My advice is to call a tracker as soon as you realize that you have an unusually difficult trail on your hands.  A couple of hours is normally enough time for a hard hit animal to bed up and expire.   With the exception of a gut shot, the sooner we can get to you the better.  A gut shot animal is better left unpursued for six to eight hours.  Also getting to a trail quickly will reduce the number of times the trail has been crossed by healthy deer or hogs, meaning less scent that the dog has to sort through to pick out the right one. 

 

Mark the location where the animal was standing when hit, where you found first blood, and where the trail was lost at a minimum.  Marking blood spots in between can be extremely helpful to the handler so we can make sure the dog is on the right line.  Marking tape, toilet paper, reflective tacks or clips are best but anything will work in a pinch.  The last thing you want is to be wandering around in the dark trying to find old sign before we even start to track.   

 

Was the shot made with a gun or a bow?

Where was the shot on the animal's body? 

What was the angle of the shot?

How much penetration?  Was it a pass through?

What was the animal's reaction?

How much blood and what color did you find at the site?

 

All I ask for tracking is as much blood as we can salvage from any animals found, a piece of liver or fat for Eagle,and whatever gas money that it took to get me there.