8 am, I started Scout off on the opposite side of the river bank, his nose was already working while I was carrying him and by the time I set him down he knew exactly what game trail to take. The buck bedded down two more times and we found him stone cold around 9:30 a.m.. The buck was shot with a bow and both lungs had holes through them.

So You Think They Are Just A Dog?

michigandeertracknhounds.blogspot.com

Below is a post a tracker in Michigan made on Facebook.

Notice how this new dog was "unique" in comparison to his other dog.

In this photo is my standard smooth European Dachshund "Sypris". She is 2 years old and she just completed her first official year of tracking.

She went on 17 tracks and made 8-9 recoveries. We struggled in the beginning because I was crating her to and from the tracks and also I was over feeding her and did not change her feeding time for tracking season. So for the most part she was tracking on a semi full to full stomach.

This was new to me because Scout my other tracking dog shows no affect with or without a full stomach. Once I had a feeding routine in place and allowed her to sit freely in my car she was a tracking machine. All her training I used a crate to haul her back and fourth and she showed no problem on my training lines. She has a very high prey drive and very high stamina when it comes to tracking. She is much quicker on a track than Scout, mostly due to her size and her nose is much better.

She for the most part tracks in a zig zag form slightly drifting on and off the scent trail. I have very high hopes with her and for her first year she was amazing and most likely would have made several more recoveries if I would have figured out the feeding routine and the crate issue. She is the type of dog that will punish you for not giving her the respect that she deserves.



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So you want a tracking dog? Just my opinion: they should be a family pet and treated
with respect 24/7/365.

But come hunting season...cut back on the food!