outdoorstom

11/4 #1 Luna and I tracked an 8 pointer this morning that was shot yesterday afternoon. The buck was encountered as the hunter was heading to his stand, and he took an offhand 150 yard shot with his .308. The hunter waited about 30 minutes then went to look for him. As he walked the trail the buck had departed on, he saw him get out of a bed in a field 200 yards away and run off. The hunter found 2 drops of blood, then grid searched the area. It took Luna multiple restarts before she finally locked on, but 150 yards away she showed me a pin drop of blood, then another 100 yards further on. We never found another bed or the deer and called it at 1.9 miles. #2 A bowhunter shot a buck at 35 yards this morning, a buck he had been after for 3 years. He had been videotaping and thought he had made a good shot, but was concerned about a lack of penetration and was thinking it might have hit the far shoulder. He and his wife had waited 3 hours before going in, but after not finding any blood they decided to call me. I was able to get Luna going in the right direction after a false start, and she showed us blood a little ways into the woods. The woods quickly turned into a swamp and that’s where we spent the next hour and a half. We saw very little blood and what we did see was smeared high on cattails or grass. At 750 yards we found the arrow, with the 2 blade Rage broadhead attached and deployed. There was approximately 12” of penetration, with grayish white hair on the broadhead, and fat and blood on the arrow. Based on what we saw, I think the shot deflected off the near shoulder. We stopped at 1.4 miles with no recovery. I think he may see this one again.

11/2 Tonight Luna and I went to track a buck that had been shot a couple of hours earlier. The hunter’s husband had sent me a text asking if I could track in the morning, but when I called him I learned that we were dealing with a shoulder shot. This is one injury where you want to keep pushing the deer, so I told him I’d head right over. I asked him to check with the neighboring property owners for permission to enter their property in case this became an issue. When I got there I was told the owner of the closest property had refused entry. All we could do is hope the buck didn’t go that way. When shot with the .243, the buck was standing at the edge of the woods and had immediately jumped in. The hunter had only found a couple drops of blood 20 yards in, marked it, then backed out without grid searching. Luna picked the right trail and took us to the blood. She then made a turn and went 60 yards, ending up back at the edge of the field. She turned around and went straight back to the blood, then took a different trail. Unfortunately, this trail took us right to the property we couldn’t enter. Based on how she had self corrected, I was positive she was locked on but I did a restart for the hunters sake. Luna again went to the property line so the track was called off. We didn’t see any additional blood. I don’t understand the neighboring property owner’s decision, especially since he’s a hunter too. What a waste!

10/31 #1 I was called last night to track an 8 pointer, but I was on my way home from out west. I agreed to meet this morning and after going to bed at 0100, I woke up at 5:30 so we met at 8. The hunter and his friend had tracked the buck shortly after the shot and had gone half a mile before pushing it out of a bed. They continued a short distance, then backed out. The buck had gone onto a neighboring property, then circled back to the original woodlot where it had bedded. I always start the track at the hit sight and run the whole line, but the hunter didn’t have permission to enter the neighboring property this morning. We started right at the fence line and Luna quickly showed us blood. A short way down the trail I saw the buck jump up and strongly bound off. Luna started her high pitched bark and we were off, seeing an occasional drop of blood. We were never able to get close enough for a shot. Based on how strong the deer was running 15 hours after the shot and the fact we had gone 0.91 miles, we called the track when we had a property line issue. I believe this deer will survive. #2 I was called yesterday by the father of a 16 year old huntress who had shot a buck at 1700 Thursday evening. The buck was shot in a field, and as they started to track where it entered the woods, they watched it run off hunched up. They did the smart thing and backed out for the night. They went back in at 0700 yesterday morning and jumped it a second time and found a bloody bed. The area was then heavily grid searched with no luck. I received a call from the father as I was running the first track this morning and he had left a voicemail telling me not to bother coming since it had been so long and due to the thoroughness of their grid search. I called him back and after some discussion told him I’d like to see what Luna could do, especially since it was a junior hunter. We arrived and Luna immediately took us from the field into the woods and went exactly where the deer had. We entered a mowed path and Luna crossed it, continuing into the woods. The father told me the deer had turned left on the path. The words were barely out of his mouth when Luna turned around, came back out and turned left on the path. He made a comment about her comprehension of the English language and we had a good laugh. We now entered the grid searched area and I was surprised it only took her a few minutes to work through it. She showed us a couple pieces of fat along the way, then a couple drops of blood a good distance further on. We hit an area that she struggled in for about five minutes and that was where the neighbor was in there with his tractor yesterday. Luna eventually chose a line and we were off again. We left the woods and entered a field where she was acting very sure of herself, and for a good reason. A few hundred yards across the field we found the buck where it had died after jumping over a small ditch. Needless to say, there was lots of high diving going on! The buck had been gutshot 40 hours earlier.

