Luna and Kunox Tracking Journal 2022

[Fletch]

You guys are doing great. You get a lot of exercise!!

[outdoorstom]

10/8/22

 

I received a call from a bowhunter that had hit a deer in the ham this morning  due to a deflection. I explained to him that these are recovered quickly if the femoral artery is hit, or usually not at all.  He said he had followed good blood to a thick area and backed out at that point.  Kunox and I hit the road and headed to the leased Amish farm to meet the hunter.  We started as usual at the hit site which was on the edge of a field.  We entered the woods on very good blood, then left the woods heading into an alfalfa field that was in need of cutting, following light blood at this point.  We were about halfway across the field when the doe jumped up from a bed 5 feet away.  There wasn’t time to get a shot off and we watched exactly where she went through a hedgerow toward a cornfield.  We waited about 10 minutes, then Kunox and I hung back while the hunter snuck up to the hedgerow to see if she bedded down there.  Nope, not there.  Kunox went back to work and took us into the cornfield which was being harvested by the Amish at the time.  There was a dog and kids running around as the man drove the horse and picker.  Lots of commotion.  I told the hunter that obviously I won’t be firing my handgun in the area if we see it.  It was only a couple minutes later that Kunox took us right to her as we saw her running off, leaving a bloody bed behind.  She headed into a woodlot and it wasn’t long before we had a property line issue.  OnX showed me the landowners name, so we googled it looking for an address.  Luckily the owner lived right there, so the hunter walked out and obtained permission.  Having to stop for 30 minutes was our downfall as it gave the deer time to clot up. After that we would see an occasional drop, but never saw the doe again.  I pulled the plug at 3.9 miles. Kunox and I ate beef jerky and Fritos on the way home. 

 

 

 

[crappyice]

So cool to see the video as. Thank you!

With such short legs and a dragging belly, does that make finding blood drops difficult? Seems like lots of leaves get knocked around on the track


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[outdoorstom]

6 minutes ago, crappyice said:

So cool to see the video as. Thank you!

With such short legs and a dragging belly, does that make finding blood drops difficult? Seems like lots of leaves get knocked around on the track


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It’s nice to see the blood, but he doesn’t need it.  He really doesn’t disturb the trail very much believe it or not!

[outdoorstom]

 

10/9/2

I had a call tonight from an upset hunter.  He and his son were in a double ladder stand when he shot a doe.  To his horror,  the arrow deflected and hit her in the head.  She stumbled through a large field and disappeared near a hedgerow in the corner of the field.  Luna and I arrived and started at the hit site. We didn’t see any blood until we reached the hedge row.  Luna took us along it and into a large woodlot that was filled with gullies.  Off we went, up and down through the gullies where we’d see drops of blood along the way, then better blood where the deer stopped. The arrow was fitted with a lumenock, so we’d stop occasionally and turn our lights off and scan the woods hoping to spot it.  We never saw it and we never caught up with the doe after over a mile.

 

 

[land 1]

thats a tuff hit doubt it would be fatel short term infection maybe, 

[doebuck1234]

I've gotta say after my first hand experience today watching this small dog do its work,it's truly a holy crap moment.i had my doubts or"how is this going to work"but it would stop on a log,sniff the air,get off track and the handler would call out a command and get right back on it.i knew the blood trail for a good 150 yards and this dog jumped right on it.unfortunetly it wasn't a recovery but truly amazing and well appreciated the time and effort deer search guys put into this.(took screenshot off wny deer search page)

Edited October 10, 2022 by doebuck1234

[suburbanfarmer]

3 minutes ago, doebuck1234 said:

I've gotta say after my first hand experience today watching this small dog do its work,it's truly a holy crap moment.i had my doubts or"how is this going to work"but it would stop on a log,sniff the air,get off track and the handler would call out a command and get right back on it.i knew the blood trail for a good 150 yards and this dog jumped right on it.unfortunetly it wasn't a recovery but truly amazing and well appreciated the time and effort deer search guys put into this.(took screenshot off wny deer search page)

How does one get in touch with them?

