Training for success
My number one goal for every tracking dog that I train is to develop a tracking partner that will put game on the tailgate, and in the freezer. This is an easy goal to set, but harder to achieve with consistency. Running marked training tracks is an important part of working on specific tracking tasks. However, it is difficult to know exactly how well your dog is doing without running "blind tracks" where the line is laid by another person. This adds another degree of uncertainty to the track, and forces the handler to read the dog. It also requires the handler to trust the dog in a way that a known track does not.
The Europeans have long been proponents of tracking testing in their dogs. These tracks are typically blind, and have various levels of difficulty. United Blood Trackers developed similar tracking tests for tracking teams shortly after their inception. Unlike the European tests which are typically graded based up levels or "prizes," the UBT tests are pass or fail based upon whether or not the team would likely have recovered the wounded animal. The tests vary by distance, age of the track, and overall difficulty of the track.
Though I am not a huge fan of tests, just for the sake of tests, these tracking exercises are as close to real life tracks as a handler can get. Not only are the tracking lines meant to be challenging, but the added pressure of having a brace of judges and a group of fellow trackers following behind is not dissimilar to the pressure experienced on some more difficult game tracks.
Earlier this month, I traveled to the annual United Blood Trackers meeting dubbed "Trackfest," which was held in Edmond, OK. This is typically the largest gathering of blood trackers in the country. The first day of this year's Trackfest was dedicated to testing.
When I arrived in Oklahoma, I knew that we were in for a tough test. The weather conditions were every tracker's nightmare...hot, windy, and dry. On the afternoon that the tracks were laid, the wind was howling at a steady 35 mph, and gusting well over 40 mph! Additionally, the area was bone dry, with forest fires raging nearby. Though temps were in the 30's and 40's the morning we left Missouri, the Oklahoma weather had jumped into the 80's by the time we arrived.
As I met with other tracking teams who had arrived from across the country, it was clear that we were all less than excited about the conditions. As the judges rolled into the hotel lot after laying the tracks for the following day's tests, they too voiced some concerns about what we might lay ahead.
I was hopeful that the wind would lay down overnight, and present a calmer environment for our tracking test. This was not to be, though. The wind howled throughout the evening, and was just as strong when I awoke the following day. I have to say that I was less than excited about our chances of a successful test. Despite all of our hard work training, every dog has its limitations. The conditions we were facing for our UBT II test were certainly pushing any dog's abilities.
To add to the difficulty of the weather conditions, I had opted to run Boone's UBT II test using scent shoes. Typically a UBT II test track is laid using 8 ounces of blood over a roughly 800 yard course. Multiple turns are added to increase the difficulty, and tracks are aged overnight. Alternately, a tracker can choose to use hoof shoes and only 3 ounces of blood over the same course. Much of that blood is used in simulated wound beds, leaving very little for the track itself. Most agree that this method of track laying and testing is significantly more difficult as hoof scent tends to be more volatile than blood. Under the current weather conditions, I was concerned that we might not even be able to get started on the track.
On the morning of the test, all of the tracking teams met at a staging site, and drew numbers which coincided with tracking lines. I was somewhat surprised to find out that I would not be drawing a number as Boone and I were the only team dumb enough to have opted for a UBT II using scent shoes. After all the numbers were drawn, we loaded up with the judges and a caravan of spectators, and headed off to the test site.
For me, some amount of anxiety accompanies every tracking test. Much of this has to do with my type A personality and competitive nature. I hate to fail at anything. Also, I have witnessed some of the most accomplished tracking dogs in the country fail this particular test when conditions were tricky. You never know what sort of obstacles or distractions lay ahead of your dog. Furthermore, we would be followed by 2 accomplished judges and a group of our tracking peers. Also, on this particular track, a videographer with the Oklahoma Outdoors TV show was along to document our test. You never know how the dog may react to all of these distractions. Add to that the horrible weather conditions we were facing, and I had some serious doubts about how we may perform.
As I buckled up Boone's tracking harness, I had to keep telling myself to trust my dog's training and avoid over-handling him. In stressful situations it is easy to doubt your dog, and try to pressure him into moving in the direction that you think the track may have gone.. However, I was absolutely running blind on this track, so I was determined to stay at the end of the leash, and let him work.
I reflected a bit on all that this young dog had accomplished in such a short time. At 4 months old he was already running live tracks, and recovering deer. By the time he was 7 months old, he had 11 recoveries under his belt, with a couple being over 24 hours old. He had progressed more rapidly than any dog that I had trained, and continued to show amazing skills on even the toughest tracks. My long search for the "perfect tracking dog" had been rewarded with a hound who was a pleasure to train, and a delight in nearly every aspect. Now, at 10 1/2 months old, we were facing our biggest challenge.
I started Boone on the track, and after taking in the scent, he was off to the races. He moved from the starting flag to the second and final flag about 20 yards away. He was on! After that flag, the entire track would be blind. He started down the track at a nice pace, covering ground slowly and carefully. The track started in a short grass prairie with very little cover to hold the scent. A strong cross wind howled across the dry, sparse grass. Not surprisingly, Boone casted back and forth across the track as he progressed down a gentle hill. He seemed unphased by the entourage following behind us. I was starting to feel a little better, but that was to be short lived.
Less than 100 yards into the track, my fears were born out. First I saw 2 rabbits rush out from under a bush just ahead of us. Boone didn't pay them any mind. Then a herd of 5 deer blew out in front of us. Boone immediately raised his head, and sucked in the scent of the deer which had run directly upwind of us. As I was unsure as to whether or not the trail continued in the direction the deer had run, I had to let him work it out. He moved cautiously in the direction of the deer. His head remained raised, so after a short distance, I called him back to where he had left the trail, to see if he would take the track back up. Without hesitation, he was back on track, and advancing away from the live deer.
The track eventually moved into a wooded area where Boone tracked flawlessly until hot deer scent caught his attention again. Having trained through many similar situations, it was easy for me to tell that Boone was scenting fresh deer scent in the air, rather than 19 hour old hoof scent. I called him back, gave him a quick correction, and restarted him on the trail. After several circular searches, Boone was able to pick up a 90 degree turn, and progress back into an open area.
We moved slowly up a hill, and along a limestone rock ledge. Boone moved back and forth along the face of the ledge, trying to pick up the trail. As I stopped to examine a drop of blood along the edge of the ledge, I was surprised to turn and see Boone rushing up the limestone slope. I knew that hoof scent would not stay on the limestone, but noticed a few drops of blood going up the rock face. What were these judges doing to me? Thankfully, Boone was unphased.
At the top of the hill, I stopped to water Boone for the 3rd time during this test. The hot conditions were taking their toll. Still, I knew that we had to be getting close to the finish line. After catching his breath, Boone went back to tracking, and took us quickly to the track's end, where a deer hide lay hidden under a cedar tree!
I let out a loud "Hallelujah!" To say that I was proud of this pup was an understatement. Our many months of training and growing as a team had brought us successfully to complete our UBT II under remarkably adverse conditions. None of this would have been possible without a clear training plan tailored to developing a successful tracking dog. In order to achieve this level of accomplishment, it helps to train for success.
