Cooper Practice Track # 10 VIDEO

aya28ga

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Looks like Cooper's training is progressing well; you guys will do fine in Oklahoma.

(And if you're looking for a set of tracking shoes, let me know before you spend $200 on a new set. I've got a slightly used pair I'll sell you).
 
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bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
Asking out of ignorance, what are "tracking shoes"??

"Blood" tracking dogs are really much more then that. Imagine having the nose and predatory drive of one of these dogs. When they go into the field they smell everything and every animal but most importantly the interdigital gland in a deers hoof is individual to every deer, therefore, as a dog tracks from the impact site they are putting together a story of the wounded deer. Hormones, skin cells, perspiration, blood and interdigital hoof scent are all the things dogs use to track the wounded deer, even if the blood runs out. They can differentiate this deer from other healthy deer, and instincts tell them to follow the wounded to get the reward, the deer. These are things we cannot see. When training we use tracking shoes, shoes with hoofs attached, to put down the waxy interdigital scent in the hooves with each step, eventually using less and less blood, eventually no blood is necessary.

Here's a couple, one is from Germany
tracking-shoes.jpgFB_IMG_1521527256152.jpg
 
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aya28ga

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
These are tracking shoes for laying a bloodline, using an attached deer hoof.

Bowhuntingrook, I tried to send this pic to your PM, but couldn't get it to go through that way. Let me know what you think.


20180325_091943.jpg
 

Bailey Boat

Twelve Pointer
Thanks to both of you, education is a wonderful thing.
I had wondered how you got the dog to track the blood if you went first laying it down. I would have thought that the dog just tracked YOU. Now I know.... Thanks again....
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
My dad wore rubber boots and put out the track 20 hours before I ran it. He marked it as he went with orange markers but I let the dog figure it out. I was focused on the dog, didn't pay much attention to markers, dad ran out of markers on last 75 yards, I had no clue where deer was.

You'd really have to understand the dog to understand he has no interest in tracking a boot mark, dog is using instincts and you can tell he knows what he's doing and once he's smells blood he is switched on. Dog was bred to hunt and track, no real training needed, just time in the woods tracking to encourage learning. He doesn't even need blood to become switched on, just the idea and smells that suggest a deer is wounded get him excited. He is possessive of his deer when he finds it.
 
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dlbaile

Ten Pointer
I'm with you bailey boat learned a lot from that video and what tracking shoes were ,good learning experience .
 

lasttombstone

Kinder, Gentler LTS
I'm at work now, patients are probably wondering WTH I've been doing in my off time, I will never wear short sleeves again.

I saw that one coming when i watched the video and saw the number of times that leash was straight out tight. Maybe you need to come up with some kind of adjustable drag so you can keep up. LOL.
 

aya28ga

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
You run a tracking dog many times and you learn really quick about the briers! I remember one time I tracked for a guy a couple of years ago were the deer ran into a ten year old cutover. I got cut to shreds that day!

Bowhuntingrook, get yourself a good pair of googles to protect your eyes, (I like the screen mesh ones made by Bug-eyes; they don't fog up). I posted a link below for them if your interested.

And get a pair of leather gloves with long sleeves that go up to your elbows (I use bee keeper gloves).

http://www.sherrilltree.com/catalog...MImPyMvtCM2gIVRlgNCh3exA6OEAQYASABEgLRr_D_BwE
 
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lasttombstone

Kinder, Gentler LTS
I spoke from experience on that on aya. I had 2 dogs back in the day that I found would track a deer and had to use them a few times for friends. Once, in particular, a buddy shot a deer during early bow season that headed into a thick cutover on the Tar river. She was a black and tan that was pretty strong and at one point I had to let go of the leash and she was gone. I tried for an hour to get to her but had to turn back before I died from blood loss in the middle of the night. When I finally made it back to a truck my buddy was standing on the dog box because he was afraid of snakes in the area. I was finally able to call her back in but it was really late getting back home that night. Best I remember, that was the last time I tracked a deer at night with a dog.
 
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bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
Thanks aya, LTS and OS and others. It's been fun, once turkey season is over I will have a hard time waiting for my first tracking season. I still have to get my tracking kit together, lights, gear etc.
 

Eric Revo

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
that sounds like it's a ton of fun, and it'll make you an instant best buddy to the person who lost their biggest or first deer....prepare to be inundated with phone calls after dark-thirty in the cold rain.
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
that sounds like it's a ton of fun, and it'll make you an instant best buddy to the person who lost their biggest or first deer....prepare to be inundated with phone calls after dark-thirty in the cold rain.

Yes, good thing about rain calls is it makes tracking very difficult for hunters, but easier for the dog. Pouring down rain 6 hours, he tracked no problem. Another track we already ran 3 days prior was freshened up with rain, he tracked half of that with no problem, but I stopped him since we weren't there for that purpose. I need to stock up on raingear and nice boots.
 
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