First blood track of the season - tracking wounded bear with John and Billy

Yesterday John went with Billy to track a wounded bear so I asked him to write a short report about the experience. Often handlers write only about tracks that lead to recovered game, but sometimes dogs show their best work on tracks that don't end "successfully". This is what John wrote:

After enviously listening to the adventure stories of my friends, I finally got my first call on September 26. It was a wounded bear, 65 miles to the North where the bear season is already open. The big bear had gone down instantly at the rifle shot, which usually means a shot to, or close to, the spine. However, the bear got his act together, got his hind legs going and ran off. The hunter got in two more shots, but he was not sure that he had connected.

Billy and I needed a workout, even if the odds for success were small. And it was a good work out. The track descended into a big swamp, and we waded around verifying the 22 hour old line with very occasional drops or smears of blood. The hunter had painstaking trailed 300 yards and Billy took it for another 700 with many loops and turns. The bear never bedded. I picked Billy up on a line that still had tiny drops of blood on it.

I was proud of Billy, and of course Billy was proud of himself …and showed it, especially when we got back to the farmhouse. Billy has found many deer, but clearly he is best at tracking bears, and he loves to do it.

A new wirehaired dachshund puppy for Genti and Beth Shero - Achilles of Trace-ja

Yesterday our friends Genti and Beth Shero came up for a visit, and it was a good opportunity for us to see their new ten-week-old puppy and for them to play with our puppies. Recently they imported a male puppy bred by Dragutin Milojevic from Serbia, and his name is Achilles of Trace-ja. Both parents of Achilles are out of German breeding; his sire is Franz vom Roggenhof FCI and the dam is Tundra vom Frischlingshof FCI.

We were very impressed with Achilles. We like his conformation - he has really nice proportions with good length of legs. His topline is beautiful, and his shoulders and front are very correct. His body type is ideal for a working dachshund. This is a feisty, self-confident puppy with great resilience. Even though Bella is older and bigger than he is, Achilles played with her as an equal. They had a ball together.

Achilles is winning this round.

And this one!

This is a pretty self-contained, self-sufficient puppy. He inspected all the toys and played by himself very well too.

He shook the black bear toy and "killed it".

Achilles worked well a short blood line and he really liked the deer tail at the end of track.

He claimed the tail and would not let it go.

I searched the web for more info on Achilles' background. His breeder's website at www.oftrace.com seems to be down today. But he has several videos on youtube, and this one shows Achilles' sire Franz when he was a puppy working a bloodline. This dog has a lot of desire and a lot of mouth!

The below video shows Achilles' dam Tundra working her first wild boar.  

It looks like Achilles is going to make a nice and needed addition to the American gene pool of working standard wires out of European descent. Congrats to Genti and Beth on such a nice pup!

Andy Bensing's Tracking Video "GPS Pursuit: Don't Quit too soon"

GPS Pursuit - Don't Quit Too Soon from Andy Bensing on Vimeo. 

This is a fascinating video that Andy Bensing put together of a deer call he had last weekend. Andy wrote: The deer was gut shot and the hunter did not wait the amount of time I suggested before tracking so we ended up pushing the deer for a total of 4 ½ miles over an almost 3 hour period. The first part of the video shows via GPS mapping the route the big buck took in trying to evade its pursuers and the last 5 minutes shows the hunter and I enjoying the celebration of the completed mission. I think this video gives good insight into what wounded deer sometimes do and how dogs as well as handlers have to sometimes think and strategize to get the job done.

The beauty of natural decay - first day of fall

It is the first day of autumn, and pictures showing the beauty of natural decay seem appropriate. I wish there were a way to infuse the pictures with the smell of wet, rotting leaves in the woods, which is one of my favorite scents. By the way, there is a small change to the blog. I widened the left column so it is easy to insert larger sized images.

Happy hunting and tracking this weekend everybody! 

Blood tracking dachshunds in action

We have several pictures from the United Blood Trackers members who use their dachshunds for tracking wounded deer:

ANDY BENSING

Jack DiTommaso, holding my tracking dog, Eibe, and his father, Tony, at the Posted Sign where we quite the trail after tracking the deer  about  1000 meters after we jumped him.  The deer was very likely not mortally wounded and this was a convenient place to stop.  The hunter was satisfied that we were able to confirm the likely condition of the deer.

