Hey Guys;
Yesterday I was invited to hunt with a friend & his son on their farm. The rifle season closes this sunday, so we were now hunting for does to fill tags...
My friend posted his son on the edge of a field & me in the hardwoods. Then he used his hound to push the swamp on their property & his son was lucky enough to catch a button buck rocketing across the field & fired two shots at it. I heard a 'slap' from the first shot hitting home...
Once my friend had come round & collected me, we went back to his son & located some blood. It was bright red, but not frothy. So, we were unsure where the deer was hit, no fat or bone, just that it was leaving a blood trail. We tried for some time to follow up the trail to no avail... So... TIME FOR NOS, who was 'patiently' waiting in the truck for me...
Now, I must say that Nos is developing into ONE HELL OF A HUNTING COMPANION, but, I had never asked him to blood trail. So, the farmer & his son were skeptical that Nos could find the deer, despite them being hound men. They said that most hounds will track & trail deer, but not follow a blood trail...
Anyhow, I put Nos on leash & showed him the first spot of blood & commanded "TRACK". Nos literally put his nose to the ground & began snuffling like a pig trying to find truffles!!!
It was AMAZING to watch the natural abilities of a dog that is so well bred! What was also amazing was to see just what kind of HELL the deer was going to lead me & Nos through! From the edge of the field, it lead us through the small slice of hardwoods that bordered the field, then into the long chest high grass boardering the stream that crosses the property and across the stream & back into the long grass...
All the while, Nos had his nose to the ground & was almost crawling on his tummy. We thought about it afterwards & it was almost like Nos was using his body to collect & funnel scent!!! Back to the track...
Once we were across the stream, & through the long grass, the blood trail lead us into a really tangled mess of regenerating hardwoods. This is where I lost my grunt tube during the trail & had to go back after to find it!
At several points, I was crawling behind the dog being poked & cut by the nasty stuff that grows in these thick 'safe zones' loved by deer... Nos even cut his forehead on something... Another 'war wound'...
And then...
All of a sudden, I could tell Nos 'knew' something was close, he slowed WAY DOWN, dragging himself forward with his chest & belly ON the ground. And he stopped!!! I looked ahead & could see the deer laying about 20 meters ahead of us with the wind blowing gently our way. Nos had found the deer!!!
At this point, I could see the deer still had it's head up & I commanded Nos to sit. I stepped forward so that the blast from my RFB would not be behind or over Nos's head & put the deer down with a shot to the back of the head.
The pride I felt in my dog at that moment is sureal! Nos had successfully blood tracked & found a wounded deer! A task that may have taken us hours without him & potentially ended without recovering the deer, had taken less than 30 minutes with him! Both the farmer & his son were EXTREMELY IMPRESSED with my dog & his ability to track! I must admit that I am humbled by the hunting skill Nos displays, he IS the best hunting dog I have owned so far!
And, without further adieu... Here is Nos & I after finding the deer.
Here is Nos guarding the deer while we get the 4wheeler... I know it is a graphic pic, but the shot to the back of the head was instant.
Cheers
Jay
Yesterday I was invited to hunt with a friend & his son on their farm. The rifle season closes this sunday, so we were now hunting for does to fill tags...
My friend posted his son on the edge of a field & me in the hardwoods. Then he used his hound to push the swamp on their property & his son was lucky enough to catch a button buck rocketing across the field & fired two shots at it. I heard a 'slap' from the first shot hitting home...
Once my friend had come round & collected me, we went back to his son & located some blood. It was bright red, but not frothy. So, we were unsure where the deer was hit, no fat or bone, just that it was leaving a blood trail. We tried for some time to follow up the trail to no avail... So... TIME FOR NOS, who was 'patiently' waiting in the truck for me...
Now, I must say that Nos is developing into ONE HELL OF A HUNTING COMPANION, but, I had never asked him to blood trail. So, the farmer & his son were skeptical that Nos could find the deer, despite them being hound men. They said that most hounds will track & trail deer, but not follow a blood trail...
Anyhow, I put Nos on leash & showed him the first spot of blood & commanded "TRACK". Nos literally put his nose to the ground & began snuffling like a pig trying to find truffles!!!
It was AMAZING to watch the natural abilities of a dog that is so well bred! What was also amazing was to see just what kind of HELL the deer was going to lead me & Nos through! From the edge of the field, it lead us through the small slice of hardwoods that bordered the field, then into the long chest high grass boardering the stream that crosses the property and across the stream & back into the long grass...
All the while, Nos had his nose to the ground & was almost crawling on his tummy. We thought about it afterwards & it was almost like Nos was using his body to collect & funnel scent!!! Back to the track...
Once we were across the stream, & through the long grass, the blood trail lead us into a really tangled mess of regenerating hardwoods. This is where I lost my grunt tube during the trail & had to go back after to find it!
At several points, I was crawling behind the dog being poked & cut by the nasty stuff that grows in these thick 'safe zones' loved by deer... Nos even cut his forehead on something... Another 'war wound'...
And then...
All of a sudden, I could tell Nos 'knew' something was close, he slowed WAY DOWN, dragging himself forward with his chest & belly ON the ground. And he stopped!!! I looked ahead & could see the deer laying about 20 meters ahead of us with the wind blowing gently our way. Nos had found the deer!!!
At this point, I could see the deer still had it's head up & I commanded Nos to sit. I stepped forward so that the blast from my RFB would not be behind or over Nos's head & put the deer down with a shot to the back of the head.
The pride I felt in my dog at that moment is sureal! Nos had successfully blood tracked & found a wounded deer! A task that may have taken us hours without him & potentially ended without recovering the deer, had taken less than 30 minutes with him! Both the farmer & his son were EXTREMELY IMPRESSED with my dog & his ability to track! I must admit that I am humbled by the hunting skill Nos displays, he IS the best hunting dog I have owned so far!
And, without further adieu... Here is Nos & I after finding the deer.
Here is Nos guarding the deer while we get the 4wheeler... I know it is a graphic pic, but the shot to the back of the head was instant.
Cheers
Jay
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