[doebuck1234]

18 minutes ago, suburbanfarmer said:

How does one get in touch with them?

 

https://www.deersearchflc.com/meet-the-team

 

I worked with Dave Schillinger and Rosco today.brought along Bob MCNamara (he is not listed on the site from what I've seen).Bob brought out Willow(his dog)for the afternoon track as a second attempt after getting permission to another property

Edited October 10, 2022 by doebuck1234

[outdoorstom]

 

10/10/22 (continuation of 10/9/22 track)

 

After thinking all night about last night’s track, I contacted the hunter this morning and told him I’d like to bring Luna back out for another look.  He wasn’t available until noon, so we met then.  We ran the entire line, and this time we saw that Luna had missed a turn toward the end of the track.  We then advanced the track another 200 yards, finding the arrow along the way.  It was a complete pass through of the head. We ended up at the bank of the river where fresh coyote tracks were observed right next to the doe’s tracks.  We worked the area thoroughly, but it looks like she went into the river. We walked the bank in both directions, but never found her. Per gps, we went 2.3 miles.

[stubborn1VT]

I admire your dedication!

[outdoorstom]

Unfortunately…..another live one today……

 

10/11/22

This morning Kunox and I tracked an 8 pointer that the hunter knew for a fact he had hit it in the shoulder. The buck was perfectly broadside at the shot. The hunter and buddies had tracked it last night for a couple hundred yards. Kunox extended the track another 400 yards, then we lost it. Toward the end of the 400 yards, we found two blood drops that were fresh, so we knew the buck was still alive. I had the guys stay put while Kunox searched the entire area. 4.3 miles worth. Apparently nothing vital was hit as we never found a bed or the deer. Kunox enjoyed some jerky on the way home, as evidenced by his grin.

[outdoorstom]

It was my turn last night. No tracking necessary :-).  3 tracks scheduled for today already. The first is for a bear.

[knehrke]

Awesome! My wife and I just got to Rainbow Lake for a few days of kayaking and climbing; totally missed the fact that it's the Northern MZ opener until I saw guys in blaze orange. Good thing we have the orange working vest for the dog and ballcaps for us. 

Have fun tracking that bear. You guys rock

[Robhuntandfish]

It was my turn last night. No tracking necessary :-).  3 tracks scheduled for today already. The first is for a bear.

Wow super cool rack..great buck. Congrats!

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[crappyice]

It was my turn last night. No tracking necessary :-).  3 tracks scheduled for today already. The first is for a bear.

Atta boy!!! Hopefully you don't put too many miles on today


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[land 1]

nice deer good luck on the tracks

[outdoorstom]

10/16/22

#1
Kunox and I arrive at 7:30 this morning to track a bear that was shot last night. After a thorough search, the only evidence of a hit was from the field where it was shot. This consisted of hair with skin attached. Zero blood anywhere. I believe this to be a grazing shot. They’re putting cameras out in the area to see if it shows itself.

#2
Kunox and I continued on to our second track. This was a confirmed gutshot from last night. The huntress was after her first deer and wanted it to be with a bow. The doe was shot in a large green field from a ground blind at 12 yards. Unfortunately it was low and the doe walked into the woods. At 11:00 last night, they went in and followed the bloodtrail about 100 yards before backing out. They did a great job of marking blood with toilet paper. Kunox took us to the doe who had gone a total of just under 1/2 a mile. Congratulations on your first deer Heather!

#3
Luna got the call for this one, much to Kunox’s dismay. The hunter shot this doe last night and recognized the dark blood he was seeing as liver blood. He did the smart thing and backed out after a short distance. Luna made a hunter happy after only 400 yards.

