Track laying question

[Bavarianbrit]

Here are a few videos to get you started (in German but very clear).
Part 1.
Part 2.
Another one

 

[K9 Contact]

I have a deer indicating dog, he will normally let me know if there are deer up ahead long before I can spot them in thermal. I’m guessing that most dogs will indicate deer scent on the wind if they spend enough time out stalking, I certainly didn’t have to train my dog to do it. More important is to get your dog dead steady on the heel (I can’t bare having a dog on a lead whilst stalking) and then learning to read your dog. Mine visibly starts getting more intense if the deer are close so I can normally tell if there is deer somewhere upwind or whether they are right in close. Another thing, when my dog is at heel he is about 2m in front of me, I used to have him at heel by my side but I found I often missed him giving me hints, so I like him a couple of meters In front of me so I can see everything his body is doing. Also, I have quieter commands for when stalking, a quiet psst means stop pushing out in front, come back, and a tut and flat palm means sit. So to summerise, deer dog training to me is making the dog a perfect companion to stalk with, in the dogs Iv had they have started indicating on their own as their interest in deer has increased. They all indicate slightly different but that’s your job to learn how to read your dog. I have also never laid a false trail for a pup but I just start them on deer I have shot in the open that I can see are dead right there. As the dog progresses I give them harder and harder tracks. Obviously this is easier for me as im shooting deer every day, if I was only shooting a few a year I would probably have to look into man made tracks

Thanks for the insight. Yeah I can imagine that if you're stalking multiple times a week you'd not need to give much formal training - the actual task itself has all the quality structure you need (cause, you know, it's the real thing).

I don't stalk (yet) nor know anyone who does, but thankfully its the actual training that gets me excited. Course that means i'll only be able to go so far until we get live tracks.

 

[K9 Contact]

Here are a few videos to get you started (in German but very clear).
Part 1.
Part 2.
Another one

Thanks!!

 

[Jagare]

Get your self some deer legs. Roe , fallow, red or even boar it matters not. Get your self some blood. Save the fishing rod for its intended purpose.
Tie hoof of choice to a couple of metres of twine. I use thin paracord but bailer twine will do. Drag hoof while dripping a SMALL amount of blood for about 50 metres over a grass area with no obstacles. Tie of hoof at the end of the trail. Try and lay trail with the wind to your back.
Sit the pup and put on the tracking harness or collar that the dog is used to wearing. Give chosen command for the dog to track. Hopefully the dog will follow the trail in some sort of fashion and find the hoof. Big praise and fuss when dog finds hoof. Make the trail progressively harder and over harder terrain as training progresses.

 

[gelert]

I'd also not feed the dog prior to any track training, leave his food on the skin you've dragged at the end as a reward if you like especially if he's food driven, or just get the dog to rag the skin and hoof at the end as Jagare has said with massive fuss. Also, lay the track with the wind up your bum so he/she doesn't get used to air scenting.

 

[Tyla]

Are you trying to train a cold scenting dog or an indicating dog?

 

[th32]

That is the question.

 

[K9 Contact]

Get your self some deer legs. Roe , fallow, red or even boar it matters not. Get your self some blood. Save the fishing rod for its intended purpose.
Tie hoof of choice to a couple of metres of twine. I use thin paracord but bailer twine will do. Drag hoof while dripping a SMALL amount of blood for about 50 metres over a grass area with no obstacles. Tie of hoof at the end of the trail. Try and lay trail with the wind to your back.
Sit the pup and put on the tracking harness or collar that the dog is used to wearing. Give chosen command for the dog to track. Hopefully the dog will follow the trail in some sort of fashion and find the hoof. Big praise and fuss when dog finds hoof. Make the trail progressively harder and over harder terrain as training progresses.

Thanks, I can see how this would work. Would you eventually progress to laying a track with those hoof-shoes?

 

[K9 Contact]

I'd also not feed the dog prior to any track training, leave his food on the skin you've dragged at the end as a reward if you like especially if he's food driven, or just get the dog to rag the skin and hoof at the end as Jagare has said with massive fuss. Also, lay the track with the wind up your bum so he/she doesn't get used to air scenting.

Yeah working out of the scent cone makes sense. I'd suppose a longer track would also give more distance where they can't just air scent?

 

[Bowland blades]

It can be as simple as this ... Take them out on stalks with you once you have a standard of handleability , encourage the good discourage the bad . keep taking it out !
Those who are primarily into the tracking side of things should join up with a DTUK mentor. Cold tracking , traveling all over the place etc is not my bag

 

[K9 Contact]

Are you trying to train a cold scenting dog or an indicating dog?

Concealed deer alert/point, and cold track (24h+, 2km+)

My interest is entirely the tracking, and training it together with my dog. Deer dog tracking is just an excellent motivation that will click for me and my older dog (vs competition). He's used to airscenting his way through finding people, but deer dog tracking will be absolutely spot on in giving the motivation to engage with the track.

Myself and my partner are likely to stalk in the future, and getting to a UKDTR standard is a perfect goal, so its also useful throughout.

 

[Tyla]

Concealed deer alert/point, and cold track (24h+, 2km+)

My interest is entirely the tracking, and training it together with my dog. Deer dog tracking is just an excellent motivation that will click for me and my older dog (vs competition). He's used to airscenting his way through finding people, but deer dog tracking will be absolutely spot on in giving the motivation to engage with the track.