 SCOT DAVIDSON

Hi Jolanta and John – Here is a picture of Vimy with his 1^st deer. Vimy was sired by your Tommy from Laurel's Hexel. Not a real tough track as the deer only went about 80 yards. The deer did go over a hill and make a 90 degree turn. The track was after dark and this did not bother him at all. Vimy did well and now thinks were going to track every time I put him in the truck. 

Thanks for all your assistance at Trackfest. We learned a lot.

Scot Davidson - Iowa

SUSANNE HAMILTON

First find of the season for Susanne Hamilton and Buster. Paunch shot doe, 0.52 mile on two drops of blood. Good start to the tracking season!

New Jersey trackers promote their blood tracking program

We received a nice report from Darren Doran about the booth that New Jersey trackers had at the 2nd Annual New Jersey Wild Outdoor Expo under the banner of the United Blood Trackers. Great job Darren and New Jersey trackers!

The expo had a very good turn out, the total number of people who attended  was 4955 not including exhibitors. There was 2300 people there Saturday and at least that many on Sunday. The weather was great for expos as well as hunting. I got four calls on Sunday (took two) but that's another story. Karl is the perfect event dog. He just laid or sat on the table and let all the kids and adults pet him. He has pretty good crowd appeal. Saturday to the right of us was a retriever group with a pen full of eight-week-old chocolate lab pups and Karl still managed to draw his share of the kids. If I had a dollar for every time some one said he's such a calm dog or he's so laid back, I could have bought another dog. 

We did four short demos, two on Sat and two on Sunday, and they went well. We had a table set up with our tracking gear and one with our training gear. I had a poster board up with the complete NJ permit including all the assorted forms and reports that we have to do. The Expo had a diverse crowd with a family atmosphere. There were seasoned hunters and anglers as well as people that have never set foot in the woods. The NJ tracking program was well received and I did not get one negative comment about it. I got 4 new leads for handlers/dogs for next years permit and passed out my card to any one that would take it. All in all it was a weekend well spent.

Karl, Darren Doran's wirehaired dachshund, was a hit with kids and adults alike.

 

 

Rich Stollery is doing a demo with his dachshund Ember.

 

 

 

Mid-September evening sky

Tommy and Lily's puppies - when wirehaired dachshund puppies are at their cutest

Another perk associated with going to field trials in Batavia was to see puppies sired by our FC Tom vom Linteler Forst out of FC Diamant Lily von Lowenherz J SE bred and owned by Laurel Whistance-Smith. The pups (all males) are three months old now and they must be at their cutest. Actually they are half-siblings to our Bella von Tierspur, who also was sired by Tommy. Lily did very well in Batavia and she was the only field champion who placed in a highly competitive stake on both days. If you are interested in a pup, contact Laurel at manverspack@nexicom.net or 705-277-9183. Laurel lives in Ontario, Canada.

Field Trials in Batavia, NY, Sept 17-18, 2011

Last weekend I took Billy and Tommy to our first field trials of the season, which took place in Batavia, NY. I judged open stake in the morning and then ran our two field champions in the afternoon. Billy placed 1st in the stake of 28 on Sunday. Billy's sister Dixie owned by Sherry Ruggieri was second.  It was Teddy Moritz's mini long Garmin who won the Absolute run on Sunday. After I got home I took this picture of Billy with his mom Elli.

FC Billy von Moosbach-Zuzelek and his mom Elli (FC Elli v Moosbach-Zuzelek).

It was a treat to see Paika's brother on Saturday - Bentley (Poker von Moosbach-Zuzelek) owned by Sarah Stokoe. What a handsome boy he is! There is a great deal of resemblance between Bentley and Billy, who is Bentley's grandsire.

Bentley was 2nd in the open dog stake on Saturday.

Sarah and Bentley

Congratulations are also in order to Cheri Faust whose FC Danika vom Nordlicht placed 1st in the FC stake on Saturday and then was the Absolute winner of the trial.

