Dogs for recovering wounded game

[fujimo]

german short haired pointer.
 the outfit i guided for in south africa used jack russels-
"untrained" but boy were they good, the only problem was trying to get them off the animal when they had found it- we would draw straws to see who would get "savaged"   :eek:

[Hattrick]

Funny fast story my oldest GSP would stand beside me while i praticed if i missed and, loose a arrow  in the woods she would go in search it outvand stand over it till i came over and dug it out of the leafs. Bitch was money no matter what. Shes the one i use on bloodas well. Dogs are amazing

[Hattrick]

When i was in South Africa hunting they used Jacks too and they were vary good the the only down side was if the animal needed alittle  more time to die, you had to shoot it as fast as you could becouse those little dogs would try to fight it no matter what it was and were in danger once they made contact. It was really cool to watch tho.

[arrowbuster]

I bought a pup this spring for this. The breed is a deutcher wachtelhund. These dogs are a multi purpose breed and can be used for many things. My pup is now 6 months old and has been on 3 blood trails. He is really doing very well. The nose on these dogs is amazing. They are very good natured and beautiful dogs. If anyone is interested the last time I talked to the fellow that owns my pups sire he was taking names for an upcoming litter. I'd be glad to talk to anyone about this feel free to send me a pm.

[fujimo]

had to google that- neat looking dogs-german spaniels- similar in looks to a springer spaniel.
your dog sounds like it is doing well!!

[Hattrick]

I will thro this out there. I do have abit of experence training dogs. Exposer is everything. In most cases ur working dogs want to please you the easier you help them understand what ur asking the faster you get to the end goal exsposure exposure and start them young 10-12 wks old  when i start my guys .  good luck guys with this

[TURKEYFOOTGIRL]

I got my Drahthaar this spring at 8 weeks old. In the first 2 weeks we had him trailing bears with us.  I did a bunch of practice trails this summer to help train him.  So far this fall he has been on 2 elk and 4 deer trails. Haven't had a hard trail yet to really test him. Ittakes a bit to learn to read the dog properly and trust them. Sure hoping for some more blood trails soon. If I would stop using Simmons heads I'm sure I could get some tougher trails. Lol

[Hattrick]

Good stuff! The best thing in the begining for the pup is be successful every time out,  you will get the chance to test him. And when you do please share. Happy hunting

[Mr. fingers]

Good to hear gsp are great all around do it all hunting companions I have a 6 month old on my lap next to my beagle.
We got her for hoping she would be a good water foul / bird dog for my son he likes shot gun hunting more than bow. Which is ok. And it's nice to hear maybe she will find my lost arrows too.
As far as breeding the hunt out of some dogs I can attest not my beagle the hunt is so deeply imbedded in him. It's almost ridiculous

[Tedd]

http://i1347.photobucket.com/albums/p714/tas0323/IMG_4015_zpsfc7f8628.jpg
It is pretty hard to beat the WHD! Great house pets too!  Don't be fooled by someone selling pups with a bloodline that "will track anything". That is the wrong kind of dog. You want one that only blood tracks.
The blood tracking desire, ability and nose power of a a real tracking dachshund is really something to see.
Even so, actually handling the dog and working with it to become a great tracker is a lot of work. If you think blood trailing is going to be your hobby you be willing to give up some hunting time or be retired! You need patience, a working man family man out tracking a buddy's deer at 10:00 on a weeknight isn't going to have the patience.
That just means for most of us our tracking dog will never be as good as it could really be.
So realistically, most of us with a blood tracker will have good and bad days tracking. We won't be experts. Nothing wrong with that! Just realize it and be ok with it on those days when you can't find the deer.
I was able to work with mine a good bit during her first year on practice tracks and real tracks. She really has the instinct to blood track. She got pretty good but worked a little fast when she was young. Now she is older and slower. It's easier. A young dog can really wear you out going through a corn field. She has recovered about a dozen or so in 9 years. We don't have a huge population of deer here. Some of you will have many more opportunities to track.

[Tedd]

[Tedd]

[Tedd]

[Tedd]

[Tedd]

[Bill Kissner]

Originally posted by Ryan Rothhaar:
GREAT post, Jerry!  

The guy you quote mirrors our experience with hunters on cold calls exactly.