#4
Luna also got our last track of the day. This buck was shot this morning in a food plot at 100 yards. The hunter reported hitting it in the shoulder and a front leg wasn’t working after the shot. The best thing to do on a shoulder hit is to push immediately and keep them bleeding. The hunter and his wife (actually his wife, since he’s color blind) followed the bloodtrail for 300 yards, bumping him once. They lost blood at that point. We arrived about 6 hours after the shot. I figured we were going to have a long track in the hilly, rocky terrain before catching up with the buck. Luna locked on immediately, pulling hard the length of the track. We got to the last blood which was marked with an orange glove, and I marked it on the gps and we continued. 200 yards later we found the nice 8 point dead. It turns out the buck had not been hit in the shoulder. Looked like liver area, angling down through the guts. This really drives home the point that you can’t always believe what you thought you saw! I didn’t stay for the field dressing since I was running late for a birthday party fo

[crappyice]

10/16/22

#1
Kunox and I arrive at 7:30 this morning to track a bear that was shot last night. After a thorough search, the only evidence of a hit was from the field where it was shot. This consisted of hair with skin attached. Zero blood anywhere. I believe this to be a grazing shot. They’re putting cameras out in the area to see if it shows itself.

#2
Kunox and I continued on to our second track. This was a confirmed gutshot from last night. The huntress was after her first deer and wanted it to be with a bow. The doe was shot in a large green field from a ground blind at 12 yards. Unfortunately it was low and the doe walked into the woods. At 11:00 last night, they went in and followed the bloodtrail about 100 yards before backing out. They did a great job of marking blood with toilet paper. Kunox took us to the doe who had gone a total of just under 1/2 a mile. Congratulations on your first deer Heather!

#3
Luna got the call for this one, much to Kunox’s dismay. The hunter shot this doe last night and recognized the dark blood he was seeing as liver blood. He did the smart thing and backed out after a short distance. Luna made a hunter happy after only 400 yards.

#4
Luna also got our last track of the day. This buck was shot this morning in a food plot at 100 yards. The hunter reported hitting it in the shoulder and a front leg wasn’t working after the shot. The best thing to do on a shoulder hit is to push immediately and keep them bleeding. The hunter and his wife (actually his wife, since he’s color blind) followed the bloodtrail for 300 yards, bumping him once. They lost blood at that point. We arrived about 6 hours after the shot. I figured we were going to have a long track in the hilly, rocky terrain before catching up with the buck. Luna locked on immediately, pulling hard the length of the track. We got to the last blood which was marked with an orange glove, and I marked it on the gps and we continued. 200 yards later we found the nice 8 point dead. It turns out the buck had not been hit in the shoulder. Looked like liver area, angling down through the guts. This really drives home the point that you can’t always believe what you thought you saw! I didn’t stay for the field dressing since I was running late for a birthday party fo

What a day!!!!


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[Lawdwaz]

Way to go Tom & Co.

[land 1]

great work

[Fletch]

Great buck and solid day tracking!!


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[outdoorstom]

We had a short fun one tonight!

 

10/17/22

 

Luna and I went to track a buck that was shot in a bean field tonight. The hunter said there was a total of about 30 deer in the field. When he shot the buck at 100 yards, he was sure he saw hair flying, but couldn’t find it, or any blood.  He had a general direction of travel, but couldn’t tell because of so many deer running everywhere.  We started at the hit site but couldn’t find anything, so I told the hunter and his two friends to keep looking in the field and I’d work Luna closer to the woods to see if we could pick anything up. We were about 50 yards away and Luna started pulling hard. She took me to the woods and went a short distance up a trail, then turned around and came out and went to the next one…nope that’s not it either. She liked the third trail and away we went. 40 yards in and I spotted blood. I hollered out to the guys to come my way as I hung a ribbon and marked it on the gps. They arrived shortly after and Luna continued up the trail. 50 yards further and there he was!  Nice buck! He died 800 yards from my swamp property.

[crappyice]

Tank!


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[Robhuntandfish]

love the leg chew!  Good job Luna!