A liver-hit doe recovered by wirehaired dachshund Ava

On Saturday and Sunday I was away at field trials in Batavia, NY and will be posting more information about it later today. When I got back home last night I found my Inbox full of good material for the blog - a big thank you to those who submitted pictures and stories. I will be posting them in the next few days.

This picture came from Dean Davenport from South Carolina who a year and a half ago had a litter of pups sired by our Billy. He kept the only female in the litter for himself, and her name is Ava Vom Tiefen Suden. Dean wrote: "Hey Jolanta and John. Hope all is well in Berne. I enjoy the information and blog yall produce. It is very helpful. This doe is Ms. Ava's first deer of the 2011 season. It was my first deer with traditional equipment and knew it was liver hit at best. I made the choice to look for her sooner than usual because the temperature was at 93 degrees. Our weather has been the opposite of yours with no rain and yours too much. Ava was a trooper and had no problems. The doe only went 120 yards and bedded. Ava is good tracker and has unbelievable grit. Saturday morning we tracked a buck that the hunter said he gut shot. The line was 16 hours old. We found small drops of blood with in 45 yards of the shot but then blood was sparse. I would see tiny specs at 100 yards or so. We went about 850 yards on the track with no beds where the buck bedded or anything. I felt it was still going. Take care. Talk to you soon. Thanks"

Thanks Dean for sharing. Good to hear good things about Ava. Good luck this hunting and tracking season!

Dean with Ava, who recovered his liver-hit doe.

First find of the season for Darren and Karl

In some states such as New Jersey a deer hunting season has already started. In New York we will have to wait another month.

The picture shows Karl's first find. Darren Doran, Karl's owner and handler, wrote: Hunter hit the deer good but there was no blood, he looked but couldn't find it. It was hot about 85. He shot it in the morning and I found it about 3:30 PM. 

I'd like to comment that Karl is wearing Ruff Wear Web Master Dog Harness, which is many handlers' favorite vest for blood tracking dachshunds.

New Jersey Trackers will be present at the 2nd Annual New Jersey Wild Outdoor Expo

Come and meet New Jersey Trackers who we will have a booth at the 2nd Annual New Jersey Wild Outdoor Expo under the banner of the United Blood Trackers on September 17 and 18 at the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area in Jackson Township, Ocean County. The WILD Outdoor Expo is a terrific way for anyone, including families, to learn about New Jersey's great outdoors.

 The Expo will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, rain or shine. Admission and parking are free and so are most activities at the Expo, except for a few that are offered for a modest fee. Some activities and events require pre-registration.

The WILD Outdoor Expo is sponsored by the DEP's Division of Fish and Wildlife, and Division of Parks and Forestry, the Green Acres Program, and the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and is partially funded through a grant from the Weatherby Foundation International.

For more information including a complete listing of programs and directions to the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area, visit www.wildoutdoorexpo.com.
 

Below is article written by Darren Doran and Cathy Blumig. It was published in the September issue of the NJ Federated Sportsmen News.

 

On the Trail to Better Deer Recovery

by Darren Doran and Cathy Blumig

Darren Doran is shown here with his dog Karl after tracking this nice buck last November for a satisfied hunter. Photo courtesy D. Doran.

Time and again, studies have shown that only a small percentage of deer that hunters have attempted to bring down are not recovered. While this well-established history of excellent deer recovery rates is something of which all deer hunters can be proud, the small percentage of animals not recovered is a source of consternation nonetheless, gnawing as it does at the core of hunting’s ethical obligation to the animals that are pursued. Recently, however, a new door has been opened, which further diminishes the number of uncovered deer. Enter New Jersey’s experimental leashed tracking dog program.

For the past three hunting seasons, a study examining the use of leashed tracking dogs has been underway to help recover that small percentage of deer that hunters have had difficultly finding by themselves. This experimental program has been carried out under special permit from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife. The long-term goal of this study is to gather enough data to be able to show that qualified handler/dog teams are a useful tool in deer recovery, and that present legislation restricting their use should be modified.

