Coopers 2021 Deer Recovery Thread

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
We tracked one for a friend that was shot last night, quartering away. They tracked 250 yards or so but jumped the gut shot deer. Blood was decent until the bed, dark like liver gave the hunter hope early but he backed out. This morning we get there and start at hit site, most times hunters says he tracked 200 yards it seems more like 100 yards, this 200 yards was more like 400+ yards, 3 times I ask if we're coming up on last blood, nope he says, were a ways away. You could tell Cooper was having to work hard through the contaminated areas, I know these guys are good trackers and was surprised they got as far as they did through the cutover and pine needles last night. Once through last blood and with the contaminated area behind us, Cooper never circled, he would never waiver. We eventually went along a road covered in scrapes, we then took a right down in a bottom. We knew deer was headed to a swamp but not all swamps are created equal, fortunately this was mostly dry.
We found the deer 970 yards as the crow flies from the hit site, on the bank of a large creek in a bed he'd obviously used before.
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bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
I got a call last night, hunter tracked 100 yards and lost blood and phoned a friend. He also smelled some gut on his arrow. Word out on the street is Cooper can track a deer. So we arrange a time and I get there at 9:30 am next morning, maybe 16 hours after the shot. The 500 yard walk to the hit site took longer then the track itself. Cooper kept a great pace on track, circling a couple times but he was easy to read and we just watched the guy work. It's quite peaceful, no coaching needed. And so we walked, 375 yards as the crow flies until Cooper showed us the buck. Looks like entry had some liver as well. It's a great buck, congratulations!


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oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
I got a call last night, hunter tracked 100 yards and lost blood and phoned a friend. He also smelled some gut on his arrow. Word out on the street is Cooper can track a deer. So we arrange a time and I get there at 9:30 am next morning, maybe 16 hours after the shot. The 500 yard walk to the hit site took longer then the track itself. Cooper kept a great pace on track, circling a couple times but he was easy to read and we just watched the guy work. It's quite peaceful, no coaching needed. And so we walked, 375 yards as the crow flies until Cooper showed us the buck. Looks like entry had some liver as well. It's a great buck, congratulations!


word on the street should be that Cooper is a miracle worker. :)
The recovery stories are incredible to me. Congratulations.
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
Had a couple calls recently, the one I'm disappointed about is a gut shot buck Cooper tracked 233 yards to a river, there was current and deep water but Cooper was attempting to swim it, and doing a great job but I stopped him since this river was the property line, I believe they said the land on other side belonged to the city and they were not allowed on it. As we sat at the bank I continually had to prevent that dog, that doesn't swim for fun, from swimming across. Wind was blowing from across river toward us and Cooper was whining with his nose in the air, eventually barking in anger at us. I heard they may have looked on other side the next day, didn't find anything. I know Cooper was on and it's a wasted deer.

Another track was a freehand 150 yard shot with his son's 243 (they were walking out). He backed out after deer went further then expected. Shot in bean field, hundred yards tell deer hit woods and we continued the track another 500, with blood confirmation at 400 yards. He said he lost sight of it in beans immediately after shot but it popped back up which has me suspecting high hit, dropped deer, non,-fatal.

It's about to heat up guys, 3 calls today on a weekday, all shot yesterday, son's birthday I'm taking him to the fair. Also asked today to sell my dog also asked to train one. Cooper is already scheduled to breed a female from one of the most notable trackers in this country, who will drive down from NJ in what likely will be December.

Here's my kennel I got, getting permanent location ready. It's a kennel for convenience (my dogs are in my home) for dogs when I leave home, and hopefully for little Cooper juniors to stay in the future. I would love to home a couple of Cooper's pups locally in the future, not this time because all pups are spoken for before this breeding, but for future litters so I can get them started in a training program and train the handler, then I can sit back and watch those dogs impress people all over NC, makes more happy hunters.

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CharlesIngalls

Six Pointer
We knew Cooper was a bada**, we didn’t know he was a high-class bada** too! Living the life of luxury as he and those pups deserve sir! I’ve really enjoyed reading about the many adventures you and Cooper are a part of. Awesome work
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
We knew Cooper was a bada**, we didn’t know he was a high-class bada** too! Living the life of luxury as he and those pups deserve sir! I’ve really enjoyed reading about the many adventures you and Cooper are a part of. Awesome work
Currently both dogs are inside. Cooper spoiled as hell, he's my shadow. He'd come unglued if I kept him in that. Only would if I had dog sitter and I left. My other dog and hopefully ones following will spend some time in it, and possibly a few I take in for training.
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
Deer shot last night with crossbow, only spot of blood found was 75 yards away. Not much on arrow but hunter said deer was quartering to him and arrow had a little brown. I asked them to smell arrow, they both had covid a few weeks ago and couldn't smell anything. So I showed up at the 18 hour mark and confirmed it was gut with a sniff, I told him it's dead. Started at hit site where no blood was found and Cooper headed to last blood. After last blood Cooper veers left along a fence line and works down a road 100 yards. The whole time I'm thinking why didn't he head straight into that thicket after last blood. So I'm waiting for that sign that he's lost the track so I can restart him at last blood to confirm the track left. Unfortunately, when Cooper lost blood 100 yards down the road, I didn't give him enough time, he had ran past a right turn at about 90 yards. We ended up left and Coopers curiosity led us to a few teenagers who were apparently taking photos of animals on their walk through the woods. I thought they may be standing on a deer since we were in the creek, so I asked if they'd seen a dead deer, a kid said yes. He pointed back towards where Cooper missed a turn. We'd planned a restart anyway but I radioed the hunter, we needed to make sure it was his before tracking anymore. We headed down the creek, Cooper eventually got on the deers trail again and we recovered the buck. I'm certain me and Cooper would have figured the puzzle out but we don't mind some help, made things happen a little quicker. Thank you nature boys.IMG_20211023_154636~2.jpg
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
Tracked a big buck tonight, quartering toward bowhunter, I'm still confused about what I'm smelling on the arrow but I told them over phone we should wait longer but they wanted me tonight, 140 inch buck took a right after last blood and we eventually found where he's bedded, unfortunately he wasn't in it. Dry and wet blood confirm we jumped him. We will start part 2 of the track in the swamp first thing in morning.
 
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