Hello Everyone,
Please allow me to introduce myself. I own and operate a small pest control company in Michigan. In 2004 while at a national convention I saw a dog find termites I hid in a 100,000 sq ft building. I was amazed and purchased my first K9, a Black and Tan hound named Elvis Pest Lee. Elvis is trained to detect termites and carpenter ants. At first, all I saw was the potential for extra revenue. But it soon turned into a source of fun, relaxation, and commitment.

That was the beginning of a new passion in my life. I have absolutely fallen in love with working with dogs, in any area whether it be obedience, scent detection, or behavioral modification. I have had pretty good luck, for lack of a better term, getting k9's to work with me in most new projects I've tried. I foster parent dogs from our local shelter and train them in obedience in the hopes we can find a good home for them. I offer free training to adoptive dog parents in the hopes that the dogs don't end up back at the shelter after a few short weeks. This really hasn't been motivated by money as much as my new found love for dogs. But if I could make a living doing this - I'd be done with bugs tomorrow.

The reason I joined this forum was to learn. I WILL ask a dumb question from time to time and I'll accept a beating IF you'll follow up with an answer to the dumb question. I'm reading everything I can find on K9 training. I ordered several books and videos from this very site today. It is my sincere hope that you'll tolerate me and educate me as much as possible. I thank you in advance for any help.

So..... Question #1
I shot a huge 8 or 9 point buck this year during bow season and lost the blood trail about 500 yds from where I hit him. I searched for an entire day with know luck and it was a good shot- I know the deer dropped. I checked with my state and it is legal to track deer with a dog but I haven't a clue about tracker training. I ordered a book and video from this sight that I hope will help me but does anyone have any other suggestions? In scent detection I look for a dog that loves to chase a toy or ball and one that exhibits the ability to search for a ball when thrown out of site. Is this the type of dog needed for tracking?

Thanks again and I hope to get to know you all in the future.