During the 2011-2012 deer hunting seasons there will be twelve certified handler/dog tracking teams spread throughout New Jersey. Each team has been certified by United Blood Trackers (UBT) to perform at the UBT1 level. This level indicates that the team has demonstrated success with an unmarked deer track that is 400 yards long with two 90-degree turns and one wound bed. The track is at least two hours old and has eight ounces of deer blood along its length. The dog and handler must follow the track and find the deer part that had been placed in the field by handler/tracking dog evaluators at the end. A strict protocol is followed by participants for recovery efforts as part of the program. Before one of the certified handler/dog tracking teams even steps foot on a deer trail, the Regional Law Enforcement Office of the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife must first be notified. The hunter must have permission to search any properties where searching is to occur, prior to entering those properties. Also, no firearms or archery equipment are permitted to be carried outside of legal hunting hours.

At the conclusion of the search, a track report is completed by the handler and signed by the hunter. This track report records data including the hunter’s name and address, location of the track, the age of the track, and type of weapon used. It also records the name of the handler and dog used on the track, and whether or not the deer was recovered. This data is collected by all the trackers and submitted to Dr. Len Wolgast who then analyses the data and submits a report to the Division at the end of the season. These trackers are all volunteers, and provide this service at no charge to the hunter. There is a referral system among the trackers, and every effort is made to accommodate the hunters requesting this service.

For more information about this program contact Darren Doran at Darren@rvwsinc.com. For information about tracking dogs in general check out the national organization, United Blood Trackers at unitedbloodtrackers.org. Time will tell if certified leashed tracking dogs and handlers will be as effective in New Jersey at increasing the deer recovery rate as they have proven to be in other states. The mere effort to investigate this question is in itself a fulfillment of the ethical obligations to the animals that hunters pursue and to hunting itself.

Colors of early fall

My favorite season of the year is here!

After the Shot: How to maximize your chances of recovering game when using a blood tracking dog

We received the article from Andy Bensing, who published it at www.marylandhuntingquarterly.com.
Thank you!

Most times when a hunter fires gun or bow at a deer the animal is easily recovered by the hunter either right where it was standing or a very short distance away.  But that's not always the case.  Many circumstances can cause a shot to go awry and that's where blood tracking dogs  can help.  Even well placed shots sometimes do not produce external bleeding and the deer can run off bloodlessly several hundred yards before expiring.  Blood tracking dogs are also especially useful where time is of the essence in warm weather or in areas with large coyote or fox populations.  The advice below is beneficial for any tracking situation, dog or human eye, so if you are interested in raising your odds of finding your quarry that just ran off out of your sight, read on.

Sometimes timing is everything in a tracking job.  If you go too soon you may push the animal and if you wait too long it may spoil or be consumed by predators.  Most of the information you need to decide when to start tracking is available right when you first shoot and at or near the hit site.  It is not the purpose of this article to give detailed instructions on how and when to eye track your deer.  There are several good books written on that subject.  But rather following the advice below will maximize your chances of recovering your game should you end up needing the services of a blood tracking dog.

Right After the Shot:

1.    If you do not see the animal fall dead, pick a landmark at the last place you saw the deer disappear and at the hit site.  Use your compass and rangefinder to take a bearing and distance on those spots to help you find  them once you are out of the tree.  Even 20 yards away will look quite different once you are on the ground.
2.    As the animal runs off try to see where the animal has been hit.
3.    Remember the angle the deer was standing when you shot.
4.    Take note of the animal’s reaction when it was hit and ran off.

• jump / buck
• run hard and fast
• bound off
• hunch
• walk off slowly
• tail up / down
• limping in the front or back

Tracking your Animal:

1.    Once you have settled down after the shot and memorized or written down the above details tie a ribbon around the tree before you come down so you can easily follow your compass bearing back to where you shot from. Now you can proceed to the hit site to gather more information about the type of hit you have made.  Information gathered at the hit site will help you finalize your decision to track immediately or wait.  Your approach to the hit site as well as any tracking you will do later should be done in a calm and quiet manner so as not to spook your deer if it is still alive and laying just out of sight.  Tracking quietly may allow for a follow up shot as well.

2.    Clearly mark the hit site so it can be easily relocated.  Flagging tape hanging from a branch, not tied around a tree trunk, is best.  Toilet paper is a good emergency substitute.  Remember, depending on circumstances you do not know yet, you may have to relocate the spot in the dark.

