Hey there every one.
Well I got me a pup last friday. He's 8 weeks and I named him Orion. He's just a mix breed. Not really sure what all he has in him. Some lab, some boxer, shepard and well you get the idea. He seems to have a decent nose and I am interested in teaching him to follow a blood trail, but I have never trained that kind of dog before. I have lots of experiance with training retrievers for duck hunting. I'd really appreciate some advice from those of you that have done this on how to go about doing it. What age do I start training him and what techniques. Thanks.
D-
I started my yellow lab as a small puppy.When I cooked deer I drained the blood and made a drag zig-zag around with a weiner at the end for a reward.He was not real good at first but soon got the hang of it.I have not actually used him yet but I think he will follow one,he is a great hunter now ,trees sqs. and finds ducks an all around dog and lives to go to the camp and have fun hunting for anything.Kip
So far I am sans deer. didn't connect last year or this year yet. Get to try a few more days over thanksgiving.
contact a french guy called Robertson on this forum !
Kip...wish I had a dog like that :(
I love my dog but he's not the sharpest broadhead in the quiver if ya know what I mean. It's probably my fault though.
Bakes
Do some searching on the web. I read a great big article on it the other day but i get to many hunting magazines to tell you wich one it was out of. Good luck...
do a search on blood trailing dog here. I was involved with a thread not to long ago that had a bunch of good stuff. I ended up buying a book "tracking dogs for finding wounded deer" by john jeanneney. Great book!!
Mike
thanks Mike, found the link and put the book at the top of my very short birthday list. in fact it's the only thing on my birthday list. heh.
D-
I am planning ahead to get me a dog, I have raised and trained labs for the last 20+ years and during my investigation I came arross the book listed above for tracking wounded deer, it is without a doubt a great investment if you are serious. It give's a big picture of what deer tracking is all about, well worth the money.
Terry
when I got my pup jackrussel I used hotdog drags to get her started. Haven't had her on deer yet but will start this fall.
I am using the same book Mike is, really good read.
(http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r305/gna90/DSC00896.jpg)
Glenn
I bought the book for my Jack Russel. So far I hav'nt been able to get him to read it.
Dang wood, you pup and mine look very similar!
that is a good picture. All kidding aside.... My Pup took to blood trails without any real effort from me.
Thats Lambeau, a yellow lab that my wife and I got our 9 year old twins for a birthday present. I figured if he was going to to have the run of the place and 3 squares a day i might as well try and teach him to earn his keep. If you get the book I think you will be impressed with it, lots of information to help you blood track deer with or without a dog.
There was a couple of articles in TBM a couple years ago about blood trailing dogs. You might check it out.
We are going to Texas next month for javelina, whitetails. The game warden is a bow hunter and had a wiener dog that rides with him all the time. He told us if we loose anything to let him know. I think we will loose one on purpose just to watch his dog work. It should be very educational and fun to watch.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v235/VIArcher/_DSC0904.jpg)
working on getting this little girl interested. Bought John's book, have tried a few trails, and have had her with me on a few recoveries. At first she wasn't sure what to make of the deer, but once she figured out a downed deer means a fresh chunk of liver to chew on, she was all over it, sniffing and chewing on the ears. She deffinetlyhas the natural tracking instinct, nose rarely leaves the ground, and when she finds something interesting she is pulling like a good thing trying to find the source.
Still working on basic obediance commands and a little maturity to kick in, like most beagles she is easily distracted, and a little stubborn. But it is hard to get mad at this face!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v235/VIArcher/missytounge.jpg)