Scent in the snow

[doghound]

As a southern softie I rarely get to stalk in the snow and never with my current teckel.

I was lucky enough to shoot a couple of fallow this evening, one of which ran a fair distance.

Thinking this would be a useful training test for my dog I left it a while before getting the dog out by which time it was well dark.

Usually she is fairly calm when approaching a point of shot and keen but steady once the blood has been found. This time she was really pulling and starting to give tongue when we followed the footprints up to the point of shot. Once we found blood and I told her to "go find" she was off like a train. A bit novel as I could see her check each blood spot in the snow, something which you cant normally do.

I was a bit surprised i think I was expecting that scent would be difficult in the snow but seemed otherwise. Dont suppose I will get the chance to play in the snow again for another 10 years as we dont get much.

Is this normal, have others had a similar or indeed a different experience.

 

[Thar]

I think that scenting in the snow is far easier than at any other time; I guess the snow gives a clear back ground and masks all other scent leaving only the blood scent for the dog to follow.

When my GWP was only 12 months we tracked a 20hr tail on a leg shot roe doe for 2 km when a syndicate member f**ked up, if it wasn’t for the odd spot of blood in the snow and larger splashes in the snow were she had been standing still I would of thought that my dog was taking me on a wild goose chase.

Best rgds

Tahr

 

[bambislayer]

Never had much trouble with scent in the snow, in fact the opposite and you also have physical tracks/blood spots.

Although I was once called out the next day to where someone had lost a hind, it had snowed heavily over night , the ground had a fresh 5-6"'s of fresh snow covering, did hind her dead , maybe more done to luck

 

[Jagare]

Doghound its all down to the dogs early training . Nice to hear my little girl is doing well.
I've been training the Kopov with a little snow on the ground and its been
-10 sometimes. Dos'nt seem to make any difference to his tracking and i don't use a great deal of blood. Only thing is 7-8 hours after laying the trail the boar hoof if frozen solid.