3.    At the hit site and the whole time you are tracking

a.    Observe and remember as much sign as possible

• Hair - color, length, amount
• Blood - dark red, bright red, frothy

                         Pattern of Dispersal
                               - Dropping down from left, right, or center of deer
                               - Spraying or squirting out one side or another
                               - Height from ground when rubbed off on vegetation

• Stomach contents - gritty material in blood or on ground
• Bone fragments - pick them up and save them
• Unusual pattern of tracks that might indicate an injured leg
• If archery hunting, if and when you recover your arrow, inspect it but do not clean it off.

b.    Try your best not to step on any blood, hair, or bone.  Try to walk to the side of the trail.  Scent from these items will be transferred to your boots and contaminate the area as you search.  This does not make it impossible for a tracking dog, but it sure makes it much more difficult.

c.    Mark your trail clearly as you go and leave all the ribbons up until the deer is found.  You should always be able to see back to the last place you marked.  Again, flagging tape hung from branches works best.  Mark your trail as you go even if you are SURE your animal has fallen dead just outside your view from the stand.  Many trails that start out with lots of blood dry up after awhile and a well marked trail is not required but very valuable to the dog handler.

4.    If you jump your quarry

• Take careful note of how it is moving and for any visible signs of injury.
• Try to locate the spot where it bedded and mark it well.
• Back off the trail and call the tracking dog.

 5.    When Blood / Sign runs out – Point of Loss

If you know you will be using a blood tracking dog, it is best to just back off and call the dog at this point.  If you have been careful to not step in blood along the way, it is acceptable to carefully search out ahead and behind to try and locate more sign, but the more searching you do, the more difficult you make it for the tracking dog.  Keep this in mind as the trail begins to run out.  If you do search out from the point of loss it is useful to the dog handler to mark with your ribbons the farthest points you have gone.  Tie a knot in the middle of the ribbon to distinguish them from ribbons marking sign.

By following the above procedures you will give the blood tracking dog and handler the best advantage possible in finding your deer, but keep in mind tracking dogs do not find them all.  Typically leashed blood tracking dogs recover about 35% of the deer they track.  About 50% of the time the dog and handler will uncover sign and circumstance that show the deer is not mortally wounded.  Often the deer is jumped and visually confirmed as likely to recover.  The remaining 15% of the time the tracking is stopped or the trail is lost for various or unknown reasons.  Regardless of the outcome, after you call in a blood tracking dog you can leave the field that day knowing you have given your best effort possible to recover your game.

Find-a-Tracker at www.unitedbloodtrackers.org

Andy Bensing with his tracking dachshund Eibe.

Reunion, and puppy socialization with kids

John used to teach history at the Hofstra University on Long Island, and he retired in 2000. He was surprised when four years ago he received e-mail from Ginna, who used to be his student. As it turned out John was her favorite teacher, and she named her first daughter after him - Jeanneney. Well... how cool is that? I have to admit that I feel some sympathy for Jeanneney as I know how difficult it is to pronounce this name properly. But it is my last name, not my first name so I can't even imagine how Jeanneny handles her name in every day situations. She also goes by JC.

Jeanneney is now twelve and a half years old, and today she visited us together with her mom Ginna and her younger sister Dominique. They played with Bella and then with our almost five-week-old puppies. It was a great opportunity to start a process of socializing puppies with unfamiliar people and kids. There is a lot of good information on the web why socialization is important so there is no need to repeat it. For a good article on the topic click here.

A six-year-old Dominique

Jeanneney and Dominique playing with puppies

Jeanneney, Dominique and Ginna

It was good to see Jeanneney and her family again. After pups had fallen asleep John took them on a short drive of the area that was devastated by Irene. The damage is the nearby Schoharie is just unbelievable.

The blog is three years old!

On September 5, 2008 we created the blog and and posted for the first time. So it looks like tomorrow we should celebrate a three year anniversary. In total there have been 594 posts and  around 130,600 page views. A big thank you to the readers for joining us on this journey. Hopefully it has been worthwhile your time. Also many thanks for sharing with us your stories and pictures, and for providing feedback. We could not do it without you!