10/19 A short story for a short track. The hunter shot this big mature doe at 30 yards from a ground blind and thought he made a good shot. They tracked a short distance in the rain and lost blood, thinking she went into a small ravine. Luna said nope, this way fellas. Turns out he had indeed made a good shot and the doe was down only 50 yards away, but had not gone the way they thought. I love that they didn’t grid search!

Awesome! Good for you for backing out and calling! Too funny about the dachshund comment!

10/15 #2 A good friend called tonight and told me he had shot a doe with his crossbow. He was sure he had made a good shot as she quartered slightly away. A steady rain started as he gave her some time, and when he went to look for blood he didn’t see any. He did the smart thing and backed right out and called. As we arrived at the hit site, a coyote ran down the same trail the doe had gone. I wasn’t sure how Kunox would react to being so close to the coyote but he quickly showed me by walking over to a tree, marking it, and then getting to work on the track. After one restart, it didn’t take too long and I saw blood. 130 yards later and Kunox was enjoying a good leg chew.

10/15 3 people grid searched out to 150 yards last night trying to find this doe. The hunter had the shot on video and it looked perfect, but there was no blood. It looked so good I told him I’m not going to carry my firearm, it won’t be needed. I did tell him it would likely take some time to work through the grid searched area. We were due for an easy one, and boy did we get it this morning! 2 minutes 22 seconds and 60 yards later, Luna was chewing on the doe’s leg. The hunter had watched the doe take off to the left, so that’s where they focused their search. Luna showed us it took a hard right after getting out of sight.

10/13 This morning Kunox and I tracked a buck that was shot by a 13 year old hunter last evening. Her Dad believed it to be either a shoulder or leg hit. They had tracked it a couple hundred yards, then backed out after jumping it. The father also said there were two groups of coyotes nearby in the woods when they backed out. Kunox quickly took us to last blood, then we began a 2 mile walk winding through the woods and across a swamp. During this track, we bumped 2 deer. We never saw either one of them, but Kunox told me by opening up on them that we were very close. We hustled, trying to get a glimpse of them, but never did. It was very obvious there had been a lot of coyotes in the woods as Kunox kept stopping to mark trees, and twice he showed us deer carcasses. One was a fawn, the other a small buck. Unfortunately, we never recovered the young ladies buck.

10/12 #1 Luna and I went on a track late this afternoon on a buck that had been shot yesterday evening. She made quick work of getting us to the hunters point of loss. She worked the area for a few minutes, then picked a line and we took off. A couple hundreds yards away from last blood I saw a deer run off, but could only see the tail. Luna took us there and I couldn’t find any sign of an injured deer, so we went back for a restart. This time she took a different trail and we went into a swamp where we found him 200 yards away. Unfortunately, coyotes had found him first. #2 Luna and I continued on to a second track. A 14 year old hunter and his Dad had been out last night and the youngster shot a 6 pointer with his bow. They backed out when they didn’t find blood and called. They went out again this morning with a friend and found one drop of blood which they marked and then backed out without grid searching. Nice job! Due to family commitments, Luna and I didn’t get there until 24 hours after the shot. After a couple false starts, Luna took us into a large fallow field and started working it hard. Based on the inconsistent line, I told the hunter and his Dad that I believed coyotes had been chasing it. After about 30 minutes, we left the field and entered a nasty mess of thornapple trees. Luna worked through that into a smaller field which she got through quickly and took us to a thicket. At this point she sat down, telling me should would not be going in there. This confirmed the coyote theory and I had the hunter hold her leash while I went in. Sure enough, he was laying 30 yards inside the thicket and had been worked over by coyotes. We ended up going 1.75 miles on this track (a lot of it in the big field) and only saw 1 drop of blood after the hunters point of loss.

You nailed it...the youth tracks are the best!! His uncle told me last night that they both have a wonderful lifetime memory from this. Very rewarding!

The buck was quartering toward him and he hit the right shoulder, hitting it’s pecker on the way out.