The biggest problems we face are:

1. Extremely disturbed tracks - as the guy talks about in your quote

2. Hunters that don't mark the track - we have spent up to 45 minutes looking for the blood trail the hunters tracked but didn't mark - talk about messing up a track!

3.  Hunters that don't know their own hunting area - I had to buy a GPS because we have tracked for hunters that continually get lost on areas as small at 40 acres

4.  THE WORST MISTAKE - hunters that follow up too early and jump the deer.  You cut your odds of recovery at least in half by making this mistake.  Amazing how outfitters, guys with lots of experience etc will CONTINUALLY make this mistake.

We run into people all the time that expect the dog to work miracles - find deer jumped multiple times on very disturbed tracks - find deer that aren't even fatally wounded!!!  I love my dog, but he can't make your high shoulder or "through the top of the back" shot into a fatal hit!

Boy, we could tell stories about hunters....heck there is an outfitter, and an experienced QDM guy with lots of years hunting and managing whitetails, on another forum asking for help for one of his clients on a buck they shot last SATURDAY, and jumped multiple times.  Again, I love my dog, but come on....5/6 days later?  Wait for a snow and follow coyote tracks to that one.

I guess my final thoughts on this one are that you should keep in mind too that the difference between a dog from good hunting/tracking bloodlines that is properly trained vs. just "a dog" is like the difference between a prime NFL quarterback and some guy that plays football with his buddies on the weekend.  "A dog" can find a deer, and may develop eventually into a good tracker, the well trained dog from good bloodlines will really shine on the tough tracks.

R

Ryan is right on all counts. I once had a hunter call me that had shot a "big buck" a week earlier and wanted me to track it. There's probably no dog on earth that can follow a 150 hour track. Most usually a dog will be called in as a last resort meaning the hunter and helpers have walked the trail several times spreading blood every where and made the job much harder for the dog.

Some hunters will call even when they know the hit was marginal just hoping it might be dead or they have talked themselves into believing the hit was better than it actually was. A good tracking dog cannot find the animal if it is not dead. My jagdterrier is 7 years old and is pretty good but we only find 2 to 3 deer out of 10 tracks. Except for close friends, I have mostly quit as tracking can be a pretty tiresome job, mostly because of getting calls at 9:00 or 10:00 at night. Anyone owning a good tracker and wishing to get into bloodtrailing for others can usually find more work than they want.

[Hattrick]

I agree Bill. As for me i 'm  not getting in to tracking other peoples deer only my own,  family and on  are lease. If word gets out you have a good dog it can be a pain in the a#& like you say.

[Beto]

I have a Drahthaar and a German Wirehaired Dachshund, both come from german hunting lines.

The Drahthaars are amazing as versatile dogs, they are just incredibly smart dogs and a great "do it all" dog for the avid hunter. Very active, will never get tired, and can hunt all day. They also make a great family dog as well, my kids love her.

The GWD comes in a smaller package, easy to travel with on hunts. Stable temperament and just great family dogs. I find that the tracking style (slower and less pull) of this dogs, fits me better as a bowhunter to use as tracking my wounded game in my area.

Both breeds have some great testing programs that encourage you to prepare your dog as they are maturing. It is so important to give them the exposure at the right time, because genetics plays a huge role and is important as a beginning point, but the owner (and the exposure it gives to the pup during the first 6-8 months) plays an equally important role on having a good tracking dog. It takes a lot of time to have a finished dog (if there is such a thing!).

Great post!

[Gerardo]

A dog is a good friend , but having a friend and hunting buddy with a good dog is priceless,

thanks DenTrad

[Whip]

The breeds that are breed specifically for tracking might be the best at it for hard core use, but don't think other breeds can't be a huge asset.  I have a young Boykin spaniel that has done a great job on the trails he has had so far.  I did get the book and do the training, and it really has helped.  

Our Boykin fits our personalities and lifestyles better than some of the other breeds, so that was the main criteria for us.  But he more than holds his own when he gets on a blood trail.  I think any dog with a good nose and intelligence can make a reliable blood trailer.  

The comments and suggestions on how not to mess up a trail are spot on for any breed.  Do everything you can to give your dog the best chance you can from the beginning.