An Taín Hunting Outfitter
Well-Known Member
I just wanted to explore this title a bit to see what difficulties you encounter when following up wounded deer the next day i.e. 12-24 hours later using your dog (of any breed).
Firstly the shot/shots and calibre used. I find this defines the track. Personally I find leg shots an absolute nightmare and dread every track following up leg wounds, actually I usually now cancel anything I have on for that morning or afternoon because these followups can take hours and hours. The only upside to a heavy leg shot basically making a front or rear leg completely useless is if I know the colour of the animal (e.g. a white fallow within a melanistic herd) I know that generally if the dog tracks to barbed wire I may be lucky in seeing a thick clump of that specific hair colour to let me know we are still on the track. I have encountered this many times as an animal on three legs seems to go over fences that bit heavier leaving more sign. I also find a flopping leg leaves a better scent trail as it contacts the ground that bit more than a straight hoof therefore also leaving more sign.
I find in many of my 24hour tracks the deer behave completely different that deer travelling shorter distances with a much better placed shot. Wounded deer with shots causing death within/after 24hours seem to hug every ditch line, go through much tighter holes, under fallen trees and squeeze into the tightest of spots while in transit. When tracking, prolonged periods of being led by the dog through every bramble hedge in the country wears the handler down and sometimes when trying to get through an obstacle and not being able to keep up with the dog is accidentally transmitted to the dog by a yank on the leash. This yank is completely unintended by the handler but for younger dogs it breaks their concentration.
My biggest problem with 24hr tracks is the distance covered. This generally means going through several permissions, some land which I don't have permission for. This can be so frustrating especially when the dog is pulling hard as you begin to close the gap and the sign is there that the deer is mobile but bleeding and therefore requiring dispatch. That exact moment you come to the edge of your permission while within closing distance, having to terminate the track, either fully for uncooperative landowners or even temporarily to request permission to access with a firearm absolutely breaks my heart. It is just so frustrating.
Something I really notice now with 24hr tracks where a deer is wounded is I am not the only one following. I have followed badger tracks but still trusting the dog fully, only to begin to perceive that maybe during the night that badger was following the wounded deer too! If over a mile into a track with a younger dog with limited experience sometimes you begin to think "hang-on, are we still on the deer or is this dog following a badger?", only to cross a sheep fence with me now realising the dog is still right. We were following the deer but as the badger is unable to get through the fence the track can resume without his sign being evident.
In terms of those reassuring tell tale signs for the handler on 24hr tracks, i.e. hair/blood colour density relative to anatomy, the hardest has to again be leg shots. Even at the exact location the deer took the shot I expect little to no blood.
The 24hr track when a wounded individual is running with the herd can be easy at some points during the track but as deer approach roads running under stress they can separate. I always try to think what the deer have encountered as they ran to this location, such as, did a car come down the road and startle the running herd, an obstacle, a wounded deer unable to physically jump a burn/fence/hedge and therefore take a separate route. This can mean going back to the last perceived location but I find this where a 24hr track can go wrong as the dog can begin following healthy individuals within the herd losing the wounded animal which may have had to take an alternate route. Younger inexperienced dogs can generally begin following the main body of scent which is the route the larger majority of that herd took rather than that lone wounded individual.
Anyway these are just some of my thoughts and thanks for reading this post as it is long and can be a bit heavy but I really look forward to hearing what experiences you have had. I could go into heather in the summer months in comparison to tracking through snow as I find hot heather hides sign......but sure, there are so many things.
I dont really know where I am going with this post but I guess I just want to push my ability as a tracker, thinking outside the box so to speak and I know there are many on here with a true wealth of experience, with all the little finer pieces of tracking details to add.
I just want to say that although we all like to dispatch and locate our deer quickly, the reward of finding a deer 24hours later for me personally is indescribable. It is that exact moment you see that animal and you think "YES!!!!! We did it!!!!".
Firstly the shot/shots and calibre used. I find this defines the track. Personally I find leg shots an absolute nightmare and dread every track following up leg wounds, actually I usually now cancel anything I have on for that morning or afternoon because these followups can take hours and hours. The only upside to a heavy leg shot basically making a front or rear leg completely useless is if I know the colour of the animal (e.g. a white fallow within a melanistic herd) I know that generally if the dog tracks to barbed wire I may be lucky in seeing a thick clump of that specific hair colour to let me know we are still on the track. I have encountered this many times as an animal on three legs seems to go over fences that bit heavier leaving more sign. I also find a flopping leg leaves a better scent trail as it contacts the ground that bit more than a straight hoof therefore also leaving more sign.
I find in many of my 24hour tracks the deer behave completely different that deer travelling shorter distances with a much better placed shot. Wounded deer with shots causing death within/after 24hours seem to hug every ditch line, go through much tighter holes, under fallen trees and squeeze into the tightest of spots while in transit. When tracking, prolonged periods of being led by the dog through every bramble hedge in the country wears the handler down and sometimes when trying to get through an obstacle and not being able to keep up with the dog is accidentally transmitted to the dog by a yank on the leash. This yank is completely unintended by the handler but for younger dogs it breaks their concentration.
My biggest problem with 24hr tracks is the distance covered. This generally means going through several permissions, some land which I don't have permission for. This can be so frustrating especially when the dog is pulling hard as you begin to close the gap and the sign is there that the deer is mobile but bleeding and therefore requiring dispatch. That exact moment you come to the edge of your permission while within closing distance, having to terminate the track, either fully for uncooperative landowners or even temporarily to request permission to access with a firearm absolutely breaks my heart. It is just so frustrating.
Something I really notice now with 24hr tracks where a deer is wounded is I am not the only one following. I have followed badger tracks but still trusting the dog fully, only to begin to perceive that maybe during the night that badger was following the wounded deer too! If over a mile into a track with a younger dog with limited experience sometimes you begin to think "hang-on, are we still on the deer or is this dog following a badger?", only to cross a sheep fence with me now realising the dog is still right. We were following the deer but as the badger is unable to get through the fence the track can resume without his sign being evident.
In terms of those reassuring tell tale signs for the handler on 24hr tracks, i.e. hair/blood colour density relative to anatomy, the hardest has to again be leg shots. Even at the exact location the deer took the shot I expect little to no blood.
The 24hr track when a wounded individual is running with the herd can be easy at some points during the track but as deer approach roads running under stress they can separate. I always try to think what the deer have encountered as they ran to this location, such as, did a car come down the road and startle the running herd, an obstacle, a wounded deer unable to physically jump a burn/fence/hedge and therefore take a separate route. This can mean going back to the last perceived location but I find this where a 24hr track can go wrong as the dog can begin following healthy individuals within the herd losing the wounded animal which may have had to take an alternate route. Younger inexperienced dogs can generally begin following the main body of scent which is the route the larger majority of that herd took rather than that lone wounded individual.
Anyway these are just some of my thoughts and thanks for reading this post as it is long and can be a bit heavy but I really look forward to hearing what experiences you have had. I could go into heather in the summer months in comparison to tracking through snow as I find hot heather hides sign......but sure, there are so many things.
I dont really know where I am going with this post but I guess I just want to push my ability as a tracker, thinking outside the box so to speak and I know there are many on here with a true wealth of experience, with all the little finer pieces of tracking details to add.
I just want to say that although we all like to dispatch and locate our deer quickly, the reward of finding a deer 24hours later for me personally is indescribable. It is that exact moment you see that animal and you think "YES!!!!! We did it!!!!".
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