The anniversary might be a good time to reflect a little bit. Let us know what you think. Why are you here? If you read regularly, what do you value the most? What features don't you like? Is the blog too narrow in scope, too wide or just right? Too many pictures? Not enough humor? Too much substance or not enough of it?  What is your favorite post?

I think that the blog reflects our own focus on education and information sharing. But it also provided us with a forum to talk about our own lives and what we are passionate about - blood tracking and hunting dogs, dachshunds raised out of European bloodlines, ethical hunting, photography.  Posting 2-3 times a week takes time and work, that's for sure, but it is actually hard to imagine how our lives used to be in the pre-blog days. No doubt that the blog has become an important part of our life. We appreciate that you have come along.

I'll close this with post with a picture of me with my first dachshund puppy. It was taken in 1977 in Warsaw, Poland, by my first husband Chris. the dachshund was a standard smooth out of pet breeding, and her name was Zuzia. Zuzia accompanied Chris and me when we immigrated to Canada (via refugee camp in Turkey), and she died in 1990 in Edmonton, Canada. She certainly changed my life. I hope that the dogs present in your life have changed it too for the better.

Jolanta Jeanneney with her first dachshund puppy in 1977.

Passion for blood tracking and a nine-year-old friendship

Yesterday afternoon I got a call from Susanne Hamilton from Maine. We talked about our puppies, but I sensed that there was more to this conversation. I asked her whether she was driving somewhere (she often calls when she drives). She said that yes, she was on her way to Caribou. I had no idea where Caribou was, so she explained. She was on her way to track a wounded bear in Caribou, Maine, at least FOUR hours away from her home. I also learned that she has to be back home by morning as she has a very busy day ahead.

Now, how many women you know would do that? Drive four hours by herself to track a wounded bear at night for strangers, turn around and drive back home to face a very busy day filled with horse training. I know only one woman who would do that, and it is Susanne. At 12:45 AM I got a text message that Buster did a superb job tracking but unfortunately they did not find the bear. The details followed, but this post is not about a detailed description of the call. We talked more today while Susanne was still high from the excitement of tracking a wounded bear. You see there is nothing more than she loves to do. Some trackers get addicted to this stuff... I know as I live with one of the addicts.

After we'd hung up, my mind wandered to the first contact with Susanne. It was on October 1, 2002, nine years ago, when I received e-mail from her with a picture of Buster:

Hi Jolanta

My name is Susanne Hamilton, and I LOVE your website and your pictures. I just got a beautiful and well bred wirehaired dackel from Germany from a private breeder (Gerhard Weick) who does hunting and showing ..

My little dog "Clown vom Talsdeich" (who we call Buster Keaton) is the most amazing dog I have ever had... he outsmarts my German Shepherd by so much, it's scary. I hadn't seen much in ways of Wirehair Dachshunds in the US, and had wondered if I have an exceptional little male over here, and now that I do, I find you site... (actually through the German breeder) and see that there are BEAUTIFUL ones already here..

I would love to know what I can do, to join the north american kennel club, and how I would go about to let my little guy go for stud, when he's of age... or does he have to prove himself at breed shows or hunting clubs? He comes form excellent hunting lines... seems to take his time with his coat at the moment but in one picture of you and one of the pups, I saw a similarity.

Buster is only just three and a half months old, and we have a lot to learn (but are willing).

Best regards

Susanne Hamilton and Buster

What happened in the next nine years could fill a book, and maybe one day it will. Enough to say that in 2009 and 2010 Susanne received the Maine Bowhunters Association Award in recognition of her accomplishments and dedication to bowhunting sport. Her dachshund Buster (who never manged to grow a beard) turned out to be one of the best tracking dachshunds and also won the Dachshund Club of America National Field Trial twice. The puppies that are at my feet right now are Buster's "grandchildren". And I got a GREAT friend for life! Congratulations Susanne - I am so proud of you and Buster!



Susanne with Meggie, Buster's daughter

The beauty of nature in the Helderbergs

Sometimes I think that the wonder and beauty of the sky have no limits...