Luna and Kunox’s Tracking Journal 2020

[cdbing]

Good to have the hunt turn out successful for that young man, with a little help from Luna and you. You made that young man's day, and one he will remember for years to come. Must be very satisfying to make such a difference. Congrats on the recovery.

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[outdoorstom]

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. 

[outdoorstom]

7 hours ago, mlammerhirt said:

Just curious....where did he hit that deer with the first shot?
That is a monster and what a great feeling helping that kid recover his trophy!

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

[outdoorstom]

4 hours ago, cdbing said:

Good to have the hunt turn out successful for that young man, with a little help from Luna and you. You made that young man's day, and one he will remember for years to come. Must be very satisfying to make such a difference. Congrats on the recovery.

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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!

 

[outdoorstom]

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.  

[YFKI1983]

Wish you could video this stuff for YouTube.

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[outdoorstom]

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. 

[outdoorstom]

 

 

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.

[outdoorstom]

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.

[crappyice]

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.

I love Kunox’s hero pics...eyes are always still locked on the deer like he is not trusting it’s dead!!! The best!!!
Luna knows the drill - look at and smiles for the camera!!!


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[Fletch]

Seems to be a lotta yotes in the areas you guys are covering this year!
Love the thread as always! Great work.


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[2012_taco]

I really love this thread, Tom your advice has helped me be a better tracker. Yesterday I shot a doe and after waiting started the track. Very little blood and I smelled stomach at first couple of blood spots. I was pretty sure where she went into the thick stuff so we backed out and waited 6 hours. I called Deer Search and the guy came out with a GSP breed! We couldn't keep up with her, she covered what took us 2 hours to track in seconds! Found the deer about 150-200 yds into some real nasty stuff. Absolutely incredible! I know for a fact that we would never have found it without the dog! The tracker said not all dogs that can find deer are Dashounds! Lol!

[outdoorstom]

9 hours ago, 2012_taco said:

I really love this thread, Tom your advice has helped me be a better tracker. Yesterday I shot a doe and after waiting started the track. Very little blood and I smelled stomach at first couple of blood spots. I was pretty sure where she went into the thick stuff so we backed out and waited 6 hours. I called Deer Search and the guy came out with a GSP breed! We couldn't keep up with her, she covered what took us 2 hours to track in seconds! Found the deer about 150-200 yds into some real nasty stuff. Absolutely incredible! I know for a fact that we would never have found it without the dog! The tracker said not all dogs that can find deer are Dashounds! Lol!

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

[outdoorstom]

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!

[SilentStalker]

You guys are on fire! Great job!

[outdoorstom]

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.

[outdoorstom]

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! 

[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.

[cdbing]

I enjoy reading your posts and following along as you describe the pups doing what they were bred and trained to do. Hope Luna gets to chew on a deer leg soon. She's put on some miles in the last 2 tracks....you too.

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[outdoorstom]

11/5

 

• Kunox and I tracked a buck that had been shot from the ground at a sharp quartering away angle.  The hunter had waited about 10 minutes before tracking, and jumped the deer twice in 500 yards before backing out(after grid searching the second bump area). We arrive 24 hours after the shot.  Kunox took us to the grid searched area and struggled there, not advancing the track any further. I decided at that point to go home and get Luna to see what she could do. I started her where the deer had left the field and she made short work of it.  She cruised right through the grid searched area and was chewing on the buck’s  leg 11 minutes and 42 seconds after starting.  He was 100 yards from where I pulled Kunox off. 

[Moho81]

50 minutes ago, outdoorstom said:

11/5

 

• Kunox and I tracked a buck that had been shot from the ground at a sharp quartering away angle.  The hunter had waited about 10 minutes before tracking, and jumped the deer twice in 500 yards before backing out(after grid searching the second bump area). We arrive 24 hours after the shot.  Kunox took us to the grid searched area and struggled there, not advancing the track any further. I decided at that point to go home and get Luna to see what she could do. I started her where the deer had left the field and she made short work of it.  She cruised right through the grid searched area and was chewing on the buck’s  leg 11 minutes and 42 seconds after starting.  He was 100 yards from where I pulled Kunox off. 

That started out sounding like a nightmare track. Started tracking 10 min after the shot, jumped him twice THEN grid searched! This hunter is very lucky a talented guy like you has talented dogs to help.  

[BizCT]

nice work! stinks that 1 deer you couldn't get to on other property. thats a shame.

[Otto]

2 hours ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

nice work! stinks that 1 deer you couldn't get to on other property. thats a shame.

It really does stink!  Why would someone let an injured animal suffer like that?  Especially a so called "hunter"!   

[Swamp_bucks]

1 hour ago, Otto said:

It really does stink!  Why would someone let an injured animal suffer like that?  Especially a so called "hunter"!   

Happens more than you think.  I have a small piece of private I hunt.  So I asked all the neighbors if I could track if one went onto there property.  All of them said yes except one neighbor who hunts.  I tried everything I could told him I wouldnt take a weapon,have him come with me nothing.  He told me he would let it rot before he would let me or anyone else track a deer into his property.  Even if we can see it dead from the property line.

Edited November 5, 2020 by Swamp_bucks

[Otto]

1 hour ago, Swamp_bucks said:

Happens more than you think.  I have a small piece of private I hunt.  So I asked all the neighbors if I could track if one went onto there property.  All of them said yes except one neighbor who hunts.  I tried everything I could told him I wouldnt take a weapon,have him come with me nothing.  He told me he would let it rot before he would let me or anyone else track a deer into his property.  Even if we can see it dead from the property line.

I hope karma is properly adjusted to his account each and every season.   I have a group of guys that lease property adjacent to mine and we allow tracking, all it takes is a phone call.