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My hubby & I are training our 8 month old bloodhound, Jethro, to track animals. Iowa recently passed a law that allows the aid of dogs during deer hunting for tracking/recovery purposes. We both are avid hunters, so having a dog on call if/when we need it will be super convenient.
Jethro had a successful (practice) track last night! My hubby drug around some deer parts throughout our acreage & ultimately hid it in the cornfield. We put Jethro's harness & lead on a little while later & let him get to work. He immediately picked up the scent where my hubby started & followed it EXACTLY where hubby had been, ultimately ending up at the hiding spot. He is a natural & it is so much fun to watch him work. He puts his nose to the ground & doesn't come back up until he's found what he's looking for. He makes an odd little sound while he tracking that I've never heard before- it's hard to explain but he only makes it when he's tracking. We have also done practice hides- where it's not so much about him tracking but us wanting him to go out (no harness/lead) and find the animal on his own- he always ends up finding it (whether it's a deer foot or antler) in no time.
We also let our shorthair go out & try to track after Jethro's run. However, he lost the scent (or maybe lost interest- you know how those bird dogs can have a bit of ADHD) and did not seem interested. I told my hubby you can't expect a bird dog to do a hound dog's job. 😄
More to come as we continue to practice & definitely plan on having some pictures to go with!
Jethro had a successful (practice) track last night! My hubby drug around some deer parts throughout our acreage & ultimately hid it in the cornfield. We put Jethro's harness & lead on a little while later & let him get to work. He immediately picked up the scent where my hubby started & followed it EXACTLY where hubby had been, ultimately ending up at the hiding spot. He is a natural & it is so much fun to watch him work. He puts his nose to the ground & doesn't come back up until he's found what he's looking for. He makes an odd little sound while he tracking that I've never heard before- it's hard to explain but he only makes it when he's tracking. We have also done practice hides- where it's not so much about him tracking but us wanting him to go out (no harness/lead) and find the animal on his own- he always ends up finding it (whether it's a deer foot or antler) in no time.
We also let our shorthair go out & try to track after Jethro's run. However, he lost the scent (or maybe lost interest- you know how those bird dogs can have a bit of ADHD) and did not seem interested. I told my hubby you can't expect a bird dog to do a hound dog's job. 😄
More to come as we continue to practice & definitely plan on having some pictures to go with!
)
