This weekend we laid Cody’s first official blood tracks!
It’s so amazing to watch a dog figure out something new. Cody has been an amazing tracking dog since his first dragged duck but the game is different with a blood track.
Consistency is key in a formal “big game” blood track, whatever your pre-track ritual is, make it the same every time. Make it formal, make it serious, and make it clear to the dog what you’re asking them to do. To me, the most important part of any training with a dog is communication, if your dog understands what you’re asking them do, they will understand why you’re praising them when they do something, or correcting them when they do something, and every act becomes a step forward to completing an aspect of training.
It is no different with a blood track, make it clear to them what they are tracking, typically by the time you’re training blood tracking your dog has tracked ducks, pheasant, rabbits, and any number of other game; so especially when starting out, make the goal clear, and don’t be afraid to help them stay focused and aid them being successful (just don’t become the only reason they’re able to stay on the blood track.)
More important than any other part of blood tracking setup or execution though? Make it fun. It’s a balance of serious, formal, successful, and fun. A dog may be good at blood tracking without fun, but if they like it, if they have fun doing it, if they truly enjoy, you can help them become great.
Vom Tetontal 
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