10/11 Kunox took two tracks this morning. #1 This was a buck shot with a bow at 7:30 this morning. The hunter watched it run off after the shot, but backed out after not finding any blood and called me. At the hit site, Kunox showed me a little spray of blood, but then nothing for the three hundreds yards to where the buck had died in the woods. The shot had been slightly high and hit one lung and center punched the liver. #2 This track was for a youth hunter that had shot what he believes was a 4 pointer, maybe a 6. The buck had run into the woods and was quickly out of sight. The young man’s father had made one loop about 75 yards into the woods, but backed out when he didn’t see any blood. Although we didn’t have a recovery, Kunox absolutely nailed the track. There was one point where we had gone 500 yards without blood and I have to admit to starting to wonder if he was still on it, when we found a drop. We ended up going 1400 yards with the deer looping back toward where it was shot. Despite not being pushed, this buck never bedded. I believe he’s still alive.

10/10 Went 1 for three today. I won’t bore you with the two non recoveries. I received a call from a youth hunter’s uncle this evening, telling me his nephew had shot an 8 pointer. Immediately after the shot, they were hit with a torrential downpour. The buck had run into the woods on the far side of the field and they didn’t know exactly where he entered. They did the right thing by backing out and calling me after not finding blood. I walked Luna along the edge of the field to see if she’d pick a trail and enter the woods. She chose one and in we went, but it was obvious she wasn’t locked on to anything, so we went back to the field. The second trail she picked was the correct one as we found blood pretty quickly. We ended up finding the buck, still alive, 235 yards from where he was shot. I quickly dispatched him and the celebration began. This 14 year old hunter was a whopping 3 and a half hours into his hunting career when he shot this bruiser. I’ll be curious to hear the weight.....easily 200 plus. Congratulations John!

October 4th Track #1 Luna and I tracked a doe for 1.1 miles this morning, with no recovery. The hunter was sitting on the ground next to a sapling, and said she had seen him before he shot. The 30 yard shot her high, as she was on high alert and most likely jumped the string. #2 I was called last night by a hunter that had shot a nice buck. He waited 2 hours before taking up the track, and just under 200 yards realized he had gutshot it. He called me and I told him to back out and wait for me to come in the morning, which thankfully he did. Luna quickly took us to last blood and we continued on, flagging blood as we saw it. 170 yards later and the hunter yells “there he is” and the celebration began. We ended up with at least a dozen people out in the woods after he made a call. They had all been out duck hunting and were waiting to see if we’d find it. It was the perfect time for my “back out and don’t push a gutshot deer” speech, which these guys already knew, but I can’t help myself.

October 3 Track #1 I received a call from a hunter last night asking me to come in the morning to help track a doe if he was unable to find it that evening. He said he had a friend coming over to help look. She had been gutshot a few hours earlier, and I told him I’d be happy to come out if he promises me he won’t go look for her tonight, as all he’d do is push her. He agreed and called and cancelled the search party. I arrived at 0730 and off we went. The hunter had only tracked 20 yards before backing out....a trackers dream! Kunox took us to the edge of a swamp, 250 yards away, and the hunter spotted the doe out in the water. Thanks for not pushing this doe last night! #2 I was only a couple miles from the first track when my phone rang with a track request only 4 miles away. Kunox lucked out with two in a row. We tracked the 8 pointer that had been shot by a huntress last night for 400 yards to the point of loss. This took us to the edge of a swamp that was too deep to have Kunox work as it would have required him to swim as he tracked. The line of travel made us believe the buck had gone into the swamp, but I had Kunox work the trails running along the edge of the swamp in both directions for hundreds of yards, hoping the buck had turned. We couldn’t find any sign, so the hunter’s husband and I entered the swamp and walked/waded trails with no success. I carried Kunox into the swamp for a while hoping he would air scent the buck. After 2.1 miles, we called the track. #3 Luna got the nod for our third track of the day. A doe had been gutshot last night and the hunter and his Dad had tracked for 200 yards before backing out. Luna quickly took us past last blood, then loopy looped for 500 yards through woods and a small clearing, showing us only 1 drop of blood along the way. At the end we watched buzzards fly off and found the doe had been eaten by coyotes, which explained the loops throughout the track.

10/2 Track #1 HEAVY rain throughout this track. Hunter shot a doe last night, believing he hit her high. The arrow was never recovered. We tracked past where he had marked blood last night, but of course it had been washed away. Luna ended up tracking the doe .84 miles until we had a property line issue and had to call it. It appeared she had never bedded. We jumped a deer near the property line, but don’t know if it was her or not. #2 A 68 year old hunter shot his first bow buck last night. We were on the way back from the first track which had been 65 miles away, so rather than drive home to swap dogs, I saved the time and miles and Luna got the call. . She didn’t seem to mind. The hunter and his son tracked this buck for a couple hundred yards last night, wisely backing out without grid searching when blood became hard to find. Luna never wavered on this track. She took us .46 miles in a big circle, to a beautiful, big 8 pointer. He had come right back to within 75 yards of the stand he was shot out of. The buck had been gutshot, and luckily hadn’t been pushed into the next county. The hunter could not praise Luna enough, saying he was going to buy her a big juicy steak. #3 This track was only 4 miles from the second, so Luna lucked out with three in a row. The hunter shot this 8 pointer last night, and knew immediately he had made a poor shot. The arrow struck the shoulder, only penetrating a few inches. He and a buddy waited a couple hours and then tracked approximately 400 yards, marking blood as they went. He and his father went back this morning and advanced the track a short distance. Luna made short work of the 400 yards, but despite repeated restarts, circles, etc. we did not advance it. Based on the shot description, this buck is most likely still around. #4 Darn it, another high shoulder shot. This one was at 0700 this morning. The 8 pointer fell down when shot, then jumped up and ran away. The buck ran toward the nearby neighboring property line, so the hunter followed the sparse blood trail only 50 yards before backing out. The neighbor joined us on the track. As suspected, Kunox took us to the neighboring property. We went 3/4 of a mile seeing very little blood along the way. At this point, Kunox went hot, indicating a live deer which we never saw. I found a bed, but there was no blood in it. Kunox was pulling hard, and 50 yards away we found one drop of blood. Based on the shot description, distance traveled, and so little blood loss, the track was called.

10/1 Kunox is on the board! We were called tonight to track a doe that had been shot this evening. The hunter was sure he had made a good shot, and even thought he heard her crash. He had tracked her 60 yards before losing blood. He made one loop through the area, then backed out and called me. Nice job by not grid searching everywhere! Kunox tracked to last blood (which was marked with a lit lumenock) and picked a line and off we went. After a few hundred yards I wasn’t convinced he was on it, so back we went. This time he followed where the hunter had walked when he made his loop. We ended up restarting and Kunox ended up showing us the deer had made two small loops and dove under some downed trees, only 50 yards from last blood. It took a little time, but Kunox figured it out. Good boy!

Now, this is more like it! Nice 8 pointer shot by this young man went 200 yards. The rain washed away the blood trail, so Luna to the rescue!

Got called to track a 5 point buck last night. The hunter wasn’t sure where he had hit the buck and climbed out of his blind after 15 minutes to check for sign. He bumped the deer who was standing just inside the woods, and said the buck bolted past him running strong and went out of sight. The hunter and his cousin waited an hour before starting the tracking job. They followed blood for a couple hundred yards before losing it. Unfortunately, most of the blood had not been marked. Kunox got the call and slowly showed us blood as we went, which we flagged. We advanced the track a short distance from where the hunter had lost blood, then struggled from there. We ended up basically grid searching with the dog with negative results. I told the hunter I’d bring Luna back at 7:30, and got home at 1:00 am. This morning Luna made very short work of taking us by all of our ribbons from last night. She continued on and took us to a cornfield. We entered the corn for a short distance but saw no sign. We went back to last blood for a restart, and again Luna took us to the cornfield. We walked Luna through it, but again no sign of the buck. I took Luna to the downwind side of the field hoping to air scent it, but no luck. After a total nearly 5 hours, we pulled the plug. Hopefully he’s still alive and we get verification of that.

Well, not the start of the season I had hoped for. We left a dead bear in the woods. Luna showed us blood smeared on a couple trees, then a small piece of intestine. She took us 650 yards further, but no more sign. I did 3 restarts from the intestine and she took us the same way every time, so we went further, but no luck. I pulled the plug as she was overheated and had actually laid down a couple times. I got word a few minutes ago from the hunter that he and his buddies found it about 300 yards away from the intestine, in a different direction. Happy they found it, but very disappointed Luna didn’t.

Meeting a hunter for a bear track at 0700 in Parishville. GAME ON!

Thanks much!

Kunox knows today is the bow opener!

Yes very well. Great people! The tracking world owes them a lot!

I sure did. Do you know them?