a NEW PASSION

I have been hunting my entire life; it’s my passion. Releasing the string is just a small part of the hunt. As a young hunter, I was always trying to prove a point. Today, I am truly happy for others when they succeed. As hunters, one can practice everything right up to the moment of the shot. How does one practice finding a wounded animal when they’ve lost the blood trail? At this point, one of the greatest hunting days could turn for the worst. I feel fortunate that I found something new that helps hunters and the animals we pursue. It keeps me in the field for more days and I learn something new every time we are out. It’s like being young again.

Blood Tracking: the phrase is a misconception! As a hunter trying to recover a quarry, one depends on it. Today, when I see blood, it confirms that we are on the right track. In this article, I am going to give you a little history, how I got started, about my very first track, and how hunters can contact us if they are having problems trying to recover their animal.

In Colorado the legalization of using a leashed tracking dog started with John Jeanneney from New York. In the 1960’s John was studying abroad and spent some time hunting where he witnessed how the Germans had perfected the use of a dog to recover wounded big game. In the 1970’s, after John returned to New York, he tracked and recovered a wounded deer for a game warden with a teckel (wirehaired dachshund) he owned. At the time, using dogs for big game hunting was illegal in most states and John spent many years trying to convince New York State of the effectiveness of tracking dogs. In 1976 he better get John’s book ‘Tracking Dogs for Finding Wounded Deer.’”

I bought the book and started reading. It covers all types of dog breeds and what to expect from that breed. I wondered what kind of dog I should get? Then one evening, I was going to read and reached over to pick up the book. Guess what? There’s a picture of a dachshund on the cover.

The next day I was on Facebook and a hunting outfitter on the West Slope had made a post on a hunting page. He was looking for others who may want to get together and talk about their tracking dogs. I didn’t waste any time and contacted him. He was using a standard smooth dachshund. There are several dog breeders in the United States that specialize in tracking puppies and by that evening I was in contact with his breeder. Once I told the breeder that I had bought the book and was going to attempt to track mule deer, elk, bears, moose, and yes, bighorn sheep, I went right to the front of her list to get the best tracking puppy prospect she had. Fortunately, she was expecting a new litter by the end of the month.

While my new tracking puppy was still nursing, I was reading the book. I made a trip to Oklahoma City for a three-day blood tracking seminar. What a wealth of knowledge. Several of my hunting buddies could not believe I was attempting this. Some were for it, others said this would not work. Of course, I talked at length about it at the archery pro shop. Then came the big day on June 1st; time to go get the baby at the airport.

I had a name picked out for her, Lucya, a Russian name, since Lucy’s mother is Russian, and her father is Croatian. On the way home I stopped by the archery pro shop in Fort Collins, walked in with this very cute 4pound puppy, and sat her on the floor. The owner of the bow shop leaned over the counter and said, laughing, “There is no way I’m going to have that dog track an animal for me!”

It was June; time to start training! I did like the book said: drag a piece of deer liver 10 feet and lay a chunk of deer hide at the end. Don’t overdo it and do this twice a week. Each time make it a little longer and once the pup finds it, praise her!! That first track took her about 2 minutes to go the 10 feet. Some days were good and others not. By the end of August, Lucy was running tracking lines out to 700 yards. By now I was getting nervous; archery season was approaching fast!

The opening day of archery started out like any other. I went to work (I work from home). Early afternoon the phone rang, and I looked at the caller ID, it was the archery pro shop, “Maybe my new arrows finally came in?” I answered and it was the owner. “Hey Scott, how’s that dog doing?” My heart stopped!!

After a short conversation, I agreed to meet him at 5:00 pm at a trailhead. We were going to be tracking a mule deer buck that had been hit 8 hours earlier. Here is where trackers need to be making judgment calls. The book says to start the dog at the site of impact with an arrow (what we call the hit site) whenever possible. I asked where he had taken the shot from, and he pointed to the top of the mountain. I was thinking by the time we would get up there it will be dark. On this mountain, there were not many trees and he had seen the deer run down the mountain and start up the next slope before losing sight of him. I said, “Let’s walk up the canyon and see if Lucy can find where the buck crossed.”

4½-month-old Lucy was in front of a lead, where she would see a chipmunk. She must check that out!! “Hey, there’s a butterfly, let’s go chase it!” At about a ½ mile up the trail, she suddenly stopped, put her nose on the ground, and started going back and forth on the trail. Then she turned and headed up the mountain to the South through the buck brush. With her stature, Lucy was able to go under the brush and I was trying to scramble over the top. Her lead is 30 ft. long and the brush was thick enough that I couldn’t see her. After some distance, it finally stopped, and I was able to reach the dog. Lucy was standing in a pool of blood, but the deer was nowhere in sight.

After some time, we finally had evidence that the buck had left the canyon going West. We proceeded to the ridge, which was a ¼ mile and we gained 500 feet in elevation. When we crested the ridge, Lucy was exhausted (me too). We could not see any sign of which way the buck had gone. I pulled off my pack, got Lucy a drink, and we curled up for a little snooze in a place where the scenery was spectacular. My hunter went on ahead and started down the mountain on the other side. After about 15 minutes and 50 yards, he yelled something we trackers love to hear: “I got blood!”

I got Lucy up from our power nap and proceeded to the last sign. I set Lucy down, and she started paralleling the ridge going North. Here we are, two grown men following an 8- pound puppy, with no visible sign of the deer. Lucy took us 200 yards with no sign. All I can remember about the book right now is “trust the dog”. Then, as she was crossing a rocky ridge, she stopped, I looked down on a rock and there is a drop of blood the size of a pencil eraser.

Lucy continued the line for another ½ mile, and about every 100 yards we would see a small drop of blood. This is when the pro shop owner said something to me that I will never forget. “This is the coolest &%$*&^ thing I have ever seen in my life!!”

I wish I could tell everyone that Lucy’s first track was a successful recovery. I’ve learned over the years that everything goes back to the hunter’s shot placement. However, what we did confirm was that this was a possible muscle wound, and the deer may have survived the hit. What stopped us on this track was a barbed wire fence that we did not have permission to cross. One thing is for certain, if we were depending on eye tracking, we would not have made it as far and as fast as Lucy did, 1½ miles in less than 2 hours.

It was now dark, and we were a long way from the truck. One thing I did do over the summer at the pro shop was to ask which backpack they would recommend for carrying a small dog. When it was time to head out my hunter said, “Let’s try out that backpack you bought.” We stuffed a sleeping baby wiener dog in it and headed for home.

Since this story, Lucy and I have been tracking for the public for four years in three states (as I am writing this article, we are looking forward to tracking spring bears in Wyoming). We have picked up another member of our tracking team, Lynas, he is a Bavarian Mountain Scent Hound and one hell of a great dog. To be honest with you, I am the weak link in this tracking team.

You can find us and a lot of great trackers at Unitedbloodtrackers.org under find-a-tracker. Also, look us all up at Rocky Mountain Big Game Recovery on Facebook. This Facebook page has exploded in the last year: we’ve filed for a 501C3, and we conduct seminars and vendor booths at shows. We have trackers on the page from all over the U.S., Canada, and Europe.

In parting, archery hunting can be emotional, and we are called because a fellow bowhunter needs our help. If you have hunted a lot, you know the feeling. If you haven’t, you will someday. I always have the hunter walk behind us to let the dog work undisturbed. Many times, I have seen an elk’s antler sticking above the vegetation right before the dog recovers. I’ll turn around and tell the hunter calmly, “my dog just found your bull.” I’ve seen grown men tear up with emotions.

That is our new passion…

Only those events approved by AKC before this publication is printed are listed. Contact the Event Chairs of these events with any questions.

March 19, 2023

York Interstate Fairgrounds Rt 74 Carlisle Ave. York, PA

Closing Date: Wednesday, March 1, 2023

Event Chair: Therese Lancaster 3010 Mandela Ct., Port Republic, MD 20676-2225 lowlodndachs@gmail.com • 301-247-0671

For additional information contact: Jim Rau Dog Shows, Ltd., Superintendent P.O. Box 6898, Reading, PA 19610-0898 (610) 376-1880 • info@raudogshows.com

Judges:

Breed: (L) Allen L. Odom

(S) Allen L. Odom

(W) Allen L. Odom

Hound Group: Ms. Denise Flaim

NOHS Hound Group: Carolyn A. Herbel

Junior Show: Alessandra R. Folz

Closing Date: Thursday, March 2, 2023

Club

March 21, 2023

Purina Farms

200 Checkerboard Drive, Gray Summit, MO Web Site: http://www.dfwdachshund.com

Entries for this event are limited to: 100

Dachshund Club of America, Inc.

March 22, 2023

Purina Farms

200 Checkerboard Drive Gray Summit, MO

Web Site: http://www.dachshundclubofamerica.org

Dachshund Club of America, Inc.

March 24, 2023

Purina Farms

200 Checkerboard Drive Gray Summit, MO

Web Site: http://www.dachshundclubofamerica.org

Dachshund Club of New Jersey

March 24, 2023

New Jersey Convention and Exposition Cntr.

97 Sunfield Ave. Edison, NJ

Entries for this event are limited to: 100

March 25, 2023

New Jersey Convention and Exposition Cntr.

97 Sunfield Ave. Edison, NJ

Entries for this event are limited to: 100

Event Chair: Ms. Lexa Richmond 124 Oakhurst Drive, Bedford, TX 76022 hialeahdachshunds@gmail.com • 432-210-9666

For additional information contact:

Georjan Bridger, Event Secretary

P.O. Box 21352, Salem, OR 97307-1352 (503) 931-7099 • georjiesdogevents@gmail.com

Closing Date: Friday, March 3, 2023

Event Chair: Mr. Carl Holder

1130 Redoak Dr., Lumberton, TX 77657 candachs@aol.com • 409-781-5537

For additional information contact: Georjan Bridger, Event Secretary P.O. Box 21352, Salem, OR 97307-1352 (503) 931-7099 • georjiesdogevents@gmail.com

Closing Date: Friday, March 3, 2023

Event Chair: Mr. Carl Holder 1130 Redoak Dr., Lumberton, TX 77657 candachs@aol.com • 409-781-5537

For additional information contact: Georjan Bridger, Event Secretary P.O. Box 21352, Salem, OR 97307-1352 (503) 931-7099 • georjiesdogevents@gmail.com

Closing Date: Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Event Chair: Carrie Hamilton 9621 Bachelor Rd., Kutztown, PA 19530-8570 hamiltce@ptd.net • 610-285-2469

For additional information contact:

Jim Rau Dog Shows, Ltd., Superintendent P.O. Box 6898, Reading, PA 19610-0898 (610) 376-1880 • info@raudogshows.com

Closing Date: Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Event Chair: Carrie Hamilton 9621 Bachelor Rd., Kutztown, PA 19530-8570 hamiltce@ptd.net • 610-285-2469

For additional information contact:

Jim Rau Dog Shows, Ltd., Superintendent P.O. Box 6898, Reading, PA 19610-0898 (610) 376-1880 • info@raudogshows.com

Judges:

Breed: (L) Ronda Bermke

(S) Aubrey Nash

(W) Ms. Lynne Allen

Junior Show: Ronda Bermke

Judges:

Breed: (L) Ms. Sherrill C. Snyder

(S) Mrs. Frances H. Forrester

(W) Mr. Scott Deans

Junior Show: Mrs. Frances H. (Marci) Forrester

Judges:

Points For Reserve Available

Breed: (L) Mrs. Lorraine Simmons

(S) Eric Henningsen

(W) Dianne R. Graham

Sweepstakes: Please contact event secretary/superintendent or review premium list for Sweepstakes class and judge information.

Judges:

Breed: (L) Frederick R. Vogel

(S) Frederick R. Vogel

(W) Frederick R. Vogel

AKC National Owner-Handled Series

Judges:

Breed: (L) Nancy L. Dougherty

(S) Nancy L. Dougherty

(W) Nancy L. Dougherty