Using tracking dogs to recover deer has become very popular over the last 5 years or so. Many folks choose to call in a tracker with a dog often times specifically bred and trained for the task. While many hunters will continue to do so in the years to come…..a lot of you probably already have tracking dog and don’t even know it. All dogs are descendants of wolves and they’ve all been manipulated in different ways to create the many breeds we see today. Many of the hunting breeds have been bred to retain much of the natural hunting instinct also called prey drive that was passed on from its wolf ancestors. A lot of your pet breeds have had that instinct taken out as much as possible in order to make them more docile and less aggressive. This doesn’t mean that its completely gone though and some breeds and individuals may express it more than others.

While you may not go get your next dog with finding deer as a consideration for why you’re buying it……If you’re an avid hunter I would encourage you to do a few tests with a deer liver and leg with the litter of puppies your choosing your new dog from and see if any show a natural desire to track or follow the scent…..You may just be going to get your girlfriend a poodle but you may also have the opportunity to have a deer tracker as well. Dang near all of us have a dog of some kind and they can be an extremely valuable sidekick in assisting us after the shot….Now that I’ve seen how far superior they are at the task than us humans….I’m surprised we’ve never used them up until just recently.

Most of us who track for the public are going out on tracks that are 12-24 hrs old that have been tromped out by hunters and many times it’s a very marginal hit. Now those types of tracks probably would be better suited for a seasoned hunting dog that tracks dozens of deer each year……but finding a deer that you shot an hour or two ago with decent blood and no disturbance from a search party…..those types of tracks can likely be easily followed by your pet you have at home. The key to it is just working with them on it some…..Let them go find every one you shoot as well as any others you may be able to get them experience on…..You don’t have to train them like you’re trying to make it a world champion or anything but introduce it to them when their young. Let them chew on a leg and eat a little piece of liver so they can see how much they like it. Progress from there to short basic liver drag and short bloodlines just so they put two and two together and figure out that a treat is waiting on them at the end.

Dogs are our companions that help us in many aspects of life from guarding our house to fetching are ducks to just being man’s best friend. Don’t overlook how they can also assist you in recovering your deer. I encourage more of you to take advantage of this ability our furry friends can provide us even if its just your pet mutt or your girlfriend's lap dog. There may be a tracking dog sitting on your couch beside you right now. By working with them some you may end up with handy little deer finding tool that you never knew you had.