Doe for the freezer

[Pappy]

What a great morning, deer or no deer it was a beautiful day in the woods. It was cold and clear and the morning started of kind of like i was expecting, deer moving every where. About 7am I had a buck chasing a doe, well she made the mistake of stopping in the wrong place, I would usually wait to see what the buck would do but since I am Bucked out I took the shot at the doe. Hit her forward in the right front shoulder and she was quartering a bit. I could see my arrow from the stand, she broke it as she wheeled to leave, I could see 15 inches of arrow was gone and blood almost to the fletching, also could see blood with my bi nos about 10 yards from where I had shot her, I gave her 45 minutes and got down to check things out. The blood was very good and no problem to track so I started the track, I thought it would be a short one, well 300 yards later I was getting a little worried, the trail was still good, maybe not as good as the first 200 yards but still easy to follow. I marked it and went back to the cabin to get out of my hot hunting cloth then went back to finish the track. I went another 50 or 60 yards and came on a gully line and thought she may just be piled up in it, about the time I thought that she jumped up out of it and headed east at a pretty good clip, now I am really getting worried. I check the gully and fine her bed, the first one on the track. I had seen several places she had stopped and stood but no beds. Each time she would stop she would change direction. I pulled off after finding the bed, lots of time after they bed and lick their wounds the blood trail really fall off, no different with this one. I give he a couple of hours and me and Sister go back. Sister picked it right up and made short work of another 300+ yards. I thought maybe I was pushing her but when we found her she had been dead a while, already stiffened up. We found 3 more bed between the first one and her. After a close look after Field dressing I found I only got the right lung in the front lob and exit was in front of left shoulder in the brisket so missed the left lung. I have had several deer hit in 1 lung before and the usually go 50/60 yards and if they don't know what happened they will bed, just goes to show you their are some assumptions but no real rules when tracking deer , she probably went 600/700 yards total and with out Sister I ant saying I wouldn't have found her because I am pretty much a search till all options are gone and then a little more kind of guy [Buck or doe ] but it for sure would have been a much longer day. 1st picture is the first bed/ 2nd is when I first seen her in the gully line, they seem to always wind up in a gully it seems for me so I search them well/ 3rd Sister anticipating her slice of fresh liver.  / Sister like to ride back in the back of the Kobota and guard her prize.  90 lbs doe /Osage self bow/PO cedar arrows with Ace 160 heads. Pappy

[Pappy]

And last after a long track and 300 yard drag back to the Kobota home sweet home, now to skin and bone out tomorrow. 
 Pappy

[Pat B]

Congrats, Pappy. You've had a good season this year.   

[chamookman]

Good job Pappy and Sister  ! Bob

[BowEd]

Good follow up by you and your sister dog.Congrats.
I hate to give up too.
For some reason deer like to die in the gullys or washes here too.

[Pappy]

Guess if they can make it and have a choice they feel safe and out of sight in a gully or ditch line. Guess this was just another lesson in why so many deer are lost, they can do the strangest things and with out a good blood trail to follow and given the fact that they can go a long way even hurt bad and never seems to be the way you think they should go it is tough to just walk them up, covering ground that you really don't think in you way of thinking  that they would have gone to is tough to make yourself do it. I have found over the years that they usually go just opposite of what you think they should.  Like the thought that a hard hit deer won't go up hill ,will bed quickly or will always go to water, just ant true. Sometimes it works out that way but for sure not a set rule. Thanks guys, yes Pat it has been a good season so far. 
 Pappy

[PaSteve]

Congrats on a fine doe, Pappy. Persistence is a welcomed virtue when it comes to tracking hard to find deer.  Also, a big congrats to sister on a job well done!

[BowEd]

They just made it legal in Iowa to use a dog to blood trail deer.Might need to check into that.

[Pappy]

You can use them in Tennessee but they have to be on a leash, I had Red Bones for years and love them dogs but have gotten to old to handle one of them on a leash, My best dog was Old Dan he was 80 + pounds and track over 100 deer in in life, 7 years if the deer died he found it , no question, I have had many deer that the guy would say I think the deer went this way and i would say WELL Old Dan said he went this way and I am going with Old Dan. He was always right. they can be trained on a leash but not really bread for a leash I don't think, Sister is just the right size a little slower and don't pull so hard and is getting better all the time, she will be 4 in April, you just have to learn to trust the dog and sometimes that is hard to do, I get more trust in her every time out. 
 Pappy

[BrianS]

Pappy,
Congratulations and Happy Thanksgiving
brian

[BowEd]

Yes Pappy the law here says the dog needs to stay on a leash to trail blood deer here too.One thing a houndman learns about his hounds is that he has hunted for a while with success is to trust what he or she is saying and what he or she is showing you.It's a partnership.You do your job and I'll do mine.

[Pappy]

Yes that is very true Ed and probably the hardest part to understand, had some other buddies that wanted a tracking dog, when we went out on a track they would try and lead the dog where they thought the deer went instead of trusting the dog and by doing that it usually didn't turn out well.It sometimes take a while, several tracks but once the dog figures out what you want, the wounded deer, not just any deer then you have to trust them and go where they say not where you think they should go.They just amaze me once they get that figured out.
 Pappy

[BowEd]

You bet their an asset.That's a case where the dog or hound is smarter than it's owner.These hounds educate people too.

[Pappy]

Yes they have taught me a lot about tracking, even if they aren’t with me I remember things they did.    Pappy

[BowEd]

Patience with guidance is what humans can give dogs.In turn they give things back that we can't duplicate.Nothing more devoted than a dog.