Myself and my partner are likely to stalk in the future, and getting to a UKDTR standard is a perfect goal, so its also useful throughout.

Sounds like you need to get signed up with UKDTR. Its hard to combine a hot scent indicating and cold scent tracking dog though. I started using my tracking dog for stalking indicating and it was quite detrimental to her cold scent tracking performance

 

[cookingfat]

Hi,

I'm training my personal dog in deer detection and wanted to ask people with particular experience in this about laying a training track/trail.

The idea so far is take a scrap of deer pelt, soak it with a little liquid scent (from a bottle), then drag it alomg the ground.

For human scent distinction I'll try lay the trail far from me (no doubt taking inspiration from a fishing rod), and otherwise cover the area in a cone of my scent to generalise it as being irrelevant.

Is this similar to what others are doing? Is there an obvious thing I haven't thought of?

Thanks for any help!

I have helped many stalkers and trackers over the years and happy to help with what I know and have learned

Send me a message and I will give you my phone number for a chat.

`regards Tony

 

[Tim.243]

Concealed deer alert/point, and cold track (24h+, 2km+)

My interest is entirely the tracking, and training it together with my dog. Deer dog tracking is just an excellent motivation that will click for me and my older dog (vs competition). He's used to airscenting his way through finding people, but deer dog tracking will be absolutely spot on in giving the motivation to engage with the track.

Myself and my partner are likely to stalk in the future, and getting to a UKDTR standard is a perfect goal, so its also useful throughout.

My Spaniel's will pick a cold teal half buried in the marsh mud.. The long lead hi-viz jackets are not required

 

[K9 Contact]

Sounds like you need to get signed up with UKDTR. Its hard to combine a hot scent indicating and cold scent tracking dog though. I started using my tracking dog for stalking indicating and it was quite detrimental to her cold scent tracking performance

What would you put the difficulty down to (scent interference or such?)

 

[K9 Contact]

My Spaniel's will pick a cold teal half buried in the marsh mud.. The long lead hi-viz jackets are not required

That's impressive and a joy to watch!

 

[K9 Contact]

I have helped many stalkers and trackers over the years and happy to help with what I know and have learned

Send me a message and I will give you my phone number for a chat.

`regards Tony

Thanks Tony I've followed your profile

 

[Tyla]

What would you put the difficulty down to (scent interference or such?)

Initially she was trained to cold scent but the more I used her as an indicator the more she became distracted by hot scent. In all honesty the indicating is more useful to me as I stalk all the time and only occasionally need a cold scenting dog

 

[grauerjager]

I have just started training my porcelaine hound to track.
I am by no means and expert but I've trained a few dogs over the years to a reasonably high standard (albeit in different disciplines)

I started dragging a hoof/head to get her going and let her straight into it, so shes keen on fresh scent. Short straight tracks to start with.
I've now moved on to blood and hooves only at a minimum of 2 hrs old.
I don't have scent shoes (expensive and I'm tighter than a ducks rseole).
I just tie the hooves to my boot and walk ( with a bit of blood dripped into them for good measure). It's a little uncomfortable but again, duck, tight, rseole.
Drip blood as I walk in what would seem to be a normal amount for a wounded deer.
I was a bit generous at first introduction to get her going but am easing back to smaller and smaller amounts.
Now doing over 150metre, 2hr+ with turns, through small cover.
Don't over do it twice a week is fine.
I leave the head at the find site and cut a piece off as a reward for finding it. (Currently missing ears, tongue and bit of cheek)
Slowly make it a longer track,.more turns, different cover. Don't push too quick as you'll risk putting them off it.
As said by others If she goes off track I just wait for her to find it herself again. I don't offer praise as she's working I just let her work. High praise at the end.
I freeze them as I can get hold of them. Keep them either in the fridge or refreeze a couple of times then get rid.

Again not an expert but it's currently working for me, and it's amazing watching them at it.

 

[K9 Contact]

I have just started training my porcelaine hound to track.
I am by no means and expert but I've trained a few dogs over the years to a reasonably high standard (albeit in different disciplines)

I started dragging a hoof/head to get her going and let her straight into it, so shes keen on fresh scent. Short straight tracks to start with.
I've now moved on to blood and hooves only at a minimum of 2 hrs old.
I don't have scent shoes (expensive and I'm tighter than a ducks rseole).
I just tie the hooves to my boot and walk ( with a bit of blood dripped into them for good measure). It's a little uncomfortable but again, duck, tight, rseole.
Drip blood as I walk in what would seem to be a normal amount for a wounded deer.
I was a bit generous at first introduction to get her going but am easing back to smaller and smaller amounts.
Now doing over 150metre, 2hr+ with turns, through small cover.
Don't over do it twice a week is fine.
I leave the head at the find site and cut a piece off as a reward for finding it. (Currently missing ears, tongue and bit of cheek)
Slowly make it a longer track,.more turns, different cover. Don't push too quick as you'll risk putting them off it.
As said by others If she goes off track I just wait for her to find it herself again. I don't offer praise as she's working I just let her work. High praise at the end.
I freeze them as I can get hold of them. Keep them either in the fridge or refreeze a couple of times then get rid.

Again not an expert but it's currently working for me, and it's amazing watching them at it.

Sounds good! And yeah, the price of those scent shoes...they're rather dear (